So, the concept is that the Supreme Being wanted all of us to be vegetarians. But, the SB also recognized that was not going to be the case. Which is why the SB stipulated that we Jews should only eat animals that were kosher. And, that we should not eat two generations at once- which is part of the reason why we can’t mix milk and meat during a meal. And, that animals must be killed immediately with the sharpest of knives.
But, I know many a person who feels they should adopt a vegetarian diet because they don’t want to inflict even the slightest bit of pain on an animal. And, while I understand the concept, the facts are that plants, like animals, feel stress. Even though they don’t have a CNS (central nervous system). But, while plants feel, they probably do not manifest hunger or pain experiences.
Researchers from University of Maryland (JA Feijo and P Domingos), CSIRO (PR Ryan), University of Tasmania (S Shabala) and University of Adelaide’s Australian Research Council (M Gilliham, S Wege, S Ullah, V Conn, S Kaur, J Bose, B Xu, and senior authors SA Ramesh and SD Tyerman) shared their findings that plants employ GABA (gamma aminobutyric acid) to transmit their feelings of stress. These results were published in Nature Communications.
Many of these researchers were instrumental in proving that plant physiological processes (mineral nutrition, carbon metabolism, growth) were dependent upon solute and water fluxes across the plasma membranes and other plant structures. Which is why stoma open and close, hormone communication manifests, and growth regulators all communicate within the plant itself.
What sort of stress do plants manifest? Drought, salinity, viral attacks, extreme temperatures, acidic soils, even herbivory (the act of eating a plant). Pretty much the gamut of issues that can affect plant life. Moreover, GABA is bound in the same fashion that animals operate, so the electrical signals are used to regulate plant growth. Oh, and that communication is pretty rapid, too.
While both animals and plants bind GABA, the proteins involved in this phenomenon are different. So, these “nervous systems” clearly evolved separately. The plant neurotransmitter communication occurs from cell to cell; there are no specialized structures to channel the communications. But, it does seem that malate transporters (aluminum activated, termed ALMT by the team) are the transducers of GABA signaling within the plants.
There is a practical application for this research. This finding can help us produce more resilient and productive crops, now that we know they experience and transmit stress signals. Perhaps even the medical industry can use this information to discern why anti-epiletics and sedatives that are derived from plants are effective- and how to make them more so.
