linkedin post 2016-12-10 07:22:52

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ANCIENT PROCESS. "It is not surprising that plants have evolved mechanisms for dealing with obsolete organ systems. The shedding of leaves by the process of abscission is a very ancient trait - fossils from as early as the Devonian period (i.e., -400 million years ago) show evidence of abscission scars." https://lnkd.in/dNWP3KD View in LinkedIn
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linkedin post 2016-12-10 07:15:29

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LEAF FALL. "Timing of leaf abscission is an important trait for biomass production and seasonal acclimation in deciduous trees. The signaling leading to organ separation, from the external cue (decreasing photoperiod) to ethylene-regulated hydrolysis of the middle lamellae in the abscission zone, is only poorly understood." https://lnkd.in/dTkfjMD View in LinkedIn
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linkedin post 2016-12-10 07:11:12

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FRAGMENT FROM NATURE continues from last weekend on the subject of autumn leaf drop. As plants harvest the invested nutritional value from autumn leaves before they drop them, there is a hive of genetic and metabolic activity within the forest; large numbers genes are turned on and off, triggered by environmental cues, while leaf molecules are being shunted to storage tissues to wait for the spring growth initiative. A busy time for our friends. View in LinkedIn
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linkedin post 2016-12-09 07:10:13

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INESTIMABLY IMPORTANT EVENT. "It has been suggested that cyanobacteria raised oxygen levels in the atmosphere around 2.45–2.32 billion y ago during the Great Oxidation Event (GOE), hence dramatically changing life on the planet. The far-reaching impact of the GOE cannot be emphasized enough: it changed Earth’s history by enabling the evolution of aerobic life." http://www.pnas.org/content/110/5/1791.full View in LinkedIn
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