An oil body is a

lipid Lipids are a broad group of naturally-occurring molecules which includes fats, waxes, sterols, fat-soluble vitamins (such as vitamins A, D, E and K), monoglycerides, diglycerides, phospholipids, and others. The functions of lipids in ...

-containing structure found in plant cells. The term can refer to at least two distinct kinds of structures in different kinds of plants.

Oil bodies in liverworts

Liverwort The Marchantiophyta () are a division of non-vascular land plants commonly referred to as hepatics or liverworts. Like mosses and hornworts, they have a gametophyte-dominant life cycle, in which cells of the plant carry only a single set of ...

complex oil bodies The oil bodies of liverworts, occasionally dubbed “complex” for distinction, are unique organelles exclusive to the Marchantiophyta. They are markedly different from the oil bodies found in algae and other plants in that they are membrane-bound ...

are structures unique to liverworts that contain

isoprenoid The terpenoids, also known as isoprenoids, are a class of naturally occurring organic chemicals derived from the 5-carbon compound isoprene and its derivatives called terpenes, diterpenes, etc. While sometimes used interchangeably with "terpene ...

essential oil An essential oil is a concentrated hydrophobic liquid containing volatile (easily evaporated at normal temperatures) chemical compounds from plants. Essential oils are also known as volatile oils, ethereal oils, aetheroleum, or simply as the o ...

s and are surrounded by a single membrane. The size, shape, color, and number of oil bodies per cell is characteristic of certain species and may be used to identify these.

Oil bodies in vascular plants

Some species of

vascular plants Vascular plants (), also called tracheophytes () or collectively Tracheophyta (), form a large group of land plants ( accepted known species) that have lignified tissues (the xylem) for conducting water and minerals throughout the plant. They ...

also contain intracellular structures called oil bodies. Vascular plant oil bodies consist mainly of

triacylglycerols A triglyceride (TG, triacylglycerol, TAG, or triacylglyceride) is an ester derived from glycerol and three fatty acids (from ''tri-'' and ''glyceride''). Triglycerides are the main constituents of body fat in humans and other vertebrates, as we ...

surrounded by a layer consisting of

phospholipid Phospholipids, are a class of lipids whose molecule has a hydrophilic "head" containing a phosphate group and two hydrophobic "tails" derived from fatty acids, joined by an alcohol residue (usually a glycerol molecule). Marine phospholipids typ ...

s and the protein oleosin. These oil bodies occur largely in seeds but also occur in other plant parts, including leaves.

Oil bodies in seeds

Oil Bodies are the organelle that has evolved to hold triglycerides in plant cells. They are therefore the principal store of chemical energy in oleaginous seeds. The structure and composition of plant seed oil bodies has been the subject of research from at least as far back as the 1980s, with several papers published in the 80s and 90s. Recent work, using updated techniques, has given a detailed molecular profile of oil bodies. It now seems that proteins out-number lipids on the surface of oil bodies, and that one protein in particular, called oleosin, dominates. The lipid and protein fractions of oil bodies are remarkable because they maintain a coherent monolayer over a wide temperature and hydration range.

Gallery

Microscopic views of liverwort cells, showing a variety of oil body shapes and arrangements. File:Nardia scalaris Blattzellen IMG 8353.jpg, ''

Nardia ''Nardia'' is a genus of liverwort The Marchantiophyta () are a division of non-vascular land plants commonly referred to as hepatics or liverworts. Like mosses and hornworts, they have a gametophyte-dominant life cycle, in which cells of ...

scalaris'', a leafy liverwort File:Ptilidium ciliare laminazellen.jpeg, '' Ptilidium ciliare'', a leafy liverwort File:Chiloscyphus pallescens zellen.jpeg, ''Chiloscyphus pallescens'', a leafy liverwort File:Cephalozia connivens flankenblatt.jpeg, ''Cephalozia connivens'', a leafy liverwort which lacks oil bodies File:Metzgeria furcata lamina.jpeg, '' Metzgeria furcata'', a thallose liverwort

References

Liverworts Plant anatomy Cell anatomy {{Bryophyte-stub