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| Thale Cress
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| Arabidopsis thaliana |
Arabidopsis thaliana, or Thale Cress, a small flowering plant related to cabbage and mustard, is one of the model organisms for studying plant sciences, including genetics and plant development. Similarly as mouse and fruit fly (Drosophila) are used as model organisms to understand human biology, Arabidopsis thaliana is used to study agronomic crops.
The genome of Arabidopsis, consisting of five chromosomes, has been sequenced.
Arabidopsis has been used extensively in the study of the genetic basis of phototropism, chloroplast alignment, and other light influenced processes. Study of this organism has led to discoveries such as positive phototropic responses of root cells to red, far red and infrared light.
While gravitropic response of Arabidopsis root organs is the predominant tropic effect in these organs, specimens treated with mutagenIn biology, a mutagen ( Latin, literally origin of change is an agent that changes the genetic information (usually DNA) of an organism and thus increases the number of mutations above the natural background level. Mutagens are usually chemical compoundss and then selected for the absence of gravitropic action have shown both negative phototropic response to blue or white light, and positive phototropic response to red light. The photosensitive pigments phytochromePhytochrome is a photoreceptor found in plants. It is involved in plants phototropism. The phytochrome system is the plant's red light sensitive system. It can measure the ratio of red to far-red light. The phytochrome system is being modeled in the plant A and phytochrome B mediate this red light based phototropic response.
Common names: Thale Cress, Mouse-ear Cress, Mustard Weed