Understanding  how  plants  cope  with  drought    Dr.  David  Parrott,  a  plant  biologist,  studies  how  plants  sense  and  respond  to  their  surrounding  environment.  His  research  has  uncovered  how  plants  deal  with  our  arid  Utah  desert  climate.  While  humans  have  developed  mobility  aids  to  adapt  to  restricted  locomotion,  plants  have  established  a  means  to  adapt  in  place.  Plants  cannot  walk  or  drive  away  when  conditions  become  too  hot,  too  dry,  or  too  salty.      One  way  plants  adapt  to  handle  these  stressors  is  to  limit  or  stop  growth  when  exposed  to  unfavorable  conditions.  For  instance,  when  plants  do  not  have  enough  water  available,  the  creation  of  sugars  (the  plant’s  food  source)  in  the  leaves  is  turned  off,  which  in  turn  stops  the  growth  of  the  entire  plant.  This  is  one  way  that  plants  conserve  energy  during  a  drought.      Scientists  are  seeking  a  better  understanding  of  how  plants  are  able  to  adjust  to  changes  in  their  surroundings.  Dr.  Parrott  has  discovered  a  brand  new  chemical  made  in  the  roots  of  plants  that  is  transported  to  the  shoot  where  it  acts  as  a  signal  to  stop  both  the  shoot  and  root  from  growing.  This  chemical  was  discovered  in  the  model  organism  Arabidopsis  thaliana,  a  plant  that  is  the  center  of  countless  studies  in  plant  biology.  However,  the  exact  identity  of  the  chemical  is  still  unknown,  and  there  is  still  much  to  be  learned  about  precisely  how  this  chemical  signal  functions  in  sensing  drought  conditions.      This  exciting  new  discovery  contributes  to  the  broader  understanding  of  how  plants  are  able  to  survive  in  a  variety  unfavorable  conditions.    

 

Arabidopsis  thaliana

David  Parrott  at  work  in  his  lab  

Peggy  Greb,  USDA