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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 03/09/2026

🌱 What does a plant cell wall actually do? It helps cells withstand pressure, control growth, connect with neighbours and respond to environmental challenges. The cell wall is anything but static. #PlantWallK #PlantCellWall #PlantBiology #PlantScience #CellWallResearch

Onion (Allium sp.) epidermis. Light microscopy. Juan Carlos Fonseca Mata. Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 01/09/2026

🌱 Primary or secondary cell wall? Primary walls surround growing cells. Secondary walls provide additional strength in specialised cells and tissues. Different structures for different jobs. #PlantWallK #PlantCellWall #PlantBiology #PlantDevelopment #CellWallResearch

Growing plant cells produce a primary cell wall around themselves. Some cells add a sturdy secondary cell wall to protect themselves against pathogens and drought. The strength of the secondary cell wall is primarily provided by lignin (and the size of the wall). The plant cell, with a vacuole in blue, is shown in the middle. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. Author: Caroline Dahl.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 31/08/2026

🧱 One wall. Many materials. Cellulose, hemicelluloses, pectins, proteins and lignin come together to build the plant cell wall. And their organisation matters just as much as their composition, making them fascinating study subjects. #PlantCellWall #Cellulose #Pectin #Lignin #PlantBiology

Uploaded a work by Christophe Loix, Michiel Huybrechts, Jaco Vangronsveld, Marijke Gielen, Els Keunen, Ann Cuypers from https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2017.01867/full. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 27/08/2026

🔬Technique Spotlight: Brillouin Microscopy Brillouin microscopy measures the mechanical properties of plant cells and tissues without physical contact. A powerful tool for exploring plant cell wall mechanics. 📷 Onion epidermal cells #PlantWallK #BrillouinMicroscopy #PlantCellWall

Brillouin microscopy image of onion epidermal cells. A grayscale microscopy image shows the cellular structure, with a coloured inset mapping the Brillouin frequency shift across the tissue from purple to yellow. The scale bar represents 5 µm.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 24/08/2026

👀 Can you recognise the plant cell walls? Look closely at the boundaries between the cells. Can you guess what tissue or organism this image comes from? 🌱 #PlantWallK #PlantCellWall #Microscopy #PlantScience #GuessTheImage 📸 @laurabacete.bsky.social

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 20/08/2026

🔬 How far does plant cell wall research take us? 🧪 cellulose ↓ 🧱 cellulose microfibril ↓ 🔬 cell wall ↓ 🌱 cell ↓ 🌿 tissue ↓ 🌳 whole plant Understanding how changes at one scale affect another is one of the major challenges (and opportunities) in the field. #PlantCellWall #PlantScience #Biophysics

Simple illustrated diagram showing the organisation of plant cell wall structures across scales: a cellulose molecule → cellulose microfibril → cell wall → individual plant cell → tissue → whole plant. Green botanical illustrations are connected by arrows to show how these levels build from molecular structures to the complete plant.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 17/08/2026

🌱 Why Arabidopsis thaliana? This tiny plant is one of the most widely used model organisms in plant science. Its small genome, short generation time and extensive genetic resources make it a powerful system for plant biology, including cell wall formation and function. 📷 @laurabacete.bsky.social

Several young Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings growing in dark potting soil in a small plant growth container. The seedlings have small, rounded green leaves and slender stems at an early stage of development. A magnifying glass is positioned above the plants, suggesting close observation of the seedlings.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 15/08/2026

⏰ 1 day left! Applications for the PlantWallK Training School close tomorrow. 🔬 Learn FLIM for plant cell wall imaging 📍 Prague 🗓 15–16 Sept 2026 Apply now: plantwallk.org/training-sch... #PlantWallK #FLIM #PlantScience

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 11/08/2026

🔬 If you could learn one new technique for studying plant cell walls, what would it be? • FLIM • AFM • Raman • Electron microscopy • Spatial transcriptomics • Computational modelling • Something else! Tell us below 👇 #PlantWallK #PlantScience 📸 Jan Martinek.

False-colour confocal microscopy image of elongated plant cells showing brightly labelled cell walls (yellow, orange and red) surrounding a network of blue cytoskeletal filaments within each cell. The image demonstrates the level of detail that modern microscopy can reveal in plant tissues. Image credit: Jan Martinek.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 10/08/2026

What makes a research network valuable? For us, it is the people. PlantWallK connects researchers working on plant cell walls across disciplines through meetings, Training Schools and collaborative projects. Learn more: www.plantwallk.org #PlantWallK #PlantScience #COSTAction

plantwallk.org

PlantWallK · COST Action CA24116

PlantWallK COST Action CA24116 — European network advancing plant cell wall research through integrated methods, data analysis, and modelling.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 06/08/2026

Modern imaging techniques allow us to observe plant cell walls with remarkable detail, from fluorescent reporters to electron microscopy and mechanical imaging. Each method provides a different perspective on this complex and dynamic structure. Which #microscopy technique is your favourite?

Illustration of Kircher's microscope, from Musaeum Kircherianum (1709) by Filippo Buonanni, curator of the Kircher Museum in the Collegio Romano. Image sourced from the Public Domain Image Archive / Biodiversity Heritage Library / Smithsonian Libraries and Archives

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 04/08/2026

💡 Why study plant cell walls? Plant cell walls influence almost every aspect of plant life: 🌱 Growth 🌾 Crop yield 🦠 Disease resistance 💧 Drought tolerance 🌍 Sustainable biomaterials Understanding them benefits both fundamental science and society. #PlantWallK #PlantResearch #CellWall #PlantBiology

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 03/08/2026

📅 Reminder: the PlantWallK WG2 webinar on Image & Data Analysis takes place this Friday, 7 August, at 14:00 CEST. 🔹 Tereza Belinova (ISTA) — From Pixels to Patterns 🔹 Beatriz Serrano-Solano (EMBL Heidelberg) — AI4Life Highlights 🔹 Host: @stephanevrg.bsky.social #PlantCellWall #AI #ImageAnalysis

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 31/07/2026

📢 Applications are open! PlantWallK Training School: Beyond Intensity: FLIM for Plant Cell Wall Imaging. 🗓 15–16 Sept 2026 📍 Prague, Czech Republic ⏳ Apply by 16 August: plantwallk.org/training-sch... #PlantWallK #FLIM #PlantScience #Microscopy

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 30/07/2026

Cellulose is the most abundant biopolymer on Earth, but it is only one component of the plant cell wall. Pectins, hemicelluloses, structural proteins and lignin all contribute to the remarkable properties of plant cell walls. #PlantWallK #Cellulose #PlantCellWall #PlantScience

Cellulose nanofiber network. Image by Qspheroid4, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 28/07/2026

AFM lets researchers measure plant cell wall mechanics at the nanoscale, revealing stiffness changes during growth, development, or stress and how plants shape and respond to their environment. Have you used AFM in your research? #PlantWallK #AFM #Biomechanics #PlantScience #Microscopy

Picture of AFM microscope at UPSC facility

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 27/07/2026

Plant cell walls aren’t rigid; they’re dynamic materials that adapt during growth, development, and environmental change. Understanding them boosts crop resilience, enables sustainable biomaterials, and deepens our knowledge of #PlantBiology. What aspect of the plant cell wall fascinates you most?

Owing to osmotic loss of water from the vacuole, the living protoplast of a plant cell is detached from the cell wall during plasmolysis. This process is induced by hypertonic salt or sugar solutions. A network‐like structure, surrounded by the plasma membrane, remains closely attached to the cell wall. Image credit: Krishna satya 333, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 21/07/2026

🔬 Postdoc opportunity: how do plant cells sense and respond to changes in their cell walls? Join the @cellwalldynamics.com lab @umeaplantsciencecentre.se, integrating Brillouin, O-PTIR & spatial transcriptomics on the Arabidopsis root. Deadline 31 Aug 2026 🔗 buff.ly/cPFemXd #PlantScience #Postdoc

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 20/07/2026

📢 Two postdoc positions available in @mc-caillaud.bsky.social's group (RDP lab, ENS de Lyon), part of an ERC Consolidator. Project: how plant cells orient their division, combining cell biology, molecular genetics, and mechanical modelling. 📅 Deadline: 1 Oct 26 | Start: Nov 26 onwards Details 🧵👇

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 19/07/2026

Proud to support our young scientists in the #PlantWallK network!!

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 17/07/2026

📢 PlantWallK WG2 Webinar — "Image & Data Analysis" Join us for an introduction to AI for image processing, with two talks: 🔹 Tereza Belinova (ISTA) — From Pixels to Patterns 🔹 Beatriz Serrano-Solano (EMBL Heidelberg) — AI4Life Highlights 🔹 Hosted by @stephanevrg.bsky.social 📅 Fri 7 Aug, 14:00 CEST

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 18/06/2026

🌿 A slice of the PlantWallK delegation at #CellWall2026 in Porto! If you want to know more about COST Action and how to get involved, come find us, we are happy to chat! 😊 #PlantWallK #COST

Four PlantWallK COST Action members posing in front of the XVII Plant Cell Wall Meeting welcome banner at Fundação Cupertino de Miranda, Porto.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 18/06/2026

🌿 Great talk today at #CellWall2026 by Daniele Coculo, exploring how cell wall remodelling shapes resistance to Xylella fastidiosa in olive. Proud to have supported his participation through a PlantWallK YRI Conference Grant! #PlantWallK #COST

Daniele Coculo presenting at the XVII Plant Cell Wall Meeting in Porto. The acknowledgements slide is projected on screen, showing collaborators from Sapienza University of Rome, IPSP-CNR Bari, and Universidad de Málaga, along with funding logos including PlantWallK COST Action

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 12/06/2026

Sharing a relevant opportunity to our network 🌱 The 2026 Plant Computational Biology Workshop (10th ed.), 7–11 Sept at ENS Lyon, covers biophysics, maths, AI applied to plant development, incl. cell walls. Free, registration required. pcbw.inria.fr/registration/ #PlantBiology #PlantWallK

pcbw.inria.fr

Registration – Plant Computational Biology Workshop (Lyon editions)

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 04/06/2026

Check out the activities of the members of our #COSTAction #PlantWallK during the Fascination of Plants Day!

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 04/06/2026

Excellent opportunity! With the additional perk of being very close to the PlantWallK leadership :)

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 28/05/2026

A great way to close the #PlantWallK26 days in Prague! The EPCC satellite meeting wrapped up yesterday with a full day of scientific presentations and stimulating discussions on plant cytoskeleton. Many thanks to all contributors and participants, it was a pleasure to see the community in action.

Group photograph of EPCC satellite meeting participants, taken on 27 May 2026 in the entrance hall of a classical university building in Prague. Approximately forty attendees are arranged across several steps of a grand stone staircase, facing the camera. A small sign reading "EPCC — May 27.5.2026, Prague" is held at the front of the group.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 28/05/2026

The 1st #PlantWallK meeting brought together 80+ researchers. Cell biologists, physicists, biochemists, modellers, all converging on 1 structure: the plant cell wall. Two days of talks, posters, and cross-disciplinary debate later, the collaborations are set. The work begins! #PlantBiology #CellWall

A large group of approximately 80 researchers posing for a group photograph on the grand staircase of the Faculty of Science, Charles University, Prague. The group spans six rows, with participants standing on the steps to give height to the back rows. People are dressed in smart-casual summer attire and most wear conference lanyards in red or blue with name badges. The crowd is diverse in age, gender, and background, ranging from early-career researchers to senior scientists. Two large white neoclassical columns frame the staircase on either side. To the upper left, a dark commemorative wall plaque bearing Czech text notes that Albert Einstein held a professorship in the building between 1911 and 1912. A clock is partially visible high on the back wall. The overall atmosphere is warm and collegial.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 26/05/2026

☀️ Good morning from Prague! Day 2 of #PlantWallK26 is underway! Hendrik Küpper (Czech Academy of Sciences) opens with a powerful toolkit: synchrotron X-ray techniques that can map where metals are in plant cells and even reveal what chemical form they are in.

Projected slide titled “X-ray spectroscopy on biological samples — Typical process scheme from plant to publication with µXANES tomography” showing the workflow from plant growth to synchrotron analysis, with steps attributed to the biology PI group, synchrotron staff, or both. Hendrik Küpper stands at the podium on the right.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 25/05/2026

🧵 It’s happening! The #PlantWallK kick-off meeting is officially underway in sunny Prague 🇨🇿 Over the next 2 days, researchers from across Europe (and beyond!) will come together to push the frontiers of plant cell wall science. Stay tuned for live updates! #PlantWallK26 #COSTAction

Panoramic view of Prague from Letná park on a sunny day. The Vltava river winds through the city with several bridges visible, framed by lush green trees in the foreground and a light blue sky above. Some birds fly in the middle distance above the historic rooftops.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 06/05/2026

Picture of the day: Cross section of a woody stem showing thick secondary walls that provide strength and support transport. Wood makes wall function visible. #PlantWallK #COSTAction #PlantCellWall #PlantScience

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 01/04/2026

Two more weeks until the deadline for abstracts for our first PlantWallK meeting! 📝 Register: plantwallk.org/prague-regis...

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 01/04/2026

Microtubules in a growing root tip. A dynamic internal scaffold that reorganises as cells divide and expand. Their orientation helps shape growth patterns across the tissue. #PlantWallK #COSTAction #PlantScience

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 02/03/2026

🌱 Exciting news for plant #CellWall researchers! The First PlantWallK Meeting is happening in Prague, May 25–26, 2026 — bringing together members of COST Action CA24116 for the first time. 📝 Abstract submission is open! Deadline: April 15 Register: plantwallk.org/prague-regis... #PlantScience

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 24/02/2026

Picture of the day: Pea root apex with orderly cell layers and active growth zones. Roots are key systems to study how cell walls support division and expansion. #PlantWallK #COSTAction #PlantCellWall #PlantScience

Microscopy image of a pea root apex. The root tip shows a clear growth zone with orderly layers of cells arranged in files. Cell outlines form a regular, brick-like pattern that changes gradually from small, densely packed cells near the tip to larger, elongated cells further back. The tissue organisation of the root is visible as distinct regions with different cell sizes and orientations.

Close up of a microscopy image of a pea root apex. The root tip shows a clear growth zone with orderly layers of cells arranged in files. Cell outlines form a regular, brick-like pattern that changes gradually from small, densely packed cells near the tip to larger, elongated cells further back. The tissue organisation of the root is visible as distinct regions with different cell sizes and orientations.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 17/02/2026

Picture of the day: Cross section of a Brachypodium stem. Thick supporting tissues contrast with thinner growing regions, showing how cell wall structure is tuned to function. #PlantWallK #COSTAction #PlantCellWall #PlantScience

Cross section of a Brachypodium stem seen under the microscope. The stem forms a roughly circular ring of tissues. Some regions show thick, strongly stained cell walls forming supportive tissue, while other regions show thinner-walled cells. The contrast between thick- and thin-walled areas makes the functional zoning of the stem easy to see.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 12/02/2026

Picture of the day: An Arabidopsis root tip with cell walls highlighted using a pectin probe. Different tissues show distinct signals, reflecting how cell wall composition changes as cells divide, grow, and specialise. #PlantWallK #COSTAction #PlantCellWall #PlantScience

This image shows an Arabidopsis root tip, with cell walls highlighted by a pectin probe. Differences in signal across tissues reflect changes in wall composition and organisation as cells divide, expand, and differentiate. At this scale, mechanics, chemistry, and development meet.
One of the goals of COST Action PlantWallK (CA24116) is to connect observations like this across species, methods, and scales. By sharing tools, data, and concepts, we aim to build a common framework for plant cell wall mechanobiology.

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COST Action PlantWallK @plantwallk.org · 30/01/2026

PlantWallK is now underway 🌱 A network for plant cell wall research, linking imaging, modelling, and data methods. We are building the website, planning our first meeting, and preparing calls for grants, so follow for exciting news!: www.cost.eu/actions/CA24... #PlantScience #CellWall #COSTActions

cost.eu

Multidisciplinary consortium to accelerate plant cell wall knowledge

The plant cell wall was one of the first biological objects observed under the microscope in the 17th century. While the knowledge of this complex and dynamic structure has come a long way, current ga...

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