Many of us turn to painkillers as a solution when we encounter pains such as headaches that cool us from life. Now it’s not just humans; It turned out that at the same time, it lived in plants in a similar form.
A new study has shown that plants can produce their own aspirin when under the stress of the dangers around them. This research, conducted by scientists at the University of California in the USA, was published on Science Advances.
It can be used to make plants more resistant to environmental hazards.
According to the statements, the research takes a closer look at this defense system in plants and how the production of salicylic acid, the active metabolite of aspirin, occurs. Salicic acid has been used by humans for centuries as a pain and inflammation treatment. In plants, regulation plays a valuable role in situations such as pathogen defense.
According to experts, this is produced as a reaction to factors such as tension in the chloroplasts, where the photosynthesis process takes place. Wilhelmina van de Ven, one of the researchers, says, “Just like we do, plants also use a kind of painkiller for aches and pains.”
The researchers conducted biochemical analyzes and came up with results to understand the complex chain of reactions that plants show when under tension. We can say that the tension factors mentioned are things like hostile insects, drought. These conditions can be fatal in plant species.
Using the Rockcress (Arabidopsis) plant in their experiments, the researchers focused on a molecule called MEcPP that can be seen in parasites. As a result of the increase of MEcPP in the plant, it was observed that a response involving salicylic acid was triggered. The findings could be used to make plants more resilient to environmental hazards on our increasingly hot planet, the researchers say.