Single-Cell Sampling and Analysis (SiCSA)

Single-cell sampling and analysis allows the determination of solute concentrations in individual cells and tissues. This is particularly important when studying a stress such as salinity, where the cell- and tissue-specific distribution of sodium and chloride may decide a plant’s fate. In this chapter, some selected SiCSA methods are described in detail, and their advantages and possible pitfalls discussed. These methods include pressure-driven extraction of cell contents (cell sap sampling) and the analysis of extracted cell sap through picolitre osmometry (osmolality), energy-dispersive X-ray analysis (concentrations of Na, K, P, S, Cl, Ca), and microfluorometry (concentrations of, for example, nitrate and total amino acids).