Question

What is meant by mucilage?

Answer 1

Hint: Mucilage is a thick, gluey substance that is generated by almost all plants and microorganisms. These microorganisms include protists who uses it for their locomotion. The direction of the movement is always opposite to that of the secretion of mucilage. It is a polar glycoprotein and an exopolysaccharide.

Complete answer:
Mucilage is similar to that of the plant gums and is defined as a gelatinous substance that is present in plants like seaweeds and legumes. The mucilage in plants perform functions such as storing water and food, helps in thickening the membranes, and seed germination.

Exopolysaccharides are the most stabilizing factor for macroaggregates and are widely distributed in the soils. Therefore, exopolysaccharide-producing soil algae play an important role in the ecology of the world's soils.

The presence of mucilage in seeds affects important ecological processes in plant species, such as tolerance of water stress, competition through allelopathy, or facilitation of germination via attachment to soil particles.

For human usage mucilage is edible. It is used in medicine because it relieves the irritation of mucous membranes by forming a protective film. It acts as a soluble, or viscous, dietary fibre that thickens the faecal mass, an example is the consumption of fibre supplements containing Psyllium seed husks.
Cacti and other succulents and flax seeds are highly rich sources of mucilage.

Note: It is identified that there is a role of seed mucilage in protecting DNA material from irradiation damage. The amount of mucilage produced per seed varies across the distribution range of a species, in relation to the local environmental conditions of the populations. Mucilage also has a unique purpose in some carnivorous plants.