Lunisolar tidal force and its relationship to chlorophyll fluorescence in Arabidopsis thaliana.

The yield of chlorophyll fluorescence Ft was measured in leaves of Arabidopsis thaliana over periods of several days under conditions of continuous illumination (LL) without the application of saturating light pulses. After linearization of the time series of the chlorophyll fluorescence yield (ΔFt), oscillations became apparent with periodicities in the circatidal range. Alignments of these linearized time series ΔFt with the lunisolar tidal acceleration revealed high degrees of synchrony and phase congruence. Similar congruence with the lunisolar tide was obtained with the linearized quantum yield of PSII (ΔФII), recorded after application of saturating light pulses. These findings strongly suggest that there is an exogenous timekeeper which is a stimulus for the oscillations detected in both the linearized yield of chlorophyll fluorescence (ΔFt) and the linearized quantum yield of PSII (ΔФII).

Lunar gravity affects leaf movement of Arabidopsis thaliana in the International Space Station.

MAIN CONCLUSION: Cyclic leaf ascent and descent occur in synchrony and phase congruence with the lunisolar tidal force under a broad range of conditions. Digitized records of the vertical leaf movements of Arabidopsis thaliana were collected under space flight conditions in the International Space Station (ISS). Oscillations of leaf movements with periods of 45 and 90 min were found under light-adapted conditions, whereas in darkness, the periods were 45, 90, and 135 min. To demonstrate the close relationship between these oscillations and cyclical variations of the lunisolar gravitational force, we estimated the oscillations of the in-orbit lunisolar tide as they apply to the ISS, with the aid of the Etide software application. In general, in-orbit lunisolar gravitational profiles exhibited a periodicity of 45 min. Alignment of these in-orbit oscillations with the oscillations of Arabidopsis leaf movement revealed high degrees of synchrony and a congruence of phase. These data corroborate previous results which suggested a correlative relationship and a possible causal link between leaf movement rhythms obtained on ground and the rhythmic variation of the lunisolar tidal force.

Spontaneous ultra-weak light emissions from wheat seedlings are rhythmic and synchronized with the time profile of the local gravimetric tide.

Semi-circadian rhythms of spontaneous photon emission from wheat seedlings germinated and grown in a constant environment (darkened chamber) were found to be synchronized with the rhythm of the local gravimetric (lunisolar) tidal acceleration. Time courses of the photon-count curves were also found to match the growth velocity profile of the seedlings. Pair-wise analyses of the data--growth, photon count, and tidal--by local tracking correlation always revealed significant coefficients (P > 0.7) for more than 80% of any of the time periods considered. Using fast Fourier transform, the photon-count data revealed periodic components similar to those of the gravimetric tide. Time courses of biophoton emissions would appear to be an additional, useful, and innovative tool in both chronobiological and biophysical studies.

Arabidopsis thaliana root growth kinetics and lunisolar tidal acceleration.

• All living organisms on Earth are continually exposed to diurnal variations in the gravitational tidal force due to the Sun and Moon. • Elongation of primary roots of Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings maintained at a constant temperature was monitored for periods of up to 14 d using high temporal- and spatial-resolution video imaging. The time-course of the half-hourly elongation rates exhibited an oscillation which was maintained when the roots were placed in the free-running condition of continuous illumination. • Correlation between the root growth kinetics collected from seedlings initially raised under several light protocols but whose roots were subsequently in the free-running condition and the lunisolar tidal profiles enabled us to identify that the latter is the probable exogenous determinant of the rhythmic variation in root elongation rate. Similar observations and correlations using roots of Arabidopsis starch mutants suggest a central function of starch metabolism in the response to the lunisolar tide. The periodicity of the lunisolar tidal signal and the concomitant adjustments in root growth rate indicate that an exogenous timer exists for the modulation of root growth and development. • We propose that, in addition to the sensitivity to Earthly 1G gravity, which is inherent to all animals and plants, there is another type of responsiveness which is attuned to the natural diurnal variations of the lunisolar tidal force.