Article
Plant Sciences
Franziska Saul, Mathias Scharmann, Takanori Wakatake, Sitaram Rajaraman, Andre Marques, Matthias Freund, Gerhard Bringmann, Louisa Channon, Dirk Becker, Emily Carroll, Yee Wen Low, Charlotte Lindqvist, Kadeem J. Gilbert, Tanya Renner, Sachiko Masuda, Michaela Richter, Gerd Vogg, Ken Shirasu, Todd P. Michael, Rainer Hedrich, Victor A. Albert, Kenji Fukushima
Summary: Subgenome dominance plays an important role in evolutionary novelty. A study on the Asian pitcher plant Nepenthes gracilis revealed a decaploid karyotype and subgenome dominance. The recessive subgenome on the putative sex chromosome contains transcription factors involved in flower and pollen development, indicating neofunctionalization. The paleopolyploidization events led to the formation of gene clusters with specific expression in the digestive zone of the pitcher. Subgenome dominance facilitates evolutionary innovation.
Article
Plant Sciences
Andrej Pavlovic, Ondrej Vrobel, Petr Tarkowski
Summary: In his book, Charles Darwin observed that the response of sundew plants to stimuli is not triggered by water drops but by dissolved chemicals or mechanical stimulation. This study used modern methods to investigate this 150-year-old mystery. The findings showed that sundew plants have a weak response to water drops but significant changes in enzyme activity and digestive enzyme abundance when exposed to other stimuli.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Bartosz J. Plachno, Malgorzata Kapusta, Piotr Stolarczyk, Piotr Swiatek
Summary: This study used light and electron microscopy to investigate the structure of stellate trichomes in carnivorous plants, specifically Dionaea muscipula. The results showed that these trichomes act as transfer cells and are not only tomentose-like trichomes. The composition and function of trichome cells vary, and immature trichomes produce mucilage to protect the trap surface.
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Cell Biology
Karolina Miernicka, Barbara Tokarz, Wojciech Makowski, Stanislaw Mazur, Rafal Banasiuk, Krzysztof M. Tokarz
Summary: The Venus flytrap has two phases of response to UV-A radiation: a regulatory phase and an acclimatization phase. In the regulatory phase, the plant prevents over-reduction of the photosynthetic electron transport chain and increases the content and activity of antioxidants. In the acclimatization phase, photosynthesis efficiency decreases and electron flow is disrupted.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Soenke Scherzer, Shouguang Huang, Anda Iosip, Ines Kreuzer, Ken Yokawa, Khaled A. S. Al-Rasheid, Manfred Heckmann, Rainer Hedrich
Summary: This study investigates the electrical signaling mechanism in Venus flytraps and discovers that trigger hairs can turn mechanical stimuli into calcium signals and action potentials, which then propagate through ion channels and pumps within the plant. The propagation of electrical signals is suppressed by anesthesia but does not affect the initiation of calcium signals by touch stimulation. This research is important for understanding the electrical signaling in plants.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2022)
Article
Ecology
Allison M. Louthan, Melina Keighron, Elsita Kiekebusch, Heather Cayton, Adam Terando, William F. Morris
Summary: Disturbances have both positive and negative effects on organisms, and climate change can modify these effects, leading to changes in optimal disturbance intervals and the sensitivity of population growth rate to disturbance intervals.
ECOLOGICAL MONOGRAPHS
(2022)
Article
Biophysics
Eashan Saikia, Nino F. Laeubli, Hannes Vogler, Markus Rueggeberg, Hans J. Herrmann, Ingo Burgert, Jan T. Burri, Bradley J. Nelson, Ueli Grossniklaus, Falk K. Wittel
Summary: The study investigates the cellular-level kinematics of Venus flytrap's sensory hairs in response to stimuli, finding that viscoelasticity and intercellular fluid transport, along with angular velocity, play a role in the plant's rate-dependent response. The research also establishes a multi-scale kinematic link between angular velocity and cell wall stretch, suggesting that mechanosensitive ion channels in the plasma membrane of sensory cells may be sensitive to the rate of stretch application.
BIOMECHANICS AND MODELING IN MECHANOBIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Alexander G. Volkov, Leon Chua
Summary: Plants have sensory, short-term, and long-term memory and can exhibit electrical responses that may contain memory resistors. The discovery of volatile memristors in plants through electrical stimulation opens up new avenues for modeling and understanding electrical phenomena in the plant kingdom.
FUNCTIONAL PLANT BIOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Carl Procko, Wen Mai Wong, Janki Patel, Seyed Ali Reza Mousavi, Tsegaye Dabi, Marc Duque, Lisa Baird, Sreekanth H. Chalasani, Joanne Chory
Summary: The evolution of the Venus flytrap's ability to sense, capture, and digest animal prey has long been a mystery in the scientific community. Recent genome and transcriptome sequencing studies have provided some insight into the genes involved in these tasks, but proving a direct link has been challenging. In this study, researchers used CRISPR-Cas9 methods to modify the Venus flytrap genome and found that mutations in two mechanosensitive ion channel genes led to a reduced response in leaf-closing behavior. The findings suggest that multiple redundant ion channels play a role in the plant's sensory system for prey detection.
Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Victor Kang, Hauke Isermann, Saksham Sharma, D. Ian Wilson, Walter Federle
Summary: The study reveals the efficient prey retention mechanism in Nepenthes pitcher plants, including the reduced surface tension of the fluid leading to easier sinking of insects, and the fluid's resistance to dewetting making it harder for insects to escape, thus facilitating re-wetting.
ACTA BIOMATERIALIA
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Angga Yudaputra, Inggit Puji Astuti, Tri Handayani, Hartutiningsih Siregar, Iyan Robiansyah, Sri Wahyuni, Arief Noor Rachmadiyanto, Danang Wahyu Purnomo, Vandra Kurniawan, Yupi Isnaini, Frisca Damayanti, Rizmoon Nurul Zulkarnaen, Joko Ridho Witono, Izu Andry Fijridiyanto, Arief Hidayat, Mustaid Siregar, Esti Munawaroh, Fitriany Amalia P. Wardhani, Puguh Dwi Raharjo, Ana Widiana, Wendell Cropper Jr
Summary: It has been 23 years since the conservation status of highland tropical pitcher plant Nepenthes talangensis was assessed in 2000. Existing threats may increase the risk of extinction for the species, and a better understanding of its ecology and conservation needs is necessary. Information on population distributions, ecological requirements, priority conservation areas, climate impact, and population structure is crucial for assessing extinction risks and securing the species.
Article
Chemistry, Medicinal
Sandy Gerschler, Niclas Neumann, Nadin Schultze, Sebastian Guenther, Christian Schulze
Summary: Monographs of the European Pharmacopoeia are crucial for quality control of medicinal plants. This study developed quality control methods based on the European Pharmacopoeia for sundew and defined a uniform quality standard for Droserae herba, a traditional medicinal plant.
ARCHIV DER PHARMAZIE
(2023)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Alberto Davila-Lara, Michael Reichelt, Ding Wang, Heiko Vogel, Axel Mithoefer
Summary: Yellow to red colored betalains are a chemotaxonomic feature of Caryophyllales, while in Nepenthaceae, red-pigmented tissues seem to be using anthocyanins instead. Through advanced technologies, researchers were able to identify cyanidin glycosides in Nepenthes species and tissues, providing concrete evidence supporting the presence of anthocyanins in this family. Further analysis also revealed the complete set of constitutively expressed anthocyanin biosynthetic genes in Nepenthes, finally resolving the long-standing question regarding red pigmentation in this plant family.
Article
Plant Sciences
Christopher R. Hatcher, Ulf Sommer, Liam M. Heaney, Jonathan Millett
Summary: Secondary plant metabolites play a more significant role in plant carnivory than previously thought, with plant carnivory likely evolving from both attraction and defense functions. This study supports the hypothesis that secondary metabolites play an important role in plant diversification and adaptation to new environments.
Article
Plant Sciences
Kadeem J. Gilbert, Thibaut Goldsborough, Weng Ngai Lam, Felicia Leong, Naomi E. Pierce
Summary: This study investigates the natural variation in pH and dissolved mineral concentrations in tropical pitcher plants, and reveals correlations between fluid properties and pitcher traits. N. gracilis and N. rafflesiana show distinct patterns in fluid pH and dissolved mineral levels, while N. ampullaria exhibits less variation in fluid pH.
JOURNAL OF PLANT INTERACTIONS
(2022)
