Composition Differences of Epicuticular and Intracuticular Wax Layers and the Relationship between Cuticle and Plant Stress Tolerance

Plant cuticle serves as a protective layer and consists of cutin and waxes,which is covered on the outmost surfaces of plant leaves,flowers and non-woody stems organs.Furthermore,an epicuticular layer and an intracuticular layer can be distinguished according to the wax location within the cutin matrix,respectively.Many reports have proved that epicuticular wax loads and intact structure play important roles in plant growth,development and in response to stresses.Recently,wax compositional differences between epi-and intracuticular wax layers and their effect on plant stress tolerance have been reported.In this paper,the recent progress made in the cuticle structure,composition differences of inner and outer wax layer as well as the relationship between the structure and composition of cuticle and plant stress tolerance were reviewed.