Plant responses Flashcards
why do all multicellular organisms need to respond to changes in the environment?
in order to survive — these changes are called stimuli.
Stimuli can be external or internal and are detected by receptors.
Responding to stimuli allows organisms to avoid harmful external changes whilst also maintaining an optimal internal environment for metabolic reactions.
define stimulus
A detectable change in the external or internal environment of an organism that leads to a response from the organism.
how do plants respond to environmental changes?
Plants respond to environmental changes by producing chemicals or altering their growth
what are some chemical defences to external stimuli?
- tannins
- alkaloids
- pheromones
how do tannins act chemical responses to external stimuli?
Tannins — toxic to microorganisms and herbivores
how do alkaloids act chemical responses to external stimuli?
Alkaloids — found in the growing shoot tips and the peripheral layers of stems and roots. They are derived from amino acids and taste bitter, therefore deterring animals from eating the plant
how do pheromones act chemical responses to external stimuli?
Pheromones — chemically released by plants which can affect the behaviour or physiology of other organisms
what is meant by tropism?
A directional growth response in which the direction of the response is determined by the direction of the external stimulus.
what are the 4 different types of tropism?
- phototropism
- geotropism
- chemotropism
- thigmotropism
what is meant by phototropism?
part of a plant grows in a particular direction in response to a light stimulus
what is meant by geotropism?
part of a plant grows in a particular direction in response to the force of gravity
what is meant by chemotropism?
part of a plant grows in response to the location of chemicals
what is meant by thigmotropism?
part of a plant (normally shoots) that grow via winding around other plants/structures to gain support
what are the 2 types of tropism?
plant can respond towards a stimulus (positive tropic response) or away from a stimulus (negative tropic response).
what is meant by nastic responses and give example?
Nastic responses are defined as a non-directional response to external stimuli.
For example, the plant Mimosa pudica responds to touch in such a way that its leaves fold up. This response is often referred to as thigmonasty
why does growth only occur in meristems?
- The cell wall in plant cells limits the cell’s ability to divide and grow.
- Growth therefore only occurs in groups of immature cells in the plant, called meristems.
what is meant by apical meristems?
present at the tip of roots and shoots and responsible for its expansion
what is meant by lateral bud meristem?
present in buds and give rise to side shoots
what is meant by lateral meristems?
form a cylinder outside the roots and shoots and are responsible for the widening of the roots and shoots
what is meant by intercalary meristem?
located between the nodes and responsible for the shoot getting longer
what are plant responses controlled by and why?
Unlike animals, plants do not have a nervous system. Instead, their responses are controlled by plant hormones
what are plant hormones produced by?
Plant hormones are produced by many plant tissues and can be transported to different parts of the plant.
what are some processes that plant hormones can influence?
-cell division,
-cell elongation
-cell differentiation
=====all of which affect the growth of the plant.
what is the role of auxins?
Auxins are responsible for controlling plant phototropic and geotropic responses by regulating cell elongation
what are 4 things that Auxins cause in plants?
- Shoots to grow towards light (positively phototropic)
- Roots to grow in the opposite direction to light (negatively phototropic)
- Shoots to grow in the opposite direction to gravity (negatively geotropic)
- Roots to grow in the direction of gravity (positively geotropic)
does auxin cause cell elongation in shoots or cell division?
auxin causes cell elongation in shoots rather than cell division.
what impact does auxins have on cell walls?
- Auxin causes an increase in the plasticity of plant cell walls, allowing them to stretch more easily when the cell elongates.
- Auxin causes protons to be actively transported by a plasma membrane ATPase (enzyme) into spaces within the cell wall.
- This activates proteins called expansins (due to the fall in pH),which loosen the cellulose in the cell wall, making the cell wall less rigid (able to expand).
- These enzymes break bonds in cellulose, allowing cell walls to expand as the cell takes water in.
describe the 5 stem mechanism underlying phototropism
- -Cells in the tip of the shoot produce auxin
- Initially, auxin is transported from the tip of the shoot and distributed evenly throughout all regions down the shoot
- Light causes auxin to move from the illuminated side of the shoot to the shaded side (so there’s a greater concentration of auxin on the shaded side of the shoot)
- Auxin causes elongation of shoot cells — therefore cell elongation occurs more quickly on the shaded side of the shoot
- This causes the shoot to bend towards the light;this is a positive phototropism
what impact does auxin have in roots?
- high concentrations of auxin inhibit cell elongation.
- Therefore, auxin inhibits cell elongation on the shaded side but occurs more quickly on the illuminated side.
- The root bends away from the light source;this is a negative phototropism.
what are the 2 enzymes that have been identified which cause the redistribution of auxin in response to light?
- Phototropin 1
- Phototropin 2
what are PIN proteins?
- PIN proteins are transmembrane proteins found on all sides of the plant cells’ plasma membrane.
- PIN proteins control the efflux of auxin from cells. Depending on which side of the plant cell they are located they send auxin in different directions in the shoot, thus essentially controlling its distribution.
what impact does blue light have on both Phototropin enzymes?
- The activity of both enzymes is enhanced by blue light, therefore it’s thought higher phototropin activity occurs on the light side than the shaded side.
- This gradient leads to the redistribution of auxin through its effects on PIN proteins.
what are PIN proteins controlled by?
PIN proteins are controlled by a different molecule, PINOID.
why is it not confirmed whether phototropins effect the activity of this molecule?
Phototropins are said to have effect the activity of this molecule. However, there is still no general consensus about the mechanism as this process is said to only work when there are short bursts of light.
describe the 5 step mechanism underlying geotropism
- -Auxin is produced at the root tip and distributed evenly throughout the root
- -Gravity causes the auxin to move from the upper side of the root to the lower side, resulting in a higher concentration of auxin in the lower side
- -Auxin inhibits root cell elongation — therefore cell elongation occurs more quickly on the upper side
- -This causes the root to bend down in the direction of gravity; this is a positive geotropism
- In shoots, auxin has the opposite effect — high concentrations of auxin promote cell elongation. Therefore, auxin promotes cell elongation on the lower side, and cell elongation occurs more quickly on this side. The shoot grows upwards in the opposite direction to gravity; this is a negative geotropism.
what 2 phenomena did a series of experiments carried out by Darwin and Boysen- Jensen confirm?
- The shoot tip was responsible for phototropic responses
- Water and solutes need to move backwards from the shoot tip for phototropism to occur