Signaling 'Stressed-out' Plants
Published:08 Aug.2022 Source:University of Missouri-Columbia
A plant scientist from the University of Missouri has discovered a new way of measuring stress in plants, which comes at a time when plants are experiencing multiple stressors from heat, drought and flooding because of extreme weather events.
The discovery involves a once maligned collection of molecules called reactive oxygen species (ROS), which are produced by anything that uses oxygen, like animals, people and plants. But Ron Mittler at MU has uncovered a redeeming quality of ROS -- their role as a communication signal that can indicate whether plants are stressed out.