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posted by janrinok on Thursday August 06 2015, @10:02PM   Printer-friendly
from the turning-over-a-new-leaf dept.

The natural defenses of dead plants -- which are designed to inhibit enzymes in the gut to prevent digestion -- would be toxic for any other animal. But a group of researchers from Imperial College London have discovered new molecules in the worm gut, named drilodefensins, that can counteract the toxins, breaking them down the way that dish liquid breaks apart grease.

"Without drilodefensins, fallen leaves would remain on the surface of the ground for a very long time, building up to a thick layer," said Jake Bundy, an author of the study and a professor at Imperial College, in a statement. "Our countryside would be unrecognizable, and the whole system of carbon cycling would be disrupted."

The humble worm is amazing. It can turn lawn waste and food scraps into rich black soil in a matter of weeks.


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  • (Score: 1) by purpleland on Friday August 07 2015, @02:17AM

    by purpleland (5193) on Friday August 07 2015, @02:17AM (#219368)

    One explanation is that the tree wants to prevent growth in its immediate vicinity for purely selfish reasons. Leaves dropped in fall that survive well into spring will suppress new saplings/plants from growing, thereby reducing competition against established trees.

  • (Score: 1) by purpleland on Friday August 07 2015, @02:20AM

    by purpleland (5193) on Friday August 07 2015, @02:20AM (#219369)

    Just noticed earlier poster mentioned same thing, but yeah.. this makes sense.

  • (Score: 2, Interesting) by purpleland on Friday August 07 2015, @02:30AM

    by purpleland (5193) on Friday August 07 2015, @02:30AM (#219377)

    If you could devise a simulation (possibly using a genetic algorithm of some sort) of trees with leaves containing this enzyme vs trees without, to demonstrate its effect is directly responsible for creating the most successful (i.e. biggest) trees - couldn't you get published in Nature or something?

    • (Score: 3, Insightful) by TheLink on Friday August 07 2015, @03:09AM

      by TheLink (332) on Friday August 07 2015, @03:09AM (#219388) Journal
      Or remove fallen leaves from trees in one group and not for a control group, then see how they fare.

      You could do this in different ways without affecting the ground below e.g. suspend nets below tree branches.
      • (Score: 1) by purpleland on Friday August 07 2015, @04:30AM

        by purpleland (5193) on Friday August 07 2015, @04:30AM (#219425)

        Yes, indeed and I wonder if there are other implications as well... like wouldn't a long lasting dense leaf cover on the ground help keep the soil a bit warmer, thereby protecting its surface roots from the cold?

    • (Score: 2) by moondrake on Monday August 10 2015, @08:41AM

      by moondrake (2658) on Monday August 10 2015, @08:41AM (#220590)

      The problems with such simulations (I do a lot of those) is that you can only model things you already know about (and often only imperfectly). Nature sometimes does things that we do not know about, and thus they cannot be put in a model. Even if the model gives you the expected outcome, it might be for the wrong reasons (especially since you are likely dealing with a gazillion parameters that you have only approximate estimates for).