In the cases related to the “spread of neuro disease”, one hears the word “prion” which are a form of protein. However, an Indian scientist from “Massachusetts Institute of Technology” conducted a study which hints that “prion-like proteins” could be responsible in plants to retain their memory and aid in “their decision making” process.
The research is Sohini Chakrabortee, who is working at the “Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research” at MIT. Her study “identified three proteins” which could have a role in the flowering process of plants in “Arabidopsis family”. However, one of the three proteins shares a few similar “characteristics with prions”. Moreover, the study has provided a window for increasing grasp over “biological functions that prions could play”.
So far, prions have been associated mainly in the spreading of “some neurodegenerative diseases”. Nevertheless, TOI informs that:
“The role of the prion-like protein - Luminidependence - is being studied as plants decide each spring whether to bloom or not. This decision-making is dependent on complex factors such as nutrient levels, hydration, temperature, and vernalization - the memory of having experienced winter”.
The author of the research did her “BSc and MSc at Delhi University” and now she is following her research work at “Leicester University and Cambridge University before joining MIT”.
References:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
The research is Sohini Chakrabortee, who is working at the “Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research” at MIT. Her study “identified three proteins” which could have a role in the flowering process of plants in “Arabidopsis family”. However, one of the three proteins shares a few similar “characteristics with prions”. Moreover, the study has provided a window for increasing grasp over “biological functions that prions could play”.
So far, prions have been associated mainly in the spreading of “some neurodegenerative diseases”. Nevertheless, TOI informs that:
“The role of the prion-like protein - Luminidependence - is being studied as plants decide each spring whether to bloom or not. This decision-making is dependent on complex factors such as nutrient levels, hydration, temperature, and vernalization - the memory of having experienced winter”.
The author of the research did her “BSc and MSc at Delhi University” and now she is following her research work at “Leicester University and Cambridge University before joining MIT”.
References:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/
