Scientists reveal how plants sense touch in seconds

Lund University researchers identified how plants sense mechanical stimulation through a protein cascade (MAPKKK3/4/5 → MKK4/5 → MPK3/6) that activates within 60 seconds, triggering around 800 genes in model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. This reshapes gene activity and growth responses to wind, touch, and herbivore damage.

A signal initiated within a minute can have such widespread effects.