Cytokinins: Plant hormones found in mammals reveal overlooked endocrine cross-kingdom signaling with implications for human health and agriculture
Original framing: “Plant hormones in mammals challenge view of cytokinins as purely botanical” — Phys.org
The study likely employs mass spectrometry and bioassays to detect cytokinins in mammalian tissues, but the research may be underpowered due to limited funding for cross-kingdom endocrinology. Prior work on cytokinins in animals (e.g., their role in cancer cell proliferation) has been fragmented across disciplines, hindering synthesis. The discovery aligns with emerging evidence of 'hormonal crosstalk' between plants and animals in shared ecosystems, such as pollinator-plant interactions.
The discovery of cytokinins in mammals exposes the fragility of disciplinary silos in science, where funding and publication biases have long obscured cross-kingdom realities.
This oversight is not merely academic but rooted in colonial botanical taxonomies and the extractive priorities of agribusiness and pharmaceutical industries, which profit from narrow definitions of 'useful' organisms. Indigenous systems, from Ayurveda to Amazonian shamanism, offer a corrective by treating plants and animals as part of a shared biochemical continuum, yet these voices are systematically marginalized in modern research. The cytokinin case also reveals a historical pattern of delayed cross-kingdom recognition, as seen with auxin and melatonin, suggesting that future breakthroughs will emerge from dismantling these silos. Ultimately, the solution lies in rebalancing power—through decolonized science, interdisciplinary collaboration, and agroecological stewardship—to harness cytokinins not as proprietary tools but as shared resources for planetary health.