Acid growth protons (H ions) to be pumped out of the cell into the cell wall. As a result, the cell wall solution becomes more acidic. This activates expansin activity, causing the wall to become more extensible and to undergo wall stress relaxation, which enables the cell to take up water and to expand. Acid growth Acid growth refers to the ability of plant cells and plant cell walls to elongate or expand quickly at low (acidic) pH. This form of growth does not involve an increase in cell number. During acid growth, plant cells enlarge rapidly because the cell walls are
Plant to plant communication via mycorrhizal networks help plants in mycorrhizal networks defend themselves against attack by pathogens or herbivores, and transferred nutrients can affect growth and nutrition. Results of studies which demonstrate these modes of communication have led the authors to hypothesize mechanisms by which the transfer of these nutrients can affect the fitness of the connected plants. Plants and fungi form mutualistic symbiotic relationships called mycorrhizae, which take several forms, such as arbuscular mycorrhizae (AM) and ectomycorrhizae (ECM), and are widespread in nature. Host plants provide photosynthetically derived carbohydrates to the mycorrhizal fungi, which use them in metabolism, either for energy or to increase the