MECHA
Valentin Couvreur, Marc Faget (UCLouvain)
Overview
| Model category | FSM |
|---|---|
| Plant part | Root |
| Scale | Organ |
| Licence | Open-source |
| Operating system | MacOs, Windows, Linux |
| Programming language | Python |
| Format of model inputs and outputs | Root radial hydraulic conductivity; water transverse flow rates across cell walls, membranes, and plasmodesmata; solute concentration in cell walls |
| Species studied | Maize, Generic-crops, Plants |
| Execution environment | Console, Enthought Canopy (Python) |
| Modelling environment | OpenAlea |
Scientific article
Going with the Flow: Multiscale Insights into the Composite Nature of Water Transport in RootsValentin Couvreur,Marc Faget,Guillaume Lobet,Mathieu Javaux,François Chaumont,Xavier DrayePlant Physiology, 2018 View paper
Model description
MECHA is a novel mathematical model that computes the flow of water across the root, down to the scale of walls, membranes, and plasmodesmata of individual cells. The model uses detailed root anatomical descriptions and a minimal set of empirical cell properties, including the conductivity of plasma membranes, cell walls, and plasmodesmata. Assembled as a root hydraulic network, they yield quantitative and scale-consistent estimations of water radial pathways and root hydraulic conductivity.
Some case studies
MECHA was used it to test hypotheses related to root water transport in maize (*Zea mays*).