Coordination and Control Flashcards
Define photoperiod
the relative length of days and nights
define short day plants
plants that flower when day length is short and night length is long (winter)
define long day plants
Plants that flower when days are long and nights are short (summer)
What pigment controls flowering?
phytochrome
what colour is phytochrome?
light blue
what are the two forms of phytochrome?
P660 and P730
How can P730 and P660 be converted to each other?
- When P660 absorbs red light (of wavelength 660nm), it is rapidly converted to P730.
- P730 is unstable and so is converted slowly back to P660 in darkness.
- When P730 absorbs far red light (wavelength 730nm) it is rapidly converted to P660.
What form of phytochrome accumulates during the day?
P730 as daylight has proportionally more red light for P660 to be converted by
What is the physiologically active form of phytochrome?
P730 - concentration will determine whether the plant flowers
What does P730 do to LDPs?
stimulates flowering
What does P730 do to SDPs?
inhibits flowering
What is required for an SDP to flower?
a critically long period of uninterrupted darkness - allows enough time for accumulated P730 to be converted to P660, therefore removing inhibitory effect of P730.
What is required for an LDP to flower?
the night length has to be short enough to prevent too much P730 being converted to P660, and there not being a high enough concentration of stimulatory P730 to stimulate flowering.
What is the phytochrome response to and effect of an LDP on a short day-long night regime?
P660 converted to P730 during the day. Dark period is long enough for sufficient P730 to be slowly converted back to P660 to prevent P730 reaching critical level needed for flowering
Effect: no flowering
What is the phytochrome response to and effect of an LDP on a long day-short night regime?
Long day length causes P660 to be converted to P730 in high concentrations. The night is too short for enough P730 to be converted back to P660. P730 builds up to critical level.
Effect: flowering
What is the phytochrome response to and effect of an SDP on a short day-long night regime?
P660 is converted to P730 during the day. Dark period is long enough for a sufficient level of P730 to be converted to P660 to remove the inhibitory effect of P730.
Effect: flowering
What is the phytochrome response to and effect of an SDP on a long day-short night regime?
P660 is converted to P730 during the day, but the dark period is not long enough for a sufficient level of P730 to be converted to P660 to remove the inhibitory effect of P730.
Effect: no flowering
Why would the photoperiod be manipulated by plant growers?
to match consumer demand and provide year-round flowers
Give the names of three classes of plant hormones
auxins
gibberellins
cytokinins
What are auxins?
- plant hormones involved in phototropism
- causes cell elongation and maintains teh structures of cell walls
- in high concentrations can inhibit growth
Describe how auxins move through the plant
- Transport occurs in one direction - away from the tip
- short distance movement relies on diffusion, long distance movement relies on the phloem
What do gibberellins do?
- elongate the internodal distance - increases overall length of stem
- have been used to promote growth in dwarf species of plants
What do cytokinins do?
- promotes cell division (but only in presence of auxin)
- prevents senescene - the process of ageing and breakdown of chlorophyll in older leaves
Describe the stages of how auxin works in elongation of cells
- Auxin produced in cells of the apical meristems (zone of elongation)
- Diffuses down the shoot to the zone of elongation
- Binds to receptors in the cell membranes of the newly formed cells in the zone of elongation (as newly formed cells, the cell walls are also thinner and more flexible)
- Cells pump H+ ions into the cellulose cell walls
- This acidification loosens the cross links in the cellulose microfibrils, making the wall more flexible
- As the cells absorb water by osmosis, the cell walls stretch more readily due to the hydrostatic pressure exerted
What will auxin cause in a plant that is exposed to differential illumination?
phototropism
will result in auxin concentration being higher on the shaded side, resulting in greater cell elongation on the shaded side (higher conc auxin = more elongation), which results in curvature of the shoot towards the light source
What type of phototropism does auxin aid in?
positive phototropism - growing towards the light
why is positive phototropism due to auxin significant?
it allows the shoots and leaves to be angled towards the light, maximising the surface area of plant exposed to light and therefore the amount of light absorbed. This increases the rate of photosynthesis, meaning the plant can maximise its growth rate and aid it in competition
Name three scientists who performed experiments related to phototropism
- darwin (1880)
- boysen-jenson (1913)
- paal (1919)
- went (1928)
- briggs (1957)
What are the common features of neurones and what are their functions?
- cell body/centron - where most organelles (inc nucleus) are found
- dendron(s) - fine threads of cytoplasm that deliver impulses TOWARDS cell body
- axon(s) - fine threads of cytoplasm that carry impulses AWAY from the cell body
Name the three types of neurones
- sensory neurones
- motor neurones
- association/relay/connector neurones
Describe the general structure of a sensory neurone
tend to have dendrons and axons of a similar long length, so cell body is normally centrally placed in diagrams
describe the general structure of a motor neurone
have long axons and many short dendrons (often referred to as dendrites)
describe the general structure of an association/relay/connector neurone
are shorter in overall length compared to other types of neurone, and have shorter dendrons and axons
What is a myelinated neurone?
A neurone that is wrapped in Schwann cells, creating an electrically insulating myelin sheath
(most nerves in mammals are myelinated)
What are the nodes of Ranvier?
small exposed patches of the myelinated neurone’s membrane between each Schwann cell
What is the function of myelination?
greatly speeds up nerve impulse transmissions
protects the neurone
define the potential difference (in neurones)
the difference in charge between two regions (eg. inside and outside the neurone membrane)
what is the name for cells which have a potential difference across their membrane and what causes a potential difference in cells?
polarised cells are caused by an uneven distribution of charged ions across the cell membrane.
Describe the state of a neurone during the resting potential
Neurones have an excess of Na+ surrounding them, resulting in a potential difference of -70mV and therefore an electrochemical gradient.
The ions cannot flow across the membrane as the required transmembrane proteins are closed.
This is because there are more positively charged ions outside the cell, and the cell contains many proteins, most of which tend to be negatively charged.
What is an electrochemical gradient?
a diffusion gradient whereby charged ions want to move across a membrane to their oppositely charged region.
Describe how a neurone initiates depolarisation from a resting potential.
When a stimulus is applied to a neurone, the transmembrane proteins open and Na+ ions flood into the cell - the cell’s potential difference rises (becomes less negative).
What is the threshold potential value?
-55mV
describe how reaching the threshold potential leads to an action potential being fired.
- If enough transmembrane proteins open and enough positive ions enter the membrane. the threshold potential will be reached
- At this point more voltage gated ion channels open and the neurone becomes rapidly depolarised - the potential difference across the membrane reaches a peak - this is known as the action potential
What is the value of the action potential?
+40mV
Describe what happens to a neurone that doesn’t reach the threshold potential.
If a stimulus doesn’t result in enough ion channels being opened, and the threshold potential is not reached, then an action potential is not fired and the stimulus would be referred to as a ‘sub threshold stimulus’
what is the all or nothing pronciple?
an action potential always peaks at the same value, regardless of the intensity of the stimulus. More intense stimuli will result in a more frequent firing of action potentials.
How does a neurone reestablish the resting potential after firing an action potential?
- The neurone must actively re-establish the resting potential - this process is known as repolarisation.
- The period of time taken for depolarisation is known as the refractory period and the neurone can’t be stimulated during this time. During this time the positive ions both diffuse and are actively pumped out of the neurone into the surrounding fluid.