Наряду с управлением сложными клеточными функциями простейшие одноклеточные организмы выполняют многообразные обязанности отдельно существующего организма: перемещение, поиск, распознавание и захват пищи и т.п. Естественно возникает вопрос — что  управляет живыми структурами, еще не располагающими для этого нервной системой?

Ни о чем не говорит. В этой работе -
C. Backster  "Primary Perception: Biocommunication with plants, living foods, and human cells".

Результаты экспериментов К.Бакстера подтвердили другие ученые.
In November 1975 a report called "Organic Biofield Sensor" reviewed research by Dr. Harold E. Puthoff and Randall Fontes at Stanford Research Institute in Menlo Park, California investigating possibility that plants may respond to human consciousness as contended by Cleve Backster.[7] "Organic Biofield Sensor" by H. E. Puthoff and Randall Fontes.
Summary and Conclusions

"The purpose of the investigation reported here was to assess the feasibility of the use of a special class of device (organic sensor) for real-time contactless measurement of psychological stress or other psychological or physiological state in a human subject being monitored. To this end special detectors were developed so that the electrical activity and micromovements of plants (Philodendron oxycardium, Mimosa pudica) and algae (Nitella) could be monitored. The activity of these sensors while in close proximity to a human subject viewing slides of varying emotional content was then examined. The sensors were located inside Faraday cage electrical shielding to eliminate trivial electrical artifacts. To provide an objective indicator of emotional response during viewing, the subject's GSR (galvanic skin response) was recorded to provide a signal to cross-correlate with the organic sensor output."

"Pilot experiments with the algae Nitella indicated that they were nonresponsive to the activity of human subjects in close proximity, and therefore experimentation with Nitella was terminated early in the program. With regard to plant sensors, however, experimental findings with twelve subjects indicated that the electrical activity of plants in close proximity to a human subject viewing slides of putative emotional content, although not in one-to-one correspondence with subject GSR, nevertheless did show in some cases (20%) statistically significant evidence of correlation with subject GSR.* Furthermore, such electrical activity is found not to be an artifact of plant micromotion, the latter being uncorrelated with either subject GSR or plant potential, nor is it a system artifact due to slide tray activity signals in the GSR channel. Thus, although we must reject the hypothesis that subject GSR and plant potential fluctuations of a nearby electrically shielded plant are in general correlated, there is evidence for a degree of correlation beyond that expected by chance."
The Secret Life of Plants and Beyond with Randall Fontes.

Потом было доказано что в опытах были грубые методологические ошибки и на самом деле такого эффекта не существует.