Tree stem diameters fluctuate with tide

Zürcher, Ernst; Cantiani, Maria Giulia; Sorbetti-Guerri, Francesco; Michel, Denis

doi:10.1038/33570

Cited by 54 publications

(41 citation statements)

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“…They reanalyzed previously published data sets collected by high-precision extensometry from different tree species at different locations and conducted a meticulous statistical analysis projecting lunisolar tidal acceleration, and also changes of geomagnetic flux on these time courses. They can confirm the conclusions by Zürcher et al (1998) that stem diameter fluctuates with the tides. However, in addition, they can also infer on a weak influence of geomagnetic flux evident from a reciprocal weak relationship of the so-called Thule index with stem diameters.…”

supporting

confidence: 80%

“…Although one would intuitively link such fluctuations to changes in transpiration, it had been shown earlier that they originate from symplastic flow. The authors have revisited a Nature publication from a decade ago (Zürcher et al 1998) indicating correlations between tree-stem diameters and lunar tides. They reanalyzed previously published data sets collected by high-precision extensometry from different tree species at different locations and conducted a meticulous statistical analysis projecting lunisolar tidal acceleration, and also changes of geomagnetic flux on these time courses.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Cellular physics

Nick

2010

Protoplasma

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Physical factors shape every aspect of cellular life-temperature, gravity, electrical fields, but also, more subtle factors such as sound or magnetic fields can be perceived by living beings to adjust cellular functions with the challenges of environment. Despite their impact on biology, the mechanisms of perception and transduction of physical fields are often barely understood, in some cases, not even investigated. One reason for this "blind spot" of cell biology might be that the otherwise so efficient repertory of molecular biology is of limited help in this case-perception of physical stimuli requires a transformation process translating physics into biochemistry (so-called susception), and knowledge about the molecular nature of the players involved in this translation process, although important, is not sufficient. When we know that the amyloplasts triggering plant gravitropism are composed of starch, this is interesting, but it does not reveal very much about the nature of gravity perception. We need cellular physics when we want to understand cellular biology. Two contributions in the present issue have adopted a physical approach to cell biology:Nanosecond pulsed electrical fields are used to electroporate and extract plant tissues very efficiently for industrial applications, for instance, during the processing of sugar beets. In a time of rising energy costs, this strategy is becoming progressively attractive. However, the energy input is by orders of magnitude lower than that required for membrane breakage indicating that it is a biological process rather than mere electrophysics that underlies this phenomenon. In fact, such nanosecond pulsed electrical fields have been shown to induce apoptosis in cancer cells and elicit, in the plant model tobacco BY-2, a rapid bundling of actin filaments followed by an actin-dependent permeabilization of the membrane (Berghöfer et al. 2009). This indicates that charging of the membrane, even much below the voltages required for irreversible membrane breakage, can cause a biological effect. Several theoretical, but competing, models have been proposed to explain this phenomenon, but experimental evidence was lacking, at least for plant cells. In the current issue, Flickinger et al. (2010) have used a newly developed Pulsed Laser Fluorescence Microscopy setup in combination with the voltage-sensitive fluorescent dye ANNINE-6 to follow membrane charging with an unprecedented time resolution of 5 ns in tobacco BY-2 protoplasts. They can show maximal voltage changes at the cell poles and can depict the geometrical distribution of charge revealing a distinct azimuthal pattern. This pattern is consistent with only one of the concurrent models proposing that nanosecond pulsed electrical fields induce small but reversible pores at the cell poles that reseal within microseconds after the pulse. In addition, voltage-gated ion channels at the hyperpolarized poles are detected from a reversion of membrane polarity at the hyperpolarized pole. Although these charges occur rapid...

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confidence: 80%

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confidence: 99%

Cellular physics

Nick

2010

Protoplasma

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“…Impressive data, first presented in 1998, indicated that the diameter variation of a tree stem (Picea abies) varied in accordance with the local lunisolar tidal cycle (Zürcher et al 1998), and further analysis has uncovered similar corroborative evidence as well as additional indications of a temporal correlation with geomagnetic activity (Barlow et al 2010), which may itself be governed by the lunar tide. In addition, tidally modulated rhythms have been found for the imbibition and germination of bean seeds (Brown and Chow 1973;Spruyt et al 1987) as well as the nastic movements of bean leaves (Barlow and Fisahn 2012;Barlow et al 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 79%

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

Moraes

Barlow

Klingelé

et al. 2012

Naturwissenschaften

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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.

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“…FDK 161 : 231.41 : 322 : 812 durchmessern unter kontrollierten Bedingungen, synchron mit dem circadianen synodischen Mondrhythmus, beschrieben werden (ZÜRCHER et al 1998). Auf dieser Basis wurden weitere Forschungen über lunar-korrelierte Phänomene im Holz realisiert, speziell im Zusammenhang mit alten forstwirtschaftlichen Bräuchen, die auf verschiedenen Kontinenten aus alten Kulturen stammen.…”

Section: Ernst Zürcherunclassified

Trocknungs- und Witterungsverhalten von mondphasengefälltem Fichtenholz (Picea abies Karst.) | Drying and weathering behaviour of Norway Spruce (Picea abies Karst.) wood felled according to moon phases

Zürcher¹

2003

Schweizerische Zeitschrift Fur Forstwesen

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In order to investigate the significance of the moon phases at the felling date on wood properties of Norway spruce, 30 trees from the same growth site were felled at six different dates during waxing/ascending, and waning/descending moon cycles, respectively. The present work deals especially with the effect on wood-water-relations of the analysed samples, as well as with the effect on some wood properties after weathering. The results show significant differences in the second half of the experimental felling period.

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Tree stem diameters fluctuate with tide

Cited by 54 publications

References 1 publication

Cellular physics

Cellular physics

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

Trocknungs- und Witterungsverhalten von mondphasengefälltem Fichtenholz (Picea abies Karst.) | Drying and weathering behaviour of Norway Spruce (Picea abies Karst.) wood felled according to moon phases

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