abscission
Sign in to savethumb|300px|Leaf litter on the forest floor. Annual autumn leaf drop in [[temperate zones is caused by the abscission of the mature leaves from the growth season in response to the approach of cold winter weather.]]
Article
15 sectionsContents
- In plants
- Function
- Process
- Resorption
- Protective layer formation
- Detachment
- Mechanisms
- Structural
- Lack of chlorophyll as a trigger
- Chemical
- Hormonal
- In animals
- See also
- References
- External links
thumb|300px|Leaf litter on the forest floor. Annual autumn leaf drop in [[temperate zones is caused by the abscission of the mature leaves from the growth season in response to the approach of cold winter weather.]]
Abscission () is the shedding of various parts of an organism, such as a plant dropping a leaf, fruit, flower, or seed. In zoology, abscission is the intentional shedding of a body part, such as the shedding of a claw, husk, or the autotomy of a tail to evade a predator. In mycology, it is the liberation of a fungal spore. In cell biology, abscission refers to the separation of two daughter cells at the completion of cytokinesis.