Biological complexity: how seeds germinate (Introduction)

by David Turell , Friday, December 27, 2019, 18:43 (1793 days ago) @ David Turell

They may remain dry for years and then with rain water will suddenly germinate through an automatic process:

https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/12/191227104940.htm

"Plant seeds may strike the casual observer as unspectacular -- but they have properties that are nothing short of superpowers. In a dry state they can store their energy for years and then suddenly release it for germination when environmental conditions are favourable. One striking example is the "super bloom" in the Death Valley National Park, when seeds that have endured the dry and hot desert for decades suddenly germinate at rainfall followed by a rare and spectacular desert bloom several months later. Seeds conserve a fully formed embryo, which only continues growing when conditions are right for it to do so. This may be the case only years -- or in more extreme cases even centuries -- later.

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"The researchers discovered that when the seeds came into contact with water, energy metabolism was established in a matter of minutes, and the plant cells' "power stations" -- known as mitochondria -- activated their respiration. The researchers also found out which molecular switches are activated to enable energy to be released efficiently -- with the so-called thiol-redox switches playing a central role."

Comment: This process is under total information control. Cannot be created by chance, as the mechanism may lie fallow for years and dos not allow hunt and peck or trial events..