Scanning electron microscopic evidence for a budding mode of chloroplast multiplication in higher plants

Scanning electron microscopic observations of leaf sections of certain plants show two distinct types of chloroplast multiplication. In the normal mode, chloroplast division is achieved by binary fission. In Bryophyllum pinnatum Kurz. the chloroplast multiplication occurs by a process similar to the budding of yeast. The advantages of using scanning electron microscopy to follow closely the different stages of chloroplast division are demonstrated.