Assertion: Thick cuticle is mostly present in disease resistant plants.
Reason: Disease-causing agents cannot grow on cuticle and cannot invade the cuticle.
(a) If both Assertion and Reason are correct and the Reason is a correct explanation of the Assertion.
(b) If both Assertion and Reason are correct but Reason is not a correct explanation of the Assertion.
(c) If the Assertion is correct but Reason is incorrect.
(d) If both the Assertion and Reason are incorrect.
(e) If the Assertion is incorrect but the Reason is correct.
(e) If the Assertion is incorrect but the Reason is correct.
Explanation:
Plant cuticles are a protective waxy covering produced only by the epidermal cells of leaves, young shoots and all other aerial plant organs. In addition to its function as a permeability barrier for water and other molecules, the micro and nano structure of the cuticle confer specialized surface properties that prevent contamination of plant tissues with external water, dirt and micro-organisms. The waxy sheet of cuticle also functions in defence, forming a physical barrier that resists penetration by virus particles, bacterial cells, and the spores or growing filaments of fungi.