ibclogo XVI International Botanical Congess

Abstract Number: 5475
Poster No. = 479


BIOMECHANICAL BASIS OF ROOT WAVING IN ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA


M. V. Thompson1, N. M. Holbrook1, M. A. Zwieniecki1, L. Mahadevan2, 1Dept. of Org. and Evol. Biol., Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, 2Mech. Eng. Dept, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139


On an inclined (30-60_) agar plate, A. thaliana roots grow in a wavy pattern, which is typically attributed to one of two ontological permutations: thigmotropism superimposed on gravitropism, or circumnutation superimposed on gravitropism. We propose another explanation of the wavy growth pattern, based on observational and manipulative studies of Arabidopsis root growth, that de-emphasizes abstract biological concepts (such as circumnutation) and instead emphasizes biomechanical aspects of the root (i.e., the root is treated as an entire physical object). Under our model, the degree of waviness in Arabidopsis roots is set by mechanical buckling, the strength of gravitropism, and the left-handed twisting tendency.

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