Casparian strips are present in the _____ of the root.

Casparian strips are present in the _____ of the root.

(A) epiblema

(B) cortex

(C) pericycle

(D) endodermis

Answer: (D) endodermis

Casparian strips are located in the endodermal cell files of the roots of plants. The endodermis then becomes a single layer of cells that circles the vascular tissues (xylem and phloem) in the centre of the root’s cylinder. Casparian strips are band-like structures which are made up of suberin a waxy polymer which fills the radial and transverse walls of endodermal cells. Of these strips, this strip is most important in controlling water and mineral movement in the root. They create a hydrophobic layer which makes the water and dissolved minerals move through the cell membranes of the endodermis, not through the cell cytoplasm. This selectiveness enables the plant to regulate the substances that are transported to the vascular tissue, thus denying free access to all materials and sparing the plant from reaching out for all the substances in the soil that may be dangerous to the plant.