A library of electrophysiological responses in plants - a model of transversal education and open science

Electrophysiology in plants is understudied, and, moreover, an ideal model for student inclusion at all levels of education. Here, we report on an investigation in open science, whereby scientists worked with high school students, faculty, and undergraduates from Chile, Germany, Serbia, South Korea, and the USA. The students recorded the electrophysiological signals of >15 plant species in response to a flame or tactile stimulus applied to the leaves. We observed that approximately 60% of the plants studied showed an electrophysiological response, with a delay of ~ 3-6 s after stimulus presentation. In preliminary conduction velocity experiments, we verified that observed signals are indeed biological in origin, with information transmission speeds of ~ 2–9 mm/s. Such easily replicable experiments can serve to include more investigators and students in contributing to our understanding of plant electrophysiology.

植物电生理学（plant electrophysiology）的研究尚未得到充分探索，同时它也是适配各教育阶段学生参与的理想研究模型。本研究报道了一项开放科学相关的探索实践：科研人员与来自智利、德国、塞尔维亚、韩国、美国的高中生、教职员工及本科生开展合作。学生们记录了超过15种植物在叶片受到火焰或触觉刺激时产生的电生理信号。研究观察到，约60%的受试植物呈现出电生理响应，刺激施加后信号延迟时长约为3至6秒。在初步的传导速度实验中，我们证实所记录到的信号确实源自生物活动，其信息传递速度约为2至9毫米每秒。这类易于复现的实验能够吸纳更多科研人员与学生参与，助力我们深化对植物电生理学的认知。