protists

Question 1

what does “protist” mean?

Answer 1

first (as in first single celled eukaryotes)

Question 2

any eukaryote that is not a member of the plant, animal or fungi kingdoms is a ____?

Answer 2

protist

Question 3

most protists are unicellular but name one organism that is a multicellular protist?

Answer 3

brown algae (aka: kelp)

Question 4

protists evolved from which domain?

Answer 4

archaea (not Bacteria domain)

Question 5

when did they start appearing?

Answer 5

1.5 billion yrs ago

Question 6

what has evolved from the multi cellular protists?

Answer 6

plants, animals and fungi (yes, our ancestors are protists and their ancestors are archaea bacteria)

Question 7

whose more diverse the eukaryotic kingdom 0f fungi, plants, and animals or the protist kingdom?

Answer 7

protists are more diverse and can be broken up into 6 major clades.

Question 8

There are the 6 major clades in the protist kingdom. Which kingdom derives from these claves (animal, plant, or fungi) ?

Answer 8

All three. Animal and fungi derive from the same clave!! Yes, we are more closely related to fungi than plants.

Question 9

Is “protist” an actual kingdom?

Answer 9

No, it’s a collection of organisms that branch into several clades but its not a single kingdom in its own right. that is why you often see “protest” in parenthesis.

Question 10

What are 3 ways a protist can move?

Answer 10

1. changing their shape (like an amoeba), 2. using microtubules that support structures protruding from their cytoplasm, (flagella, cilia), or passive movement

Question 11

How do amoebas change their shape in order to move? what organelle dictates their movement?

Answer 11

cytoplasmic projections aka pseudopods.

Question 12

Whats the difference between cilia and flagella?

Answer 12

they are the same internally. But, on they outside of the cytoplasm they are arranged differently 1. cilia is like ship with several oars on each side and 2. flagella is like a single long oar at the end of the ship propelling it .

Question 13

Why are passive movement protists sometimes dangerous?

Answer 13

They reproduce by subdividing into to spores which can be harmful when internalized. Plasmodium is a protist whose spores get transferred by mosquitos and cause malaria in humans.

Question 14

How do most protists procreate?

Answer 14

asexual…but some procreate sexually and some use both asexual and sexual (wow)

Question 15

How is asexual reproduction useful and how is it useful for continuation of a species?

Answer 15

useful: quick and many offspring. not useful: lacks genetic diversity for betterment of its species.

Question 16

Can a protist using asexual reproduction spark biodiversity? Why?

Answer 16

yes. some can using CONJUGATION (remember: conjugation is when bacteria or protists share genetic material with other asexuals in its species).

Question 17

How does Paramecia go about conjugating?

Answer 17

It has a micronucleus ( which holds a copy of a genetic library) and a macronucleus (the main library that lends genetic information). The macro nucleus can lend info to another paramecia so that they can continue to reproduce under a stressful environment.

Question 18

What gives water mold an exciting sex life?

Answer 18

They get to have sex twice as often. 1st, they produce spores inside a sporangium which allows them to spread their generic material far and wide. BUT, they also make eggs and sperm that fertilize to make zygotes.

Question 19

About half of all photosynthesis that occurs on earth are not by plants but by what protist?

Answer 19

phytoplankton (the microscopic protists that blanket the ocean’s surface)

Question 20

Are protists mutualistic or parasitic?

Answer 20

both. mutualistic- some protists live in organisms guts to help with digestion. parasitic - malaria and African sleeping sickness (spores procreate in organisms making them sick).