Cell Expansion: Past, Present and Perspectives -- Solute and Water Relations of Growing Plant Cells -- Cellulose and Cell Elongation -- Hemicelluloses and Cell Expansion -- Roles of the XTH Protein Family in the Expanding Cell -- Expansins -- Pectic Polysaccharides and Expanding Cell Walls -- Redox and Wall-Restructuring -- Mechanics of the Expanding Cell Wall -- The Cytoskeleton and Co-Ordination of Directional Expansion in a Multicellular Context -- The Control of Cell Size and Rate of Elongation in the Arabidopsis Root -- Signal Crosstalk in the Control of Hypocotyl Elongation in Arabidopsis.

After division, plant cells are able to increase their volume enormously by cell expansion, making the expanding cell a crucial player in the production of biomass. The study of plant cell expansion involves many different disciplines and technical approaches, and this book is the first attempt to bring this diversity together to present a multifaceted view of the most up-to-date knowledge. Included are data ranging from biophysical measurements and chemical analysis to molecular biological approaches and microscopy.