“these results demonstrate the ability of living, wild-type plants to function as chemical monitors of groundwater and communication devices,” the researchers wrote in their report.
these particular spinach plants were designed to sense nitroaromatics, a chemical found in landmines and other explosives, which could be an important tool in mine clearance programs. buried explosives continue to be a global concern; in 2019
the landmine monitor
recorded 2,170 deaths and 3,357 injuries from mines and explosive remnants of war – the majority of casualties were civilians.
glow-in-the-dark watercress and plants driving robots
plant nanobionics refers to a field of research which seeks to interface living plants with technology to give plants new and varied functions.
plants
give off
electrical signals, caused by chemicals released by the plant’s cells in response to their environment. scientists can insert an electrode either inside the plant itself or on the surface of the leaf to read these electrical signals, which can give information on temperature, light pollution, drought and much more. more research is needed to decode these signals across plant species.
harpreet sareen and pattie maes, also at mit, took advantage of this electrical information to develop a plant cyborg named
elowan
. sensors register electrochemical signals given off by the plant when it senses light. these signals are then sent to the robotic platform the plant sit on, which drives it towards the source of light.