Knight M R, Knight H, Watkins N J
Department of Plant Sciences, University of Oxford, U.K.
Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci. 1995 Oct 30;350(1331):83-6. doi: 10.1098/rstb.1995.0141.
The involvement of mechanical signals (tension and compression) in the determination of the form of living organisms has been speculated upon for many years. These mechanical signals (both environmental and those generated within the plant itself) have significant effects on plant development and thus morphology. Plants respond to externally applied mechanical signals (touch and wind) by an immediate elevation of cytosolic calcium concentration ([Ca2+]eyt) in stimulated cells. This response requires the movement of plant tissues to cause tension and compression. Some of the more longer-term responses to mechanical signals, e.g. TCH gene expression and reduction in hypocotyl growth, show a calcium-dependency. It seems likely, therefore, that the effects of mechanical signals on plant development are mediated by the second messenger, calcium. This raises the exciting possibility that this simple ion plays a central role in the determination of plant form itself.
多年来，人们一直在推测机械信号（张力和压力）在生物形态形成过程中的作用。这些机械信号（包括环境信号和植物自身产生的信号）对植物发育进而对形态有显著影响。植物通过受刺激细胞中胞质钙浓度（[Ca2+]eyt）的立即升高来响应外部施加的机械信号（触摸和风）。这种反应需要植物组织运动以产生张力和压力。对机械信号的一些更长期的反应，例如TCH基因表达和下胚轴生长的减少，表现出钙依赖性。因此，机械信号对植物发育的影响似乎是由第二信使钙介导的。这就引发了一个令人兴奋的可能性，即这种简单的离子在植物形态本身的形成中起着核心作用。
