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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Skjegstad, Lars Erik J., Kirkegaard, Julius B.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2410.24009
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author Skjegstad, Lars Erik J.
Kirkegaard, Julius B.
author_facet Skjegstad, Lars Erik J.
Kirkegaard, Julius B.
contents The vascular network of leaves, comprising xylem and phloem, is a highly optimized system for the delivery of water, nutrients, and sugars. The design rules for these naturally occurring networks have been studied since the time of Leonardo da Vinci, who constructed a local rule for comparing the widths of in- and outgoing veins at branch points. Recently, physical models have been developed that seek to explain the full morphogenesis of leaf venial networks in which veins grow in response to local hydrodynamic feedback. Although these models go beyond simple local rules, they are challenging to compare to experimental data. Here, we extend these hydrodynamic models to a state where the direct comparison with images of full leaves becomes possible on the level of individual veins. We present a dataset of the venial networks of leaves that maintain full network topology and use this to discuss the benefits and drawbacks of such a direct comparison. We apply our approach to the direct estimation of a sink fluctuation parameter, demonstrating consistency within distinct leaf species. Finally, we utilize the ability of the model to run on full leaves to define and calculate exponents for a Murray's law that applies to reticulate venation networks.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2410_24009
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Modeling Full-Scale Leaf Venation Networks
Skjegstad, Lars Erik J.
Kirkegaard, Julius B.
Biological Physics
Quantitative Methods
The vascular network of leaves, comprising xylem and phloem, is a highly optimized system for the delivery of water, nutrients, and sugars. The design rules for these naturally occurring networks have been studied since the time of Leonardo da Vinci, who constructed a local rule for comparing the widths of in- and outgoing veins at branch points. Recently, physical models have been developed that seek to explain the full morphogenesis of leaf venial networks in which veins grow in response to local hydrodynamic feedback. Although these models go beyond simple local rules, they are challenging to compare to experimental data. Here, we extend these hydrodynamic models to a state where the direct comparison with images of full leaves becomes possible on the level of individual veins. We present a dataset of the venial networks of leaves that maintain full network topology and use this to discuss the benefits and drawbacks of such a direct comparison. We apply our approach to the direct estimation of a sink fluctuation parameter, demonstrating consistency within distinct leaf species. Finally, we utilize the ability of the model to run on full leaves to define and calculate exponents for a Murray's law that applies to reticulate venation networks.
title Modeling Full-Scale Leaf Venation Networks
topic Biological Physics
Quantitative Methods
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2410.24009