Plants use latex to harm and heal

Plants use natural latex in different ways, to help poison insects or rapidly heal wounds, a new study has found. Scientists from the Universities of Oxford, Sheffield and Freiburg tested latex samples from two different types of plant. They found that Euphorbia plants use slow-drying latex to keep insects in with their noxious sap whereas Ficus plants, such as the weeping fig, use fast-drying latex to seal wounds more quickly. Latex is a milky fluid found in around 10% of flowering plants, and is the main constituent of natural rubber. The team developed a new way of testing the mechanical properties of latex, and their research is published today in Journal of the Royal Society Interface . The work was led by Dr Chris Holland, formerly of Oxford University, who now works in the Materials Science and Engineering Department at the University of Sheffield. 'When injured, the latex of Euphorbia plants takes a long time to harden,' said Dr Holland.