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The relevant paragraph is actually this: And while radiation and other types of DNA damage can cause tumours in plants, mutated cells are generally not able to
by HarryHirsch 7y ago
The relevant paragraph is actually this: And while radiation and other types of DNA damage can cause tumours in plants, mutated cells are generally not able to spread from one part of the plant to another as cancers do, thanks to the rigid, interconnecting walls surrounding plant cells.
- killjoywashere 7y agoPlants also lack a closed circuit circulatory system designed to accommodate autologous cells. So not only can the cells not get out of their walls, there wouldn't be much of anywhere to go if they did.
- jonhendry18 7y agoIn order for a cancer-like mutation to kill a plant it would probably have to cause mechanical damage. Tumors completely circling the trunk of a tree might have an effect like girdling the tree and kill the tree. A tumor growing in the center of a stem might compress the xylem and phloem enough to choke them off. This kind of fatality happens with humans, too, even if the cancer doesn't spread beyond the origin site.