Abstract

For decades, plant electrical signals were thought to be fascinating phenomenon but practically meaningful mostly in carnivorous or sensitive plants. Recent findings indicate, that plant electrical signals called Slow Wave Potentials (SWPs) are crucial for systemic defence activation against herbivorous insects [1]. Currently we have very limited information about how these signals propagate and how they are translated to defence response. Our latest results indicate that two cell types localized in vascular tissues are involved in SWPs and calcium wave propagation [2]. Moreover, we found dependent on SWPs, systemic leaf thickness decreases which suggests that these signals may induced secondary water fluxes important for leaf movements [3].

[1] Mousavi et al. 2013. GLUTAMATE RECEPTOR -LIKE genes mediate leaf-to-leaf wound signalling. Nature 500:422–426.

[2] Nguyen and Kurenda et al. 2018. Identification of cell populations necessary for leaf-to-leaf electrical signaling in a wounded plant. PNAS . 115(40):10178-10183.

[3] Kurenda et al. 2019. Insect-damaged Arabidopsis moves like wounded Mimosa pudica. PNAS .116(51):26066-26071.