Researchers at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University led by
Jim Westwood are exploring a new arena of science: inter-organism
communication at the molecular level. This gives a new insight on finding
ways to fight parasitic weeds that affects crop production globally.



Westwood examined the relationship between a parasitic plant, dodder, and
two host plants (Arabidopsis and tomatoes). Dodder uses an appendage to
penetrate the plant and suck the moisture and nutrients. Westwood found that
during this parasitic interaction, there is an exchange of thousands upon
thousands of messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) between the two species. The
RNA translates information passed down from the deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA),
the blueprint of organisms. It was thought that mRNA was very fragile and
short-lived, thus transferring it between species was unimaginable.



This discovery could help scientists examine if other organisms such as
bacteria and fungi exhibit the same communication process.



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