Honorable Mention: Stressed Out

Photography by Aisha Mirza, undergraduate student,
Charles E. Schmidt College of Science

Trichomes are hair-like structures on the surface of tomato leaves that aid in protection against environmental stress. This photo shows several glandular trichomes, which secrete chemicals in response to stress, on the surface of a tomato leaf after exposure to an army worm walking along the leaf. This image was taken using scanning electron microscopy (SEM) at FAU High School's Imaging Lab, to observe damage or changes in trichome structure after stress, and what roles trichomes have in plant survival. The sample was dried, coated in 150-millimeters of gold, and magnified to 50 times to observe these structures. The image was recolored to display the great variety and shapes of trichomes.
Mentor: Xing-Hai Zhang, Ph.D., professor, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science