if all the meristem cells in a plant were destroyed, what would most likely happen to the plant?

Question

choices:

i. it would stop growing
ii. it would become bushy
iii. it would produce more leaves
iv. its roots would start to branch

Answer 1

Since the question asks if ALL the meristem were destroyed, the answer would have to be #1, because a plant cannot grow without any meristem.

Answer 2

Everyone hates trick questions and this could be one - or simply an over-simplification. The first answer, 'it would stop growing' is technically not correct. It would greatly slow down its growth, but it would not stop. Growth is defined as an irreversible increase in size. Although the centers of cell division would be gone, many cells would remain to grow by cell elongation. The meristems often are thought to be the source of auxin to trigger cell elongation, but enough auxin is present for cell elongation to continue until new meristems were re-established. All of the other answers are likely to be correct at some point once new meristematic regions were established, although these are traits typical of plants where the terminal (rather than all) meristems are removed. Although plant cells are totipotent (each cell has the ability to form a complete new plant) - removal of all meristems is a significant stress that many plants cannot recover from without extra care and/or hormone treatments to induce formation of adventitious roots and stems

Answer 3

It's a lousy question. It doesn't state which meristems specifically (Shoot, root, axillary, lateral????). It also doesn't provide a time reference (hours, days?)

1.) stop growing seems logical but growth involves both cell division AND cell elongation...cell elongation, in theory, could continue without cell division.

2.) would become bushy would be true if only the terminal shoot apical meristem was destroyed...if the axillary buds were destroyed, this would not be true.

3.) if the axillary bud meristems are functional, it might actually produce more leaves

4.) death of the root tip often does lead to lateral root formation

Your teacher should be shot, but I suspect he or she is looking for Answer #1.

Answer 4

If meristem both from shoots (including lateral meristem) and roots will be desrtroyed then plant will never grow

Answer 5

option i
you'd better give me atleast one best answer...i've answered most of your questions

Answer 6

i. it would stop growing

Meristems are growth cells

Answer 7

i. it would stop growing