Plant and Animal Responses, 5.5 Flashcards
What is a biotic factor?
Living
What is an abiotic factor?
Non - living
How do plants respond to stimuli?
Respond using plant hormones known as growth factors
Where are growth factors made?
In tissues all over the plant
What are the 3 main types of plant growth?
Cell division. Cell elongation. Cell differentiation.
What are tannins?
Toxic to microorganisms and herbivores. Prevent infiltration by pathogenic microorganisms. Found in leaves - makes them taste bad.
What are alkaloids?
Derived from amino acids. Make plant bitter. Found in flowers and growing tips.
What are pheromes?
Chemicals released that affect the physiology or behaviour of another
What is tropism?
The movement of part of a plant in respond to eternal stimulus. Direction growth -pos. or neg.
Give some examples of a stimulus and a tropism.
Light - phototropism. Gravity - Geotropism. Chemical - Chemotropism. Water - hydrotropism.
Where does plant growth occur?
Occurs at meristems in meristematic tissue.
What is apical meristem?
Found in stems and roots, growth increase length at tips
What are intercalary meristems?
Between the tip and base of stems and leaves. Growth increase between nodes..
What are lateral meristems?
Sides of stems and roots, growth increase diameter.
What are some substance that affect plant growth?
Auxins. Gibberellins. Cytokinins. Abscisic acid. Ethene.
Where are auxins (IAA) produced?
In shoot or root tips
What are the effects of auxin?
Promote stem elongation. Stimulate cell division. Maintain apical domination. Prevent leaf fall.
What does the terminal bud contain?
The apical meristem
How does the auxin travel down the stem?
By diffusion or active transport.
What does auxin do?
Inhibits the sideways growth form lateral buds. Means plant will grown upwards
What happens if you remove the apical meristem?
The lateral buds will grow
What does abscisic acid do?
Inhibits bud growth. High auxin levels keeps high abscisic levels.
What do cytokinins do?
Promote bud growth
What are Gibberellins?
Responsible for stem elongation and seed germination
What does Gibberellin (GA) do?
Increases length of internodes. Stimulates cell division. Stimulates cell elongation.
What can happen if a plant lacks the gene for producing GA?
It will be a dwarf variety
How does Gibberellin work?
- DELLA protein binds to a transcription factor
- GA causes the breakdown of DELLA protein
- Therefore transcription can occur and growth is able to happen
How does GA affect germination?
A seed contains a store of starch which cannot be used until its broken down. Gibberellins enable the production of amylase which breaks starch into glucose. Provides a substrate for respiration for the embryo.
What is leaf abscission?
In temperate countries trees shed their leaves in autumn
Why does leaf abscission occur in trees?
Survival advantage. Not as much sunlight in winter to provide energy. Colder - enzymes will work more slowly. Reduced transpiration. Avoids frost damage.
What are the stages of leaf abscission?
- As leaf ages rate of auxin production declines
- Leaf more sensitive to ethene production
- More ethene produced which inhibits auxin
- Abscission layer begins to grow at base of stalk
- Tree grows protective layer were the leaf will break off
What is the abscission layer?
Thin wall of cells. Weakened by enzymes that hydrolyze polysaccharides. Leaf is weak it falls off.
What does the cell wall contain? And what does this prevent?
Suberin. Prevents the entry of pathogens.
What are the commercial uses of auxin?
- Sprayed onto developing fruits to prevent abscission
- Sprayed onto flowers to initiate fruit growth - seedless fruits
- Applied to the cut end of a shoot
- Synthetic auxins used as selective herbicides
What are the commercial uses of ethene?
- Used to ripen fruit
- Fruits can be harvested before they’re ripe and transported
- Bananas produce lots of ethene
What are the commercial uses of Gibberellin?
- Promotes growth in fruit crops
- Allows citrus trees to keep fruit on them longer
- Sprayed onto sugar cane to increase sucrose yield
- Used in brewing, makes seeds germinate
What are the commercial uses of Cytokinins?
- Delay leaf senescence, stops leaves yellowing
- Can be used in tissue culture
What does the effect of plant growth factors depend on?
Concentration. The tissue being acted on. The developmental stage of the plant. Species. What other growth factors are present.
Define photoreceptors.
Structures or pigments that are sensitive to light
Define phototropins
Group of photoreceptors primary response for triggering phototropisms
How does auxin effect the stretchiness of the cell wall?
Increases it. Promotes the active transport of H+ by an ATPase enzyme. Lowers the pH providing optimum conditions for wall loosening enzymes called expansins.
How do the enzymes expansins work?
Break bonds within the cellulose and the increased H+ ions disrupt hydrogen bonds so the walls become less rigid.
How did Darwins experiment with shoot tips work?
- With a tip it bent towards the sun
- Without a tip in didn’t bend
- With a shaded tip it didn’t bend
What conclusions can be drawn from Darwins experiment?
Shoot tip contains auxin and is responsible for phototropic responses. Growth stimulus is transmitted to the zone of elongation
How did Boyson-Jensens experiment with shoot tips work?
- Sheet of mica inserted on the shaded side - didn’t bend. Sheet of mica inserted on the sunny side - did bend
- Tip cut off and block of gelatin inserted. There was normal curvature
What conclusions can be drawn from Boyson-Jensens experiment?
Water/solutes/auxin travel backwards from the shoot tip for phototropism to happen. Gelatin is permeable to water whereas mica isn’t.
How did Wents experiment work?
Tips placed on agar. Block place on stem with tip removed. Bent towards the sun.
What did Wents experiment show?
Demonstrated that a chemical messenger (auxin) existed. Could stimulate effect artificially. Angle of curvature relates to number of tips used.
What two systems is the nervous system separated into?
The central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS)
What does the CNS consist of?
The brain and the spinal cord.
What type of neurones does the brain mainly contain?
Relay neurones - have multiple connections. Most are non-myelinated and look grey.
What does the spinal cord mainly contain?
Has large numbers of myelinated cells - looks white. Which carry action potentials up and down the spinal cord
What does the PNS contain?
Motor system and the sensory system. Ensures rapid communication between sensory receptors, the CNS and effectors. Mainly sensory and motor neurones
What is the sensory nervous system?
Sensory fibres entering the CNS are dendrons of the sensory neurones - conduct action potentials. Have their cell body in the dorsal root leading into the spinal cord.