Bauer, G., Friedrich, C., Gillig, C. et al. (3 more authors) (2014) Investigating the rheological properties of native plant latex. Journal of The Royal Society Interface, 11 (90). 20130847. ISSN 1742-5689
Abstract
Plant latex, the source of natural rubber, has been of interest to mankind for millennia, with much of the research on its rheological (flow) properties focused towards industrial application. However, little is known regarding the rheology of the nativematerial as produced by the plant, a key factor in determining latex’s biological functions. In this study, we outline a method for rheological comparison between native latices that requires a minimum of preparatory steps. Our approach provides quantitative insights into the coagulation mechanisms of Euphorbia and Ficus latex allowing interpretation within a comparative evolutionary framework. Our findings reveal that in laboratory conditions both latices behave like non-Newtonian materials with the coagulation of Euphorbia latex being mediated by a slowevaporative process (more than 60 min),whereas Ficus appears to use additional biochemical components to increase the rate of coagulation (more than 30 min). Based on these results,we propose two different primary defensive roles for latex in these plants: the delivery of anti-herbivory compounds (Euphorbia) and rapid wound healing (Ficus).
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2013 The Author(s). This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. |
Keywords: | rheology; latex; Euphorbia; Ficus; evolution; coagulation |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Engineering (Sheffield) > Department of Materials Science and Engineering (Sheffield) |
Funding Information: | Funder Grant number EPSRC EP/K005693 /1 |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 24 Jun 2014 13:21 |
Last Modified: | 24 Jun 2014 13:21 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsif.2013.0847 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | Royal Society Publishing |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1098/rsif.2013.0847 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:79511 |