Possible use of a 3-D clinostat to analyze plant growth processes under microgravity conditions

Automorphosis-like growth in etiolated pea seedlings is induced by the application of chemicals affecting perception of gravistimulation and its signal transduction

“…Recently, the three-dimensional (3-D) clinostat has been shown to be a valuable device for simulating microgravity conditions or weightlessness on earth (Hoson et al, 1992(Hoson et al, , 1996Kraft et al, 2000). In our recent studies using a 3-D clinostat, we were able to induce automorphosis-like growth and development of etiolated pea seedlings (Table 1).…”

“…A 3-D clinostat (CS-2, Nippon Medical and Chemical Instruments Co. Ltd., Osaka, Japan) was used to produce simulated microgravity conditions according to Hoson et al (1992Hoson et al ( , 1996Hoson et al ( , 1997 with minor modifications. The sample stage was rotated 3-dimensionally by changing the rotation rate of two motors at random from 1 to À1 (reverse direction) rpm every 30 s using a rotation control system (CL-CS1, Minamide System Engineering, Co. Ltd., Osaka, Japan).…”

The Gravitropic Response of Poplar Trunks: Key Roles of Prestressed Wood Regulation and the Relative Kinetics of Cambial Growth versus Wood Maturation

“…It requires the perception of variables other than the inclination angle. As a result, it has been referred to as autotropic straightening (Firn and Digby, 1979;Tarui and Iino, 1997), automorphosis (Hoson et al, 1995), or autotropism (Meskauskas et al, 1999b), depending on the author (see Stankovic and Volkmann, 1998, for a discussion about the use of these terms). These biphasic responses have been rarely mentioned for trees (Archer and Wilson, 1973;Fournier et al, 1994, on conifers), and the question of whether or not it is autotropism has not been addressed.…”

Auxin Polar Transport and Automorphosis in Plants

“…Under a stimulusfree environment, plants show endogenously directed, spontaneous growth designated as "automorphosis" or "automorphogenesis" ("Eigenrichtung" by Pfeffer, 1881;cited in Pfeffer, 1904; see the review by Stanković et al, 1998). Although these terms and phenomena have been linked with "nastic" curvature that are morphologically determined and independent of any external stimulus (Pfeffer, 1904), more recently, these terms are also used to explain the establishment of intracellular polarity and determination of the growth direction under weightlessness (Volkmann et al, 1986) and to describe the morphogenesis of plants grown on a 3-D clinostat (Hoson et al, 1992(Hoson et al, , 1995(Hoson et al, , 1996. Spontaneous curvature of various plant organs observed on such conditions has been called "autotropism (autotropic reaction)" (Larsen, 1953) recognized as part of automorphosis.…”

“…clinostat, which provides a way to randomize G-stimulation by providing 3-dimansional rotation, has been demonstrated to be a valuable device for simulating microgravity or weightlessness conditions, and intensively used for ground-based experiments (Hoson et al, 1992(Hoson et al, , 1996(Hoson et al, , 1997Kraft et al, 2000;Shimazu et al, 2001;Miyamoto et al, 2005b).…”