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Here is what you need to know in order to generally understand the significance of my findings: 1.Mimosa pudica is stimulated→ leaflets react by closing 2.Reaction occurs through signal molecules •Alert cell of a stimulant 3.Signal molecules could traffic through the plasmodesmata via an actin-myosin motor protein interaction 4.Actin-myosin interaction can only occur with the presence of calcium | Does calcium have an impact on the reaction time of the leaflets of the Mimosa pudica? Hypothesis: The influx of calcium within the Mimosa pudica will decrease the reaction time of the plant’s leaflets to a physical stimulus alluding to the presence of possible Ca2+ driven transport mechanism, such as an actin-myosin interaction within the plasmodesmata. |
Plants of Mimosa pudica L. were grown in the lab in test tubes full of a soil culture. The plants were grown under grow lights and given 12 hours of direct light and 12 hours of darkness. There were three groups of plants (control, experimental A and experimental B) and three plants in each group, each was given two pipets of designated nutrient solution every other weekday. Every weekday all the plants were given three pipets of distilled water.
Results: Upon examination of the seismonastic reactions of the Mimosa pudica, I identified a correlation between calcium level within the nutrient solution and the reaction time of the plant (Figure 1). Experimental A (2.33±.93), the group of plants with less calcium, in comparison to the control group (1.92±.71) was found to have a longer reaction time (two-sample t-test, p<.05). Experimental B (1.61±.48), the group of plants with more calcium, in comparison to the control (1.92±.71), was found to have a shorter reaction time (two-sample t-test, p<.05). |