It means that scientists no longer only have to use laboratory animals, but that even plants can serve as additional model organism.

What if scientists could study human mental illness in plants? It may sound a bit far-fetched, but American researchers think it should be possible. In a new study they have taken an important first step. By studying how a similar gene, which is found in both plants and animals, influences the behavior of both.

A plant with schizophrenia

The possibility of studying human mental illness in plants has fascinated researcher Tamas Horvath for some time. “Years ago I started to get interested in the idea that every living organism must have some homology,” he says. “They should be somewhat similar in how they are and what they do.” Horvath theorizes that if one could modify mitochondrial genes in animals to see what changes, and then do the same with similar genes in plants, it might eventually be possible to use plants to better understand human behavior. “If you take that idea one step further, it might be possible to develop a schizophrenic plant, for example,” Horvath said.

More about mitochondria
Mitochondria are in fact the power plants of our cells. They regulate important functions, such as metabolism and are crucial for good health. In both plants and humans, dysfunctional mitochondria can affect development. This can lead to several diseases in humans, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease and schizophrenia.

While that’s still in the future, studying human mental illness in plants could be interesting. “It means we can use not only mammals, but also other alternative species to study human behavior,” Horvath says. “It is possible that in the future, plants could serve as an additional model organism for behavioral research.”

Genes

In a new study, Horvath has taken an important first step. For example, together with his colleagues, he analyzed a mitochondrial gene (FMT for short) in the thale cress. (Arabidopsis thaliana)† a small flower. In addition, they examined a similar gene (abbreviated CLUH) found in mice. Then they looked for differences and similarities.

FMT

The researchers compared plants without FMT with plants with an overactive FMT to better understand the role of the gene. And it turns out that FMT influences many important features of the thale cress. For example, it plays a role in germination, root length, flowering time and leaf growth.

Salt and the hyponastic reaction

In addition, FMT also appears to influence the so-called ‘salt stress response’. Too much salt is bad for plants. And when plants are exposed to too much salt stress, they stop growing immediately. The researchers found that FMT is critical to this behavior. In addition, FMT also appears to play an important role in the so-called hyponastic response – the way a plant’s leaves move during the day and night. During the day, for example, the leaves are flatter when they are more exposed to the sun. At night, when there is no sunlight, the leaves are tilted upwards. And FMT regulates how much and how fast the leaves move.

Mice

To relate these results to mammals, the researchers also studied how the similar gene CLUH (which, as mentioned, is very similar to FMT) influences the behavior of mice. Several tests showed that mice with less CLUH were slower and traveled shorter distances than their counterparts.

Comparable

According to Horvath, those are exciting results. Because it implies that FMT and CLUH affect the behavior of both species in a similar way. “The mice reacted the same as the plants,” Horvath says. “This suggests that mitochondrial-related mechanisms exist that perform similar functions in both plants and animals.”

The findings of the study imply that Horvath’s theory stated at the beginning of this article may not even be that far-fetched. Because it turns out that plants and animals do indeed have similar genes that also have similar functions. Moreover, it does not stop with FMT and CLUH. “Plants like thale cress and mammals share other similar genes and cellular processes in addition to FMT and CLUH,” Horvath says. And that’s exciting. Because it could mean that eventually that schizophrenic plant will eventually become reality.