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Olona "fibers" occur in the Cortex of the Stem. This is the area just beneath the Epidermis but outside of the Phloem. They are actually Laticifers, not Fibers. Laticifers are extremely long cells which contain Latex. White Latex can beOlonaLatex6L300.jpg (54303 bytes) observed by removing a leaf from ulu (breadfruit) or Papaya. The Indian Rubber Tree is another species that exudes white latex when it is injured.

Olona Latex has a yellow/orange color and is not produced in abundance. The laticifers in olona have exceptionally thick cell walls. They are not Lignified. This makes them supple and flexible and may contribute to their desirable attributes as cordage.

Cross-section through the outer stem of olona, stained with Toluidine Blue: Walls that have stained blue are Lignified. Pink/purple walls are not Lignified.

This image shows the outer regions of the stem. Olona fibers/laticifers occur in the Cortex. They are not prominent in this photo.

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Cross-section of the outer Stem from olona stained with Toluidine Blue (left) and viewed without staining under Polarized Light (right).
Cells with Thick Walls are Bright under Polarized Illumination.
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Comparison of olona "Fibers" stained with Toluidine Blue (left) and under Polarized Light (right). The pink/purple color indicates the absence of Lignin and shows the relative thickness of the cell walls.
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Longitudinal Section for the outer stem of olona, viewed with partially polarized light. The elongate Fibers/Laticifers can be seen.		 OLONALSPOL200.jpg (55236 bytes)
Isolated Fibers/Laticifers of olona seen with fully polarized light. They are birefringent and appear brilliant under these conditions.

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