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plant_neurobiology [2011-08-10 10:10] – lbilliet | plant_neurobiology [2011-08-11 14:02] – lbilliet | ||
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- | **Plant Neurobiology** | + | ====Plant Neurobiology==== |
+ | ===Definition and origin of the term=== | ||
- | | ||
+ | Plant neurobiology studies how plants interpret external stimuli and convert them into internal electro-chemical signals. | ||
+ | The term 'plant neurobiology', | ||
+ | For this reason, some authors consider this terminology as illegitimate, | ||
+ | It is now largely accepted that electrical signals are transmitted via the plant' | ||
+ | « Phloem is an electrical conductor of bioelectrochemical impulses over long distances . . . structures of phloem and axon can be pictured as hollow tubes filled with electrolyte solutions » (Volkov, 2000) | ||
- | __References:__ | + | ===Some keywords :=== |
- | • Peter W. Barlow (2008) // | + | Phloem, Xylem, Neuron, Axon |
- | • Volkov, A.G. (2000) //Green plants: electrochemical interfaces//, | + | |
+ | ===The signalling systems in plants=== | ||
+ | |||
+ | Plants use a lot of chemical signals to regulate their growth, metabolisms and to adapt to external constraints. In the last decades, the study of the key molecules such as auxins, growth regulators, morphogens and other plant hormones has shown a lot of similarities with the animal' | ||
+ | The existence of electrical signals in plants, which has been suspected since the '70 (see : the Secret Life of Plants), is now being widely recognized by the scientific community. | ||
+ | |||
+ | It has been shown that the vascular tissues of plants (phloem and xylem) plays a central role in the plant' | ||
+ | |||
+ | There are two types of electrical impulses in the plant : | ||
+ | |||
+ | * The action potentials have been shown to be involved in many internal regulation processes (growth synchronization, | ||
+ | |||
+ | * The slow wave potential (also called variation potential) are induced in case of more severe wounds, and seem to be transmitted via the xylem. | ||
+ | |||
+ | The action potentials are largely documented in the scientific literature and the most famous manifestation of it is the rapid reaction of ' | ||
+ | |||
+ | ===Origin of the similarities between the signalling systems in plants and animals=== | ||
+ | |||
+ | Between two living organisms, a similarity can be explained by a process of convergent evolution (in that case we speak about an homoplasy) or by the existence of a common ancestor that already presented that certain feature. | ||
+ | |||
+ | A question that arise here is wheter the ' | ||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | “plants may be more sophisticated and share more in common with animals in their non-cognitive behaviours than previously thought” (Gersani et al., 2001) | ||
+ | |||
+ | |||
+ | ===References=== | ||
+ | |||
+ | The International Laboratory of Plant Neurobiology (LINV), in Florence, is the research group of F. Baluska and S. Mancuso, two prominent figures in plant neurobiology. A serie of publications are freely available on the website of LINV: | ||
+ | [[http:// | ||
+ | |||
+ | * Peter W. Barlow (2008) // | ||
+ | | ||
+ | * Gersani, M., Brown, J.S., O’Brien, E.E., Maina, G.M., Abramsky, Z. (2001) //Tragedy of the commons as a result of root competition//, | ||
+ | |||
+ | related: [[project groworld]], [[category biology]] | ||