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Rodriguez-Quintero WD, Moreno-Chacón M, Carrasco-Urra F, Saldaña A. From dark to darkness, negative phototropism influences the support-tree location of the massive woody climber Hydrangea serratifolia (Hydrangeaceae) in a Chilean temperate rainforest. PLANT SIGNALING & BEHAVIOR 2022; 17:2122244. [PMID: 36476262 PMCID: PMC9733698 DOI: 10.1080/15592324.2022.2122244] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2022] [Revised: 09/02/2022] [Accepted: 09/02/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Climbing plants rely on suitable support to provide the light conditions they require in the canopy. Negative phototropism is a directional search behavior proposed to detect a support-tree, which indicates growth or movement away from light, based on light attenuation. In a Chilean temperate rainforest, we addressed whether the massive woody climber Hydrangea serratifolia (H. et A.) F. Phil (Hydrangeaceae) presents a support-tree location pattern influenced by light availability. We analyzed direction and light received in two groups of juvenile shoots: searching shoots (SS), with plagiotropic (creeping) growth vs. ascending shoots (AS), with orthotropic growth. We found that, in accordance with light attenuation, SS and AS used directional orientation to search and then ascend host trees. The light available to H. serratifolia searching shoots was less than that of the general forest understory; the directional orientation in both groups showed a significant deviation from a random distribution, with no circular statistical difference between them. Circular-linear regression indicated a relationship between directional orientations and light availability. Negative phototropism encodes the light environment's heterogeneous spatial and temporal information, guiding the shoot apex to the most shaded part of the support-tree base, the climbing start point.
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Affiliation(s)
- W. David Rodriguez-Quintero
- Departamento de Botánica, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
- Centro de Ecología Aplicada Ltda, Principe de Gales6465La Reina, Chile
| | | | | | - Alfredo Saldaña
- Departamento de Botánica, Universidad de Concepción, Concepción, Chile
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2
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Memory of plants: present understanding. THE NUCLEUS 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s13237-022-00399-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/15/2022] Open
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3
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Affiliation(s)
- Mikio Akagi
- Roach Honors College, Texas Christian University, Fort Worth, United States
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4
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Bouteau F, Grésillon E, Chartier D, Arbelet-Bonnin D, Kawano T, Baluška F, Mancuso S, Calvo P, Laurenti P. Our sisters the plants? notes from phylogenetics and botany on plant kinship blindness. PLANT SIGNALING & BEHAVIOR 2021; 16:2004769. [PMID: 34913409 PMCID: PMC9208782 DOI: 10.1080/15592324.2021.2004769] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2021] [Revised: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
Before the upheaval brought about by phylogenetic classification, classical taxonomy separated living beings into two distinct kingdoms, animals and plants. Rooted in 'naturalist' cosmology, Western science has built its theoretical apparatus on this dichotomy mostly based on ancient Aristotelian ideas. Nowadays, despite the adoption of the Darwinian paradigm that unifies living organisms as a kinship, the concept of the "scale of beings" continues to structure our analysis and understanding of living species. Our aim is to combine developments in phylogeny, recent advances in biology, and renewed interest in plant agency to craft an interdisciplinary stance on the living realm. The lines at the origin of plant or animal have a common evolutionary history dating back to about 3.9 Ga, separating only 1.6 Ga ago. From a phylogenetic perspective of living species history, plants and animals belong to sister groups. With recent data related to the field of Plant Neurobiology, our aim is to discuss some socio-cultural obstacles, mainly in Western naturalist epistemology, that have prevented the integration of living organisms as relatives, while suggesting a few avenues inspired by practices principally from other ontologies that could help overcome these obstacles and build bridges between different ways of connecting to life.
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Affiliation(s)
- François Bouteau
- Laboratoire Interdisciplinaire Des Énergies de Demain, Université de Paris, France
| | - Etienne Grésillon
- Laboratoire Dynamiques Sociales Et Recomposition Des Espaces (Ladyss-umr 7533), Université de Paris, Paris, France
| | - Denis Chartier
- Laboratoire Dynamiques Sociales Et Recomposition Des Espaces (Ladyss-umr 7533), Université de Paris, Paris, France
| | | | - Tomonori Kawano
- Graduate School of Environmental Engineering, University of Kitakyushu 1–1, KitakyushuJapan
| | - František Baluška
- Institute of Cellular and Molecular Botany, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Stefano Mancuso
- LINV-DiSPAA, Department of Agri-Food and Environmental Science, University of Florence, Sesto Fiorentino (FI), Italy
| | - Paco Calvo
- Minimal Intelligence Lab, Department of Philosophy, University of Murcia, Murcia, Spain
| | - Patrick Laurenti
- Laboratoire Interdisciplinaire Des Énergies de Demain, Université de Paris, France
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5
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Segundo-Ortin M, Calvo P. Consciousness and cognition in plants. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS. COGNITIVE SCIENCE 2021; 13:e1578. [PMID: 34558231 DOI: 10.1002/wcs.1578] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2020] [Revised: 08/26/2021] [Accepted: 08/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Unlike animal behavior, behavior in plants is traditionally assumed to be completely determined either genetically or environmentally. Under this assumption, plants are usually considered to be noncognitive organisms. This view nonetheless clashes with a growing body of empirical research that shows that many sophisticated cognitive capabilities traditionally assumed to be exclusive to animals are exhibited by plants too. Yet, if plants can be considered cognitive, even in a minimal sense, can they also be considered conscious? Some authors defend that the quest for plant consciousness is worth pursuing, under the premise that sentience can play a role in facilitating plant's sophisticated behavior. The goal of this article is not to provide a positive argument for plant cognition and consciousness, but to invite a constructive, empirically informed debate about it. After reviewing the empirical literature concerning plant cognition, we introduce the reader to the emerging field of plant neurobiology. Research on plant electrical and chemical signaling can help shed light into the biological bases for plant sentience. To conclude, we shall present a series of approaches to scientifically investigate plant consciousness. In sum, we invite the reader to consider the idea that if consciousness boils down to some form of biological adaptation, we should not exclude a priori the possibility that plants have evolved their own phenomenal experience of the world. This article is categorized under: Cognitive Biology > Evolutionary Roots of Cognition Philosophy > Consciousness Neuroscience > Cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miguel Segundo-Ortin
- Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies, Faculty of Humanities, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Paco Calvo
- Minimal Intelligence Laboratory, Universidad de Murcia, Murcia, Spain
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Kumar A, Memo M, Mastinu A. Plant behaviour: an evolutionary response to the environment? PLANT BIOLOGY (STUTTGART, GERMANY) 2020; 22:961-970. [PMID: 32557960 DOI: 10.1111/plb.13149] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2020] [Accepted: 06/01/2020] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
Plants are not just passive living beings that exist in nature. They are complex and highly adaptable species that react sensitively to environmental forces/stimuli with movement, morphological changes and through the communication via volatile molecules. In a way, plants mimic some traits of animal and human behaviour; they compete for limited resources by gaining more area for more sunlight and spread their roots underground. Furthermore, in order to survive and thrive, they evolve and 'learn' to control various environmental stress factors in order to increase the yield of flowering, fertilization and germination processes. The concept of associating complex behaviour, such as intelligence, with plants is still a highly debatable topic among researchers worldwide. Recent studies have shown that plants are able to discriminate between positive and negative experiences and 'learn' from them. Some botanists have interpreted these behavioural data as a form of primitive cognitive processes. Others have evaluated these responses as biological automatisms of plants determined by adaptation to the environment and absence of intelligence. This review aims to explore adaptive behavioural aspects of various plant species distributed in different ecosystems by emphasizing their biological complexity and survival instincts.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Kumar
- Division of Clinical Geriatrics, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Center for Alzheimer Research, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden
| | - M Memo
- Division of Pharmacology, Department of Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy
| | - A Mastinu
- Division of Pharmacology, Department of Molecular and Translational Medicine, University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy
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Ceccarini F, Guerra S, Peressotti A, Peressotti F, Bulgheroni M, Baccinelli W, Bonato B, Castiello U. Speed-accuracy trade-off in plants. Psychon Bull Rev 2020; 27:966-973. [PMID: 32542481 DOI: 10.3758/s13423-020-01753-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Speed-accuracy trade-off (SAT) is the tendency for decision speed to covary with decision accuracy. SAT is an inescapable property of aimed movements being present in a wide range of species, from insects to primates. An aspect that remains unsolved is whether SAT extends to plants' movement. Here, we tested this possibility by examining the swaying in circles of the tips of shoots exhibited by climbing plants (Pisum sativum L.) as they approach to grasp a potential support. In particular, by means of three-dimensional kinematical analysis, we investigated whether climbing plants scale movement velocity as a function of the difficulty to coil a support. Results showed that plants are able to process the properties of the support before contact and, similarly to animal species, strategically modulate movement velocity according to task difficulty.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Silvia Guerra
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Alessandro Peressotti
- Dipartimento di Scienze Agroalimentari, Ambientali e Animali, Università degli studi di Udine, Udine, Italy
| | - Francesca Peressotti
- Dipartimento di Psicologia dello Sviluppo e della Socializzazione, Università degli studi di Padova, Padova, Italy
| | | | | | - Bianca Bonato
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Umberto Castiello
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
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Abstract
Humanity faces serious social and environmental problems, including climate change and biodiversity loss. Increasingly, scientists, global policy experts, and the general public conclude that incremental approaches to reduce risk are insufficient and transformative change is needed across all sectors of society. However, the meaning of transformation is still unsettled in the literature, as is the proper role of science in fostering it. This paper is the first in a three-part series that adds to the discussion by proposing a novel science-driven research-and-development program aimed at societal transformation. More than a proposal, it offers a perspective and conceptual framework from which societal transformation might be approached. As part of this, it advances a formal mechanics with which to model and understand self-organizing societies of individuals. While acknowledging the necessity of reform to existing societal systems (e.g., governance, economic, and financial systems), the focus of the series is on transformation understood as systems change or systems migration—the de novo development of and migration to new societal systems. The series provides definitions, aims, reasoning, worldview, and a theory of change, and discusses fitness metrics and design principles for new systems. This first paper proposes a worldview, built using ideas from evolutionary biology, complex systems science, cognitive sciences, and information theory, which is intended to serve as the foundation for the R&D program. Subsequent papers in the series build on the worldview to address fitness metrics, system design, and other topics.
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9
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Abstract
Gagliano et al. (Learning by association in plants, 2016) reported associative learning in pea plants. Associative learning has long been considered a behavior performed only by animals, making this claim particularly newsworthy and interesting. In the experiment, plants were trained in Y-shaped mazes for 3 days with fans and lights attached at the top of the maze. Training consisted of wind consistently preceding light from either the same or the opposite arm of the maze. When plant growth forced a decision between the two arms of the maze, fans alone were able to influence growth direction, whereas the growth direction of untrained plants was not affected by fans. However, a replication of their protocol failed to demonstrate the same result, calling for further verification and study before mainstream acceptance of this paradigm-shifting phenomenon. This replication attempt used a larger sample size and fully blinded analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kasey Markel
- Plant Biology, University of California, DavisDavisUnited States
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10
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Ludwig D, El-Hani CN. Philosophy of Ethnobiology: Understanding Knowledge Integration and Its Limitations. J ETHNOBIOL 2020. [DOI: 10.2993/0278-0771-40.1.3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- David Ludwig
- Knowledge, Technology, and Innovation Group, Wageningen University and Research, Hollandseweg 1, Building 201, 6706 KN,Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Charbel N. El-Hani
- History, Philosophy and Biology Teaching Lab (LEFHBio), Institute of Biology, Federal University of Bahia (UFBA), Brazil. National Institute of Science & Technology in Interdisciplinary and Transdisciplinary Studies in Ecology and Evolution (INCT IN-
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11
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Markel K. Pavlov’s pea plants? Not so fast. An attempted replication of Gagliano et al. (December 2016).. [PMID: 0 DOI: 10.1101/2020.04.05.026823] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
AbstractGaglianoet al. (Learning by association in plants, 2016) reported associative learning in pea plants. Associative learning has long been considered a behavior performed only by animals, making this claim particularly newsworthy and interesting. In the experiment, plants were trained in Y-shaped mazes for three days with fans and lights attached at the top of the maze. Training consisted of wind consistently preceding light from either the same or the opposite arm of the maze. When plant growth forced a decision between the two arms of the maze, fans alone were able to influence growth direction, whereas the growth direction of untrained plants was not affected by fans. Importantly, some plants were trained to grow towards the fan and others to grow away, demonstrating the flexibility of associative learning. However, a replication of their protocol failed to demonstrate the same result, calling for further verification and study before mainstream acceptance of this paradigm-shifting phenomenon. This replication attempt used a larger sample size and fully blinded analysis.
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12
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Calvo P, Gagliano M, Souza GM, Trewavas A. Plants are intelligent, here's how. ANNALS OF BOTANY 2020; 125:11-28. [PMID: 31563953 PMCID: PMC6948212 DOI: 10.1093/aob/mcz155] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2019] [Revised: 07/01/2019] [Accepted: 09/26/2019] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
HYPOTHESES The drive to survive is a biological universal. Intelligent behaviour is usually recognized when individual organisms including plants, in the face of fiercely competitive or adverse, real-world circumstances, change their behaviour to improve their probability of survival. SCOPE This article explains the potential relationship of intelligence to adaptability and emphasizes the need to recognize individual variation in intelligence showing it to be goal directed and thus being purposeful. Intelligent behaviour in single cells and microbes is frequently reported. Individual variation might be underpinned by a novel learning mechanism, described here in detail. The requirements for real-world circumstances are outlined, and the relationship to organic selection is indicated together with niche construction as a good example of intentional behaviour that should improve survival. Adaptability is important in crop development but the term may be complex incorporating numerous behavioural traits some of which are indicated. CONCLUSION There is real biological benefit to regarding plants as intelligent both from the fundamental issue of understanding plant life but also from providing a direction for fundamental future research and in crop breeding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paco Calvo
- Minimal Intelligence Laboratory, Universidad de Murcia, Murcia, Spain
| | - Monica Gagliano
- Biological Intelligence Laboratory, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Gustavo M Souza
- Laboratory of Plant Cognition and Electrophysiology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas - RS, Brazil
| | - Anthony Trewavas
- Institute of Molecular Plant Science, Kings Buildings, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
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Abstract
Plants do not possess brains or neurons. However, they present astonishingly complex behaviors such as information acquisition, memory, learning, decision making, etc., which helps these sessile organisms deal with their ever-changing environments. As a consequence, they have been proposed to be cognitive and intelligent, an idea which is becoming increasingly accepted. However, how plant cognition could operate without a nervous central system remains poorly understood and new insights on this topic are urgently needed. According to the Extended Cognition hypothesis, cognition may also occur beyond the limits of the body, encompassing objects from the environment. This was shown possible in humans and spiders, who actively manipulate their external environment to extend their cognitive capacity. Here, we propose that extended cognition may also be found in plants and could partly explain the complexity of plant behavior. We suggest that plants can extend their cognitive abilities to the environment they manipulate through the root influence zone and the mycorrhizal fungi that associate with them. The possibility of a cognitive process involving organisms from different kingdoms is exciting and worthwhile exploring as it may provide key insights into the origin and evolution of cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- André Geremia Parise
- Laboratory of Plant Cognition and Electrophysiology (LACEV), Department of Botany, Institute of Biology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil
- CONTACT André Geremia Parise Laboratory of Plant Cognition and Electrophysiology (LACEV), Department of Botany, Institute of Biology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil
| | - Monica Gagliano
- Biological Intelligence (BI) Laboratory, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
- Sydney Environment Institute (SEI), The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - Gustavo Maia Souza
- Laboratory of Plant Cognition and Electrophysiology (LACEV), Department of Botany, Institute of Biology, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil
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Taiz L, Alkon D, Draguhn A, Murphy A, Blatt M, Hawes C, Thiel G, Robinson DG. Plants Neither Possess nor Require Consciousness. TRENDS IN PLANT SCIENCE 2019; 24:677-687. [PMID: 31279732 DOI: 10.1016/j.tplants.2019.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2019] [Revised: 05/08/2019] [Accepted: 05/20/2019] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
In claiming that plants have consciousness, 'plant neurobiologists' have consistently glossed over the remarkable degree of structural and functional complexity that the brain had to evolve for consciousness to emerge. Here, we outline a new hypothesis proposed by Feinberg and Mallat for the evolution of consciousness in animals. Based on a survey of the brain anatomy, functional complexity, and behaviors of a broad spectrum of animals, criteria were established for the emergence of consciousness. The only animals that satisfied these criteria were the vertebrates (including fish), arthropods (e.g., insects, crabs), and cephalopods (e.g., octopuses, squids). In light of Feinberg and Mallat's analysis, we consider the likelihood that plants, with their relative organizational simplicity and lack of neurons and brains, have consciousness to be effectively nil.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lincoln Taiz
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064, USA.
| | - Daniel Alkon
- Neurotrope, Inc., 1185 Avenue of the Americas, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10036, USA
| | - Andreas Draguhn
- Institut für Physiologie und Pathophysiologie, Medizinische Fakultät Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 326, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Angus Murphy
- Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, 2104 Plant Sciences Building, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - Michael Blatt
- Laboratory of Plant Physiology and Biophysics, Bower Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, UK
| | - Chris Hawes
- Department of Biological and Medical Sciences, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford OX3 0BP, UK
| | - Gerhard Thiel
- Department of Biology, Technische Universität Darmstadt, Schnittspahnstraße 3, 64287, Darmstadt, Germany
| | - David G Robinson
- Centre for Organismal Studies, University of Heidelberg, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
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