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Nanotechnology in Plant Life" />
Flowers contain specific pigments within their petals that absorb ultraviolet (UV) light to create the intricate patterns and colors that make up their design. While humans are able to visualize these vibrant colors, bees that look to these plants for pollination are capable of recognizing different colors and pigments to the same flower that is invisible to the naked eye.
In a recent study published in Nature, Researchers took a closer look at how the disordered nanoscale architecture of various flowers could produce a specific signal for insect pollinators.
Nanoarchitecture in the Plant Kingdom
Previous research in further understanding the complexity of plant architecture has demonstrated how the specifically designed nanoarchitecture of these organisms play an important role in their ability to generate energy and even self-clean. When looking at the outermost layer of any type of flowered plant, some will exhibit parallel striations that will usually appear clearly to the naked eye.
These striations may appear to have some type of local order, however, like any other natural structure, has a much more disordered appearance when the nanolevel structure is exposed.
Whether this disordered pattern is the result of random biological processes or evolutionary selection, it was not clear until University of Cambridge Researchers investigated the attraction of bees to both natural and artificially made nanosurfaces.
In their study, Beverely Glover’s team looked at the striations present in the following angiosperms, each of which belong to a different family:
- Trimenia moorei
- Leucocoryne purpurea
- Lathyrus aureus
- Hibiscus trionum
- Adonis aestivalis
- Penstemon barrettiae
- Grielum humifusum
- Paeonia mascula
- Mentzelia lindleyii
- Oenthera stricta
- Tulipa ‘Queen of the Night’
- Ursinia speciosa
Plant Structure Analysis
Fresh petals were collected from each of the aforementioned species, and their anatomical and optical properties were analyzed by scattering light onto the specimen at various angles. The Researchers found that a color-dependent scattering present within a petal must be measured over a large number of striations.
The disordered striations of the petals were determined to significantly contribute to the overall optical response of the flowers in a similar way; each of the flowers were found to enhance the blue-UV wavelength region of 600-700 nanometers (nm), with the highest intensity to occur between the angles of -25 °C and +25 °C. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was used to identify plant species with both ordered and disordered striations at the nanoscale.
It is not completely understood whether bumblebees perceive this blue halo of light or the iridescent signal that is given off by plants, therefore the Researchers challenged the bumblebees’ perception by using both artificial flowers and the aforementioned natural species of flowers as well.
In the artificial flowers, the Researchers created a smooth outer surface of the petals that exhibited both perfectly ordered, or iridescent grating, as well as petals with a disordered and blue halo rating. After several series of conditioning the bees to recognize the different flowers in the experiment, the Researchers found that they visited the blue-halo flowers much more frequently than those containing iridescent petals.
Potential Applications with this New Information
The Researchers determined that the nanostructures in plants that exhibit a certain degree of disorder have evolved independently within flower species, playing an important role in their ability to induce a directional scattering effect in the blue UV wavelength region of the spectrum.
Cellulose, a structural component that forms the cell wall of plants, has played an important role as a natural polymer for a number of human purposes. The plant nanostructures investigated in this study provide a greater insight into the strength and lightness that this level of biological material possesses. Nanocellulose, therefore, could be a major component of future applications ranging from electronic devices to low calorie food additives.
Image Credit:
Africa Studio/ Shutterstock.com
References:
- “Disorder in convergent floral nanostructures enhances signaling to bees” E. Moyroud, T. Wenzel, et al. Nature. (2017). DOI: 10.1038/nature24285.
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