Unser 10. Leibniz Plant Biochemistry Symposium am 7. und 8. Mai war ein großer Erfolg. Thematisch ging es in diesem Jahr um neue Methoden und Forschungsansätze der Naturstoffchemie. Die exzellenten Vorträge über Wirkstoffe…
Omanische Heilpflanze im Fokus der Phytochemie IPB-Wissenschaftler und Partner aus Dhofar haben jüngst die omanische Heilpflanze Terminalia dhofarica unter die phytochemische Lupe genommen. Die Pflanze ist reich an…
Geschmack ist vorhersagbar: Mit FlavorMiner. FlavorMiner heißt das Tool, das IPB-Chemiker und Partner aus Kolumbien jüngst entwickelt haben. Das Programm kann, basierend auf maschinellem Lernen (KI), anhand der…
Escalante-Pérez, M.; Krol, E.; Stange, A.; Geiger, D.; Al-Rasheid, K. A. S.; Hause, B.; Neher, E.; Hedrich, R.;A special pair of phytohormones controls excitability, slow closure, and external stomach formation in the Venus flytrapProc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.10815492-15497(2011)DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1112535108
Venus flytrap's leaves can catch an insect in a fraction of a second. Since the time of Charles Darwin, scientists have struggled to understand the sensory biology and biomechanics of this plant, Dionaea muscipula. Here we show that insect-capture of Dionaea traps is modulated by the phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA) and jasmonates. Water-stressed Dionaea, as well as those exposed to the drought-stress hormone ABA, are less sensitive to mechanical stimulation. In contrast, application of 12-oxo-phytodienoic acid (OPDA), a precursor of the phytohormone jasmonic acid (JA), the methyl ester of JA (Me-JA), and coronatine (COR), the molecular mimic of the isoleucine conjugate of JA (JA-Ile), triggers secretion of digestive enzymes without any preceding mechanical stimulus. Such secretion is accompanied by slow trap closure. Under physiological conditions, insect-capture is associated with Ca2+ signaling and a rise in OPDA, Apparently, jasmonates bypass hapto-electric processes associated with trap closure. However, ABA does not affect OPDA-dependent gland activity. Therefore, signals for trap movement and secretion seem to involve separate pathways. Jasmonates are systemically active because application to a single trap induces secretion and slow closure not only in the given trap but also in all others. Furthermore, formerly touch-insensitive trap sectors are converted into mechanosensitive ones. These findings demonstrate that prey-catching Dionaea combines plant-specific signaling pathways, involving OPDA and ABA with a rapidly acting trigger, which uses ion channels, action potentials, and Ca2+ signals.