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Updated: Jul 25, 2026
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Kinematic Analysis of Cell Division and Expansion: Quantifying the Cellular Basis of Growth and Sampling Developmental Zones in Zea mays Leaves
Published on: December 2, 2016
Morphological Developmental Stability in Plants: Patterns and Causes.
International Journal of Plant Sciences
|November 26, 1999
Summary
Developmental instability in plants, measured by asymmetry, is higher than in animals. Environmental and genetic factors significantly impact this asymmetry, affecting plant development.
Area of Science:
- Developmental biology
- Plant morphology
- Evolutionary biology
Background:
- Developmental instability (DI) is indicated by deviations from phenotypic regularity.
- Measures of DI include fluctuating asymmetry, phenodeviants, and fractal dimensions.
- Plants exhibit greater asymmetry than animals, with specific patterns related to organ size.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review patterns of fluctuating asymmetry in plants.
- To meta-analyze the effects of environmental and genetic factors on plant asymmetry.
- To understand the mechanisms causing developmental instability in plants.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature on plant asymmetry.
- Meta-analysis of environmental factors (radiation, UV, pollutants, salinity, herbivory, competition).
- Meta-analysis of genetic factors (homozygosity, hybridization, mutation, genetic variation).
Main Results:
- Plant asymmetry levels are considerably greater than in animals.
- Leaf asymmetry increases with leaf size, while petal asymmetry decreases with petal size.
- Environmental factors showed intermediate to large effects on asymmetry (10-25% variance).
- Genetic factors showed variable but significant effects on asymmetry.
Conclusions:
- Developmental instability is a significant factor in plant development.
- Environmental and genetic factors play crucial roles in modulating plant asymmetry.
- Further experimental studies are needed to elucidate the mechanisms of DI in plants.
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