Plant shoots exhibit synchronized oscillatory motions.

ABSTRACT: In animals, the ability to move has evolved as an important means of protection from predators and for enhancing nutrient uptake. In the animal kingdom, an individual's movements may become coordinated with those of other individuals that belong to the same group, which leads, for example, to the beautiful collective patterns that are observed in flocks of birds and schools of fish or in animal migration. Land plants, however, are fixed to the ground, which limits their movement and, apparently, their interactions and collective behaviors. We show that emergent maize plants grown in a group exhibit synchronized oscillatory motions that may be in-phase or anti-phase. These oscillations occur in short bursts and appear when the leaves rupture from the coleoptile tip. The appearance of these

SUBMITTER: Ciszak M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5100659 | biostudies-literature | 2016

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature