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BIOLOGY FIITJEE CHENNAI CENTRE

Class Learning Improvement Program (CLIP) sheet

with concise notes on
Subject: Biology

Class 12
Class Learning Improvement Program (CLIP)Sheet :

Class 12 Notes

BPVR

CHAPTER 1 - REPRODUCTION IN ORGANISMS

Reproduction

 Reproduction is the biological process in which an individual gives rise

to an offspring similar to itself.

Types of Reproduction:
Based on whether there is one or two organisms taking part in the process of
reproduction

 ASEXUAL REPRODUCTION
 SEXUAL REPRODUCTION

Asexual Reproduction:
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1. Usually followed by organisms with relatively simpler organizations.

2. Off springs produced by single parent.
3. With/without involvement of gamete formation.
4. Off springs produced are genetically and morphologically similar to each
other and to the parent, i.e. they are clones.

Modes of asexual reproduction:

1.Binary fission
Parent cell divides into 2 daughter cells.

E.g.. Amoeba, Paramecium

2.BUDDING
Parent cell divides to form large cell and small cell, called bud, attached to the
large cell; the bud gets separated and grows into an adult. E.g., Yeast

 In fungi and algae specialized asexual reproductive units are formed

Zoospores in many algae and certain aquatic

fungi, Conidia (Penicillium), Buds (Hydra), Gemmules (Sponge).

 In higher plants, vegetative propagation is followed using units such

as rhizome, sucker, offset, bulb, tuber etc. – known as vegetative
propagules.

Examples of Vegetative Propagation:

WATER HYACINTH (Terror of Bengal)

 One of the most invasive weeds

 Grows wherever there is standing water
 Drains oxygen from water- leads to death of fishes.
 Introduced in India because of its pretty flowers & shape of leaves
 Vegetative propagation occurs at a phenomenal rate
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II SEXUAL REPRODUCTION:

 Involves formation of male and female gamete by two individuals of the

opposite sex.
 Offspring produced by fusion of male and female gametes not identical to
each other or to the parents.
 All sexually reproducing organisms share a similar pattern of
reproduction.

DIFFERENT PHASES IN SEXUAL REPRODUCTION:

1. JUVENILE PHASE
It is a period of growth and maturity of an organism before it can reproduce
sexually.

2. REPRODUCTIVE PHASE
Period in which organism is capable of reproducing sexually

 Easily seen in higher plants when they come to flower.

 Some plants flower seasonally & some through out the year
 Few plants exhibit unusual flowering phenomenon

For e.g.. 1. Bamboo species flower only once in their lifetime.

2. Strobilanthus kunthiana (neelakurinji) found in hilly areas of Kerala,
Karnataka & Tamil Nadu flower once in 12 years the latest being in September
2006.

 In animals sexual reproduction is usually seasonal

 In placental mammals there is occurrence of cyclical changes in the
activities of ovaries & accessory ducts as well as hormones.

 In non primate mammals like dogs, rats etc these cyclical changes during
reproduction is called oestrus cycle – no bleeding occurs.
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 In primate mammals like apes & humans, these cycles are

called menstrual cycles.

3. SENESCENT PHASE

 It is the end of reproductive phase.

 Old age ultimately leads to death

EVENTS IN SEXUAL REPRODUCTION:

1. PRE-FERTILIZATION EVENTS:
a) GAMETOGENESIS

 The gametes are usually haploid

 Gametes called homogametes / isogametes when both have same
appearance.
 When gametes are different, they are called heterogametes; male gamete
known as antherozoid /sperm, female is called ovum / egg.
 Bisexual organisms called as homothallic / monoecious whereas
unisexual organisms called heterothallic / dioecious.

b)GAMETE TRANSFER
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 In most of the organisms, male gametes are motile & female gametes are
stationary.
 In algae, bryophytes & pteridophytes water is the medium for gamete
transfer.
 Pollination is the method of gamete transfer in higher plants as pollen
grains are carriers of male gametes.

2. SYNGAMY / FERTILIZATION:

 Syngamy results in formation of a diploid zygote.

 In certain animals, female gamete develops into the adult organism
without fertilization; such a process is called parthenogenesis - seen in
rotifers, lizards turkeys etc.
 Fertilisation may be external or internal

EXTERNAL FERTILIZATION INTERNAL FERTILIZATION

Syngamy occurs outside the body of the Syngamy occurs inside the body of the
organism organism

Large numbers of gametes are released in Numbers of ova produced are less, but
the surrounding medium. large numbers of male gametes are released
Ex. Bony fishes and Amphibians. and they travel towards the ovum.
Ex. Birds and Mammals.

3. POST FERTILIZATION:

 Events in sexual reproduction after the formation of zygote

 Zygote – vital link that ensures continuity of species between organisms
of one generation and the next.
 Development of zygote depends on

- the type of life cycle of the organisms.

- the environment it is exposed to.

 Zygote develops into embryo.

Embryogenesis involves:
- cell division to increase the number of cells
- cell differentiation for the formation of different kinds of tissues
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 Based on whether the development of zygote occurs inside or outside the

body of the female parent, animals are categorized
into oviparous and viviparous.

OVIPAROUS VIVIPAROUS

These animals lay eggs. These animals give birth to young ones

The fertilized eggs have a calcareous shell Embryo protected inside the mother’s
to protect them from harsh environment. body.

 In flowering plants the zygote formed inside the ovule; zygote develops
into embryo after which the ovule becomes the seed and ovary becomes
the fruit.

CHAPTER 2 - SEXUAL REPRODUCTION IN FLOWERING PLANTS

FLOWER - itis the fascinating reproductive organ of angiosperms.

It consist of :-

1. Calyx
2. Corolla
3. Androecium
4. Gynoecium

PRE- FERTILISATION – STRUCTURES AND EVENTS

 — Hormonal and structural changes are initiated leading to

differentiation and development of floral primordium.
 — Inflorescences are formed which bear floral buds and then flowers.
 — Androecium and Gynaecium differentiate and develop.
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STAMEN
— Stamen consist of

1. Anther – terminal bilobed structure

2. Filament – long slender stalk. Proximal end of the filament is attached to
the thalamus or

petal.

STRUCTURE OF ANTHER

 — Anther has two lobes (bilobed). Each lobe consists of two theca.
Hence it is dithecous.
 — Anther is a tetragonal structure which consist of four microsporangia
located two in each lobe.
 — Microsporangium develops into pollen sacs.
 — Pollen sacs run longitudinally and contain pollen grains.

STRUCTURE OF MICROSPOANGIUM
— A typical microsporangium appears circular in outline.

It is surrounded by 4 walls.

1. Epidermis - protects and help in dehiscence of anther.

2. Endothecium
3. Middle layers
4. Tapetum - nourishes the developing pollen grain

SPOROGENOUS TISSUE
It is compactly arranged homogenous cells which are present at centre of each
microsporangium when the anther is young.

MICROSPOROGENESIS

 —Process of formation of microspores from pollen mother cell through

meiosis.
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 —The cells of the sporogenous tissue/microspore mother cell (2n)

meiotically divide to form microspores which are arranged in a cluster of
4 cells called MICROSPORE TETRAD.
 —When the anther matures and dehydrates, the microspore dissociate
from each other and develop into pollen grains
 —Thousands of pollen grains formed inside a microsporangium- released
with dehiscence of anther.

POLLEN GRAINS
Pollen grains are male gametophyte - spherical in shape.

STRUCTURE OF POLLEN GRAIN

Pollen grains are made of 2 layered Wall,

1. Exine :- Made of sporopollenin- most resistant organic matter known,

2. Intine :-

-Thin and continuous layer

- Made of cellulose and pectin
3. Germ pores
- apertures on exine where sporopollenin is absent
- forms pollen tube.
4. A plasma membrane surrounds cytoplasm of pollen grain.

MATURE POLLEN
— A mature pollen consist of 2 cells with nucleus (Vegetative and Generative)

VEGETATIVE CELL

 Bigger
 Abundant food reserve
 Large irregular nucleus
 Responsible for the development of pollen grain

GENERATIVE CELL

 Small
 Involves in syngamy (fuse with an egg)
 Dense cytoplasm and nucleus.
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Effect of Pollen on Human:

 Pollen grains cause allergy and bronchial afflictions

 Leading to chronic respiratory disorders like asthma, bronchitis Eg :-
Parthenium (carrot grass)

POLLEN PRODUCTS:

 Rich in nutrient.
 Pollen tablets and syrup

- food supplements
- claims to increase performance of athletes and race horse.

Period of viability

 Once shed the pollen grains have to land on the stigma before they lose
viability if they have to bring about fertilization.
 Period of viability depends on temperature and humidity. Example:-
cereals takes 20 minutes and members of rosaceae, leguminoseae,
solanaceae take months.

 Pollen grains stored by CRYOPRESERVATION.

 Used in crop breeding programmes.

PISTIL, MEGASPORANGIUM AND EMBRYO SAC :

GYNAECIUM - female reproductive part of flower

 — Gynaecium with 1 pistil – Monocarpellary

 — Gynaecium with more than 1 pistil – Multicarpellary
 — Fused pistil – Syncarpous
 — Free pistil – Apocarpous.
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PISTIL
Pistil consist of

1. Stigma
2. Style
3. ovary

 ovarian cavity
 placenta

Ovules arise from placenta.

 single ovule – wheat, paddy

 Many ovules - papaya, water melons, etc.

MEGASPORANGIUM (OVULE)

 — Ovule is a small structure attached to placenta.

 — Funicle – stalk by which ovule is attached to placenta
 — Hilum - junction between ovule and funicle
 — Integuments - protective envelops
 — Micropyle - small opening at the tip of ovule into where pollen tube
enters
 — Chalaza - basal part of ovule
 — Nucellus (2n)-mass of cells enclosed in integuments. Has abundant
food reserve.

MEGASPOROGENESIS

 — Process of formation of megaspores from megaspore mother cells is

called MEGASPOROGENESIS.
 — Megaspore mother cells divide meiotically to form 4 megaspore
(haploid)
 — out of 4, only 1 megaspore is functional and forms gametophyte and
the rest degenerate.
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FEMALE GAMETOPHYTE (EMBRYO SAC)

 — The embryo sac develops from the functional megaspore (n).

 — MONOSPORIC DEVELOPMENT:- formation of embryo sac from a
single megaspore.

FORMATION OF EMRYO SAC

 — Nucleus of functional megaspore divides mitotically to form 2 nuclei

which move to opposite poles forming 2-nucleate embryo sac.
 — Two more mitotic nuclear division results in 4-nucleate and later 8-
nucleate stages of embryo sac.
 — Then cell wall is laid down leading to organization of female embryo
sac.

STRUCTURE OF EMBRYO SAC

 — Egg apparatus - present at the micropylar end and consist of 2

synergids and 1 egg cell

Synergids have cellular thickenings at micropylar tip called FILIFORM

APPARATUS – guides the pollen tube into the synergid

 — Antipodal - 3 cells present at chalaza end

 — Polar Nuclei - Large central cell.

POLLINATION

 — The transfer of pollen grains from anther to stigma of a pistil is called

pollination.
 — Based on the source of pollen, pollination is of 3 types:-

- AUTOGAMY
- GEITONOGAMY
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- XENOGAMY

1. AUTOGAMY

 Transfer of pollen grains from anther to stigma of the SAME flower.

REQUIREMENT:-

1. Synchrony in pollen release and stigma receptivity.

2. Closeness of stigma and anther

 Chasmogamous flowers- flowers with exposed anthers and stigma

 Cleistogamous flowers-flowers which do not open at all
 Cleistogamy is disadvantageous because there is no chance of variation.
 Ex:- oxalis ,viola

2. GEITONOGAMY

 — Transfer of pollen grains from anther to stigma of another flower of

the same plant.
 — Genetically similar
 Ex:- cucurbits

3. XENOGAMY

 Transfer of pollen grains from anther to stigma of another flower of

different plant
 Genetically different pollen grains are brought to the stigma.

Agents of Pollination:
1) Abiotic agents:
a) Wind
b) Water
2) Biotic agents:
a) Insects
b) Birds
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c) Bats
d) Reptiles
e) Mammals

Adaptations in flowers for Pollination

I. Wind Pollination

 pollen grains :– light, non- sticky, winged

 anther :- well exposed
 stigma :- large and feathery
 flower :- one ovule, arranged as inflorescence

Ex : corn cob, cotton, date palm

II. Water Pollination

- Bryophytes, Pteridophytes, Algae

 pollen grains : protected by mucilaginous covering

Ex : Fresh water plants- Vallisneria, Hydrilla

Sea grass- Zostera

Main features of wind and water pollinated plants

- produce pollen grains in large no.
- do not produce nectar

III. Insect Pollination

- Flowers : large, colourful, fragrant, rich in nectar
- Pollen grains : sticky
- Stigma : sticky

Certain rewards to pollinators:

 nectar and (edible) pollen grains as foods

 provide safe place for laying eggs

Ex : Amorphophallus, Yucca

Outbreeding Devices
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Continued self - Pollination – Inbreeding depression

Ways to avoid Self-pollination :

(i) Pollen release & stigma receptivity – not synchronised
(ii) Stigma and anther – placed at different positions
(iii) Self-incompatibility
(iv) Production of unisexual flowers

Eg: castor, maize (prevents autogamy)

papaya (prevents autogamy & geitonogamy)

Pollen – Pistil Interaction

All events – from deposition of pollen on stigma till the pollen tube enters the
ovuleis called Pollen-pistil interaction.
• Recognition of compatible pollen
• Germination of pollen grains
• Development of Male Gametophyte

Artificial Hybridization

 Crossing diff varieties of species- hybrid individual- with desirable

characters of the parent plants
 desired pollen grains for pollination- stigma protected from
contamination
 Emasculation : removal of anther
 Bagging : flower covered- bag made up of butter-prevent contamination
of stigma from unwanted pollen

Bagged flower- attains receptivity - mature pollen grains- dusted on the stigma
– rebagged - fruits allowed to develop

 Double Fertilisation
 Syngamy

- pollen tube releases male gametes into synergids

- fusion of 1 of male gametes and egg cell
- fusion of 2nd male gamete and polar nuclei =Triploid endosperm nucleus-
PEN (Triple Fusion)
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- PEN – now called Primary Endosperm Nucleus – Endosperm

Post- fertilization Events

All events that occur in a flower, after double fertilization is called Post-
fertilization events

Major events are :

(i) Development of endosperm
(ii) Development of embryo
(iii) Maturation of ovule into seed
(iv) Maturation of ovary into fruit

Endosperm

† Two types of endosperm development :

(i) Free nuclear type (common method)
(ii) Cellular type
† Cells of endosperm– store food materials- used for developing embryo
† Non - Albuminous / Non-Endospermic seeds- endosperm completely
utilized - before maturation of seeds. Ex: pea
† Albuminous / Endospermic seeds- a portion of endosperm remain in
mature seeds. Ex: castor

Embryo
† Embryogeny – early stages of embryo development
† Zygote à Proembryo à Mature embyo (heart-shaped)

Embryo consists of:

- embryonal axis
- cotyledons
- plumule
- radicle

Monocotyledonous Seed
- Scutellem = Cotyledon
- Coleorrhiza: undifferentiated sheath covering radical & root cap
- Coleoptile: sheath covering plumule

Seed
- Fertilized and mature ovule develops into seed.

Seed consists of:

- cotyledon(s)
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- embryonal axis
- Seed coat - double layered - formed by integuments

 Testa (outer coat)

 Tegmen (inner coat)

- Micropyle: - small o pening on seed coat, it facilitates entry of H2O

& O2 into seeds (for germination)
- Hilum:- scar on seed coat
- Seed - Albuminous / Non-Albuminous
- Perisperm : remnants of nucellus that is persistent. Ex: Black pepper
- Dormancy: state of inactivity

Advantages of Seeds

 To plants

(i) Seeds - reserve food materials- nourish seedling

(ii) Seed coat- protection to young embryo
(iii) Seeds of large no of species –live for several years
(iv) Seeds - better adaptive strategies- dispersal to new habitats- better
survival

 To mankind

(i) used as food - throughout the year

(ii) seed - basis of agriculture

Fruit
- True fruit : - Fruit formed from the ovary
- Parthenogenesis: If ovary transform to fruit without fertilization. Ex :
Banana
- Parthenocarpy – induced with gibberellins & auxins without
fertilization.
- False fruit: any part other than ovary- forms the fruit. Ex: Apple

Apomixis & Polyembryony

Other modes of reproduction
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Apomixis
- Form of asexual reproduction- mimics sexual reproduction- seed formed
without fertilisation
- Formation of apomictic seeds :
· diploid cell (formed without meiosis) - develop into embryo without
fertilization
· cells of nucellus (2n) surrounding embryo sac- protrude into embryo sac -
develop into embryos. Ex. Citrus and Mango.

Polyembryony
- Occurrence of more than one embryo in a seed
- Often associated with apomixes. Ex: Citrus, groundnut

Chapter - 3 Human Reproduction

The Male Reproductive System

It consists of :

 The primary sex organs i.e. a pair of testes

 The secondary sex organs i.e. the duct system and the associated glands
 External genitalia

Testes

 Scrotum – a pouch in which testes are situated

 Testicular lobules
 Seminiferous tubules – contains Spermatogonia and Sertoli cells- Leydig
cells

Accessory Ducts

 Rete testis
 Vasa efferentia
 Epididymis
 Vas deferens
 Urethra
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Accessory Glands

 A pair of seminal vesicles

 Prostate gland
 Bulbourethral gland

Secretions of these glands constitute the seminal plasma rich in fructose ,

calcium and certain enzymes .
Secretions of bulbourethral glands also help in lubrication of penis.

External Genitalia

 The penis is the external genitalia in human males .

 It is made up of special erectile tissue that helps in erection of the penis to
facilitate insemination.

The enlarged tip of the penis is called glans penis covered by foreskin.

The Female Reproductive system

It consists of :

 The primary sex organ that is a pair of ovaries

 Secondary sex organs- the duct system consisting of a pair of fallopian
tube , a uterus , cervix and vagina
 External genitalia
 Mammary glands

Ovaries

 Produce female gametes called ova

 Located in abdominal cavity
 Each ovary is almond shaped body
 Coved by a thin epithelium , enclosing the ovarian stroma
 Stroma is divided into 2 regions :
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1. Peripheral cortex
2. Inner medulla

Fallopian Tube

 Part closer to ovary-funnel shaped infundibulum

 Infundibulum possesses finger like projections-fimbriae
 Wider part of oviduct –ampulla
 Last part of oviduct-isthmus

Uterus

 Covered by three layered wall:

1. Perimetrium – outer most layer

2. Myometrium- middle layer
3. Endometrium-inner most layer

External Genitalia

 Mons pubis – cushion of fatty tissues covered by skin and pubic hair
 Labia majora – fleshy folds of tissue extending down from mons pubis
, surrounding the vaginal opening
 Labia minora – paired folds of tissue under labia majora
 Clitoris – tiny finger-like structure which lies at the upper junction of the
two labia minora , above the urethral opening
 Hymen – a membrane covering the opening of vagina partially

Mammary Glands

 Consists of glandular tissue and variable amount of fat

 Glandular tissue divided into 15-20 mammary lobes
 Each lobe contains clusters of cells called alveoli opening into mammary
tubules
 Mammary tubules join to form mammary duct
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 Mammary ducts join to form mammary ampulla connected to lactiferous

duct
 Milk secreted by cells of alveoli, stored in the lumen of alveoli

GAMETOGENESIS
The process of formation of gametes is called gametogenesis
It is of two types:
1. Spermatogenesis in males
2. Oogenesis in females

1. Spermatogenesis
The process of formation of sperms in males is called spermatogenesis

 The spermatogonia present on the inner wall of seminiferous tubules

multiply by mitotic division and form primary spermatocytes.
 Primary spermatocytes undergo meiosis.
 Primary spermatocytes complete 1st meiotic division, forms 2 equal
haploid secondary spermatocytes
 Secondary spermatocytes undergo 2nd meiotic division to form 4 haploid
spermatids
 Spermatids transform into spermatozoa (sperms) - spermiogenesis
 Sperm heads get embeded in sertoli cells, finally released from
seminiferous tubules -spermiation

Hormonal control of spermatogenesis

 Spermatogenesis initiated due to increase in secretion of gonadotropin

releasing hormone by hypothalamus
 Increase in GnRH act on anterior pituitary and stimulate secretion of two
gonadotropins, LH and FSH
 LH acts on Leydig cells and stimulates them to secrete androgens.
 FSH acts on Sertoli cells, stimulates secretion of some factors which help
in spermiogenesis

Structure of Sperm

 Composed of head, neck, middle piece and a tail.

 Plasma membrane envelopes the whole body of sperm
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 Sperm head contains an elongated haploid nucleus, the anterior portion of

which is covered a cap like structure, acrosome.
 Acrosome- filled with enzymes that help fertilisation of ovum
 Middle piece possesses numerous mitochondria-energy for movement of
tail
 Sperms released from the seminiferous tubules are transported by the
accessory ducts .
 Secretions of epididymis , vas deferens , seminal vesicle , prostate –
essential for maturation and motility of sperms
 Semen – seminal plasma along with sperms
 Functions of male accessory glands controlled by testicular hormones
(androgens)

2. Oogenesis
The process of formation of a mature female gamete is called oogenesis

 Oogonia start division, enter into prophase I of meiosis - primary oocytes

 Each primary oocyte gets surrounded by a layer of granulosa cells-
primary follicle
 Primary follicles gets surrounded by more layers of granulosa cells-
secondary follicles
 Secondary follicle transforms into a tertiary follicle characterised by a
fluid filled cavity called antrum
 The primary oocyte within the tertiary follicle grows in size, completes
1st meiotic division
 It results in unequal division, formation of large haploid secondary oocyte
and tiny 1st polar body
 Tertiary follicle changes into graafian follicle
 Secondary oocyte forms a new membrane-zona pellucida
 Ovulation – graafian follicle ruptures to release the secondary oocyte
(ovum) from the ovary

Menstrual cycle
The cyclic changes that occur in the reproductive organs of primate females is
called menstrual cycle
The events in a menstrual cycle can be studied under four phases

 Menstrual phase
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1. It lasts for 3-5 days

2. It results due to breakdown of endometrial lining of uterus and its blood
vessels

 Follicular phase

1. Endometrium is regenerated by proliferation of its cells

2. These changes are due to increased levels of FSH , LH, Estrogen
3. FSH controls follicular phase, stimulates growth of follicles , secretion of
Estrogen
4. FSH and LH reach their peak level in the middle of the cycle

 Ovulatory phase

1. Peak level of LH induces rupture of mature graafian follicle and release

of ovum-ovulation

 Luteal phase

1. Ruptured follicle transforms into corpus luteum

2. It secretes large quantities of progesterones

 In absence of fertilisation, corpus luteum degenerates. This causes

disintegration of endometrium

 Menstrual cycle cease at the age of 45 - 50 menopause.

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Fertilisation and Implantation

The process of fusion of a sperm with an ovum is called fertilisation.

Fertilisation can only occur if the ovum and sperms are transported
simultaneously to the ampullary – isthmic junction.

Events during fertilisation :

 Sperm comes in contact with zona pellucida

 Induces changes in membrane that block entry of additional sperms
 Secretions of acrosome help sperm enter the cytoplasm of ovum
 Meiotic division of secondary oocyte
 Haploid ovum and 2nd polar body formed
 Formation of zygote

Implantation

 zygote moves towards uterus

 Blastomeres (2,4,8,16 daughter cells)
 morula (8-16 blastomeres)
 blastocyst
 Blastomeres in blastocyst arrange into an outer layer trophoblast and an
inner group of cells attached to trophoblast
 Blastocyst gets embedded in endometrium of uterus (implantation)
 Uterine cells rapidly divide and cover the blastocyst

Pregnancy and embryonic development

 Inner layer grows out as finger like projections called villi into the uterine
stroma
 Chorionic villi and uterine tissue get interdigitated to form placenta
 Placenta secretes hormones like hCG , hPL , estrogens , progesterones (to
maintain pregnancy)
 Inner cell mass differentiates into an outer layer called ectoderm and an
inner layer called endoderm
 Mesoderm appears between ectoderm and endoderm
 Stem cells (undifferentiated embryonic cells)
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Features of embryonic development

 The human pregnancy lasts for 9 months

 1st month – embryo’s heart is formed
 2nd month – foetus develops limbs and digits
 12 weeks (1st trimester) – major organ systems are formed
 5th month – 1st movements of foetus and appearance of hair on head
 24 weeks (2nd trimester) – body covered with fine hair , eye lids separate
, eye lashes formed

Parturition and Lactation

 Gestation period – 9 months

 Parturition – the process of delivery of the foetus (childbirth)
 Signals for parturition originate from the fully developed fetus and
placenta inducing mild uterine contractions called Foetal ejection reflex
 It triggers the release of oxytocin from maternal pituitary

Oxytocin acts on uterine muscle, causes stronger uterine contractions, which in

turn stimulates further secretion of oxytocin.

Lactation

 The mammary glands undergo differentiation during pregnancy and starts

producing milk towards the end of pregnancy by the process called
lactation.
 The milk produced during the initial few days of lactation – colostrum
 It contains several antibodies essential to develop resistance for new-
borns.

Chapter - 3 Human Reproduction

The Male Reproductive System

It consists of :

 The primary sex organs i.e. a pair of testes

 The secondary sex organs i.e. the duct system and the associated glands
 External genitalia
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Testes

 Scrotum – a pouch in which testes are situated

 Testicular lobules
 Seminiferous tubules – contains Spermatogonia and Sertoli cells- Leydig
cells

Accessory Ducts

 Rete testis
 Vasa efferentia
 Epididymis
 Vas deferens
 Urethra

Accessory Glands

 A pair of seminal vesicles

 Prostate gland
 Bulbourethral gland

Secretions of these glands constitute the seminal plasma rich in fructose ,

calcium and certain enzymes .
Secretions of bulbourethral glands also help in lubrication of penis.

External Genitalia

 The penis is the external genitalia in human males .

 It is made up of special erectile tissue that helps in erection of the penis to
facilitate insemination.

The enlarged tip of the penis is called glans penis covered by foreskin.

The Female Reproductive system

 26

It consists of :

 The primary sex organ that is a pair of ovaries

 Secondary sex organs- the duct system consisting of a pair of fallopian
tube , a uterus , cervix and vagina
 External genitalia
 Mammary glands

Ovaries

 Produce female gametes called ova

 Located in abdominal cavity
 Each ovary is almond shaped body
 Coved by a thin epithelium , enclosing the ovarian stroma
 Stroma is divided into 2 regions :

1. Peripheral cortex
2. Inner medulla

Fallopian Tube

 Part closer to ovary-funnel shaped infundibulum

 Infundibulum possesses finger like projections-fimbriae
 Wider part of oviduct –ampulla
 Last part of oviduct-isthmus

Uterus

 Covered by three layered wall:

1. Perimetrium – outer most layer

2. Myometrium- middle layer
3. Endometrium-inner most layer

External Genitalia
 27

 Mons pubis – cushion of fatty tissues covered by skin and pubic hair
 Labia majora – fleshy folds of tissue extending down from mons pubis
, surrounding the vaginal opening
 Labia minora – paired folds of tissue under labia majora
 Clitoris – tiny finger-like structure which lies at the upper junction of the
two labia minora , above the urethral opening
 Hymen – a membrane covering the opening of vagina partially

Mammary Glands

 Consists of glandular tissue and variable amount of fat

 Glandular tissue divided into 15-20 mammary lobes
 Each lobe contains clusters of cells called alveoli opening into mammary
tubules
 Mammary tubules join to form mammary duct
 Mammary ducts join to form mammary ampulla connected to lactiferous
duct
 Milk secreted by cells of alveoli, stored in the lumen of alveoli

GAMETOGENESIS
The process of formation of gametes is called gametogenesis
It is of two types:
1. Spermatogenesis in males
2. Oogenesis in females

1. Spermatogenesis
The process of formation of sperms in males is called spermatogenesis

 The spermatogonia present on the inner wall of seminiferous tubules

multiply by mitotic division and form primary spermatocytes.
 Primary spermatocytes undergo meiosis.
 Primary spermatocytes complete 1st meiotic division, forms 2 equal
haploid secondary spermatocytes
 Secondary spermatocytes undergo 2nd meiotic division to form 4 haploid
spermatids
 Spermatids transform into spermatozoa (sperms) - spermiogenesis
 Sperm heads get embeded in sertoli cells, finally released from
seminiferous tubules -spermiation
 28

Hormonal control of spermatogenesis

 Spermatogenesis initiated due to increase in secretion of gonadotropin

releasing hormone by hypothalamus
 Increase in GnRH act on anterior pituitary and stimulate secretion of two
gonadotropins, LH and FSH
 LH acts on Leydig cells and stimulates them to secrete androgens.
 FSH acts on Sertoli cells, stimulates secretion of some factors which help
in spermiogenesis

Structure of Sperm

 Composed of head, neck, middle piece and a tail.

 Plasma membrane envelopes the whole body of sperm
 Sperm head contains an elongated haploid nucleus, the anterior portion of
which is covered a cap like structure, acrosome.
 Acrosome- filled with enzymes that help fertilisation of ovum
 Middle piece possesses numerous mitochondria-energy for movement of
tail
 Sperms released from the seminiferous tubules are transported by the
accessory ducts .
 Secretions of epididymis , vas deferens , seminal vesicle , prostate –
essential for maturation and motility of sperms
 Semen – seminal plasma along with sperms
 Functions of male accessory glands controlled by testicular hormones
(androgens)

2. Oogenesis
The process of formation of a mature female gamete is called oogenesis

 Oogonia start division, enter into prophase I of meiosis - primary oocytes

 Each primary oocyte gets surrounded by a layer of granulosa cells-
primary follicle
 Primary follicles gets surrounded by more layers of granulosa cells-
secondary follicles
 Secondary follicle transforms into a tertiary follicle characterised by a
fluid filled cavity called antrum
 29

 The primary oocyte within the tertiary follicle grows in size, completes
1st meiotic division
 It results in unequal division, formation of large haploid secondary oocyte
and tiny 1st polar body
 Tertiary follicle changes into graafian follicle
 Secondary oocyte forms a new membrane-zona pellucida
 Ovulation – graafian follicle ruptures to release the secondary oocyte
(ovum) from the ovary

Menstrual cycle
The cyclic changes that occur in the reproductive organs of primate females is
called menstrual cycle
The events in a menstrual cycle can be studied under four phases

 Menstrual phase

1. It lasts for 3-5 days

2. It results due to breakdown of endometrial lining of uterus and its blood
vessels

 Follicular phase

1. Endometrium is regenerated by proliferation of its cells

2. These changes are due to increased levels of FSH , LH, Estrogen
3. FSH controls follicular phase, stimulates growth of follicles , secretion of
Estrogen
4. FSH and LH reach their peak level in the middle of the cycle

 Ovulatory phase

1. Peak level of LH induces rupture of mature graafian follicle and release

of ovum-ovulation
 30

 Luteal phase

1. Ruptured follicle transforms into corpus luteum

2. It secretes large quantities of progesterones

 In absence of fertilisation, corpus luteum degenerates. This causes

disintegration of endometrium

 Menstrual cycle cease at the age of 45 - 50 menopause.

Fertilisation and Implantation

The process of fusion of a sperm with an ovum is called fertilisation.

Fertilisation can only occur if the ovum and sperms are transported
simultaneously to the ampullary – isthmic junction.

Events during fertilisation :

 Sperm comes in contact with zona pellucida

 Induces changes in membrane that block entry of additional sperms
 Secretions of acrosome help sperm enter the cytoplasm of ovum
 Meiotic division of secondary oocyte
 Haploid ovum and 2nd polar body formed
 Formation of zygote

Implantation

 zygote moves towards uterus

 Blastomeres (2,4,8,16 daughter cells)
 morula (8-16 blastomeres)
 blastocyst
 31

 Blastomeres in blastocyst arrange into an outer layer trophoblast and an

inner group of cells attached to trophoblast
 Blastocyst gets embedded in endometrium of uterus (implantation)
 Uterine cells rapidly divide and cover the blastocyst

Pregnancy and embryonic development

 Inner layer grows out as finger like projections called villi into the uterine
stroma
 Chorionic villi and uterine tissue get interdigitated to form placenta
 Placenta secretes hormones like hCG , hPL , estrogens , progesterones (to
maintain pregnancy)
 Inner cell mass differentiates into an outer layer called ectoderm and an
inner layer called endoderm
 Mesoderm appears between ectoderm and endoderm
 Stem cells (undifferentiated embryonic cells)

Features of embryonic development

 The human pregnancy lasts for 9 months

 1st month – embryo’s heart is formed
 2nd month – foetus develops limbs and digits
 12 weeks (1st trimester) – major organ systems are formed
 5th month – 1st movements of foetus and appearance of hair on head
 24 weeks (2nd trimester) – body covered with fine hair , eye lids separate
, eye lashes formed

Parturition and Lactation

 Gestation period – 9 months

 Parturition – the process of delivery of the foetus (childbirth)
 Signals for parturition originate from the fully developed fetus and
placenta inducing mild uterine contractions called Foetal ejection reflex
 It triggers the release of oxytocin from maternal pituitary

Oxytocin acts on uterine muscle, causes stronger uterine contractions, which in

turn stimulates further secretion of oxytocin.
 32

Lactation

 The mammary glands undergo differentiation during pregnancy and starts

producing milk towards the end of pregnancy by the process called
lactation.
 The milk produced during the initial few days of lactation – colostrum
 It contains several antibodies essential to develop resistance for new-
borns.

CHAPTER – 5 : PRINCIPLES OF INHERITANCE AND VARIATION

Heredity is the transfer of character from parents to their offsprings. These

hereditary characters are present on the chromosomes in the form of
genes. These gene combinations express characters which may be more similar
to one of its two parents.

The differences in characters of offspring mainly depend upon unique process

of crossing over that occurs during meiosis. This is one of the main reasons of
producing recombinations.

Gregor Johann Mendel was born in 1822 in Heinzendorf, which was a part of
Czechoslovakia. He began his genetic experiments on garden pea in 1856 in the
garden at the monastery.

Selection of pea plant: The main reasons for adopting garden pea (Pisum
sativum) for experiments by Mendel were –

 Pea has many distinct contrasting characters.

 Life span of pea plant is short.
 Flowers show self pollination, reproductive whorls being enclosed by
corolla.
 It is easy to artificially cross pollinate the pea flowers. The hybrids thus
produced were fertile.

Working method: Mendel’s success was also due to his meticulous planning
and method of work –

 He studied only one character at a time.

 33

 He used all available techniques to avoid cross pollination by undesirable

pollen grains.
 He applied mathematics and statistics to analyse the results obtained by
him.

Mendel’s work and results:

The results obtained by Mendel were studied and on their basis he proposed
certain laws known as “Laws of heredity”. These laws are discussed below:

1) Law of dominance:
This law states that when two contrasting genes for a character come together in
an organism, only one is expressed externally and shows visible effect. It is
called dominant and the other gene of the pair which does not express and
remains hidden is called recessive.
2) Law of segregation or Purity of gametes:
This law states that both parental alleles (recessive and dominant) separate and
are expressed phenotypically in F2 generation. When F2 generation was
produced by allowing F1 hybrid to self pollinate, to find out segregation or
separation it was observed that both dominant and recessive plants appeared in
3:1 ratio.

3) Law of Independent assortment:

The law of independent assortment states that when inheritance of two or more
genes occur at one time, their distribution in the gametes and in the progeny of
subsequent generations is independent of each other. To prove this, he did a
dihybrid cross. He crossed homozygous dominant smooth and yellow seeded
(YYRR) with homozygous recessive wrinkled and green seeded (yyrr) plants.
The F1 hybrid was self pollinated and F2 generation was obtained with the
phenotypic ratio of 9:3:3:1 and genotypic ratio of 1:2:1:2:4:2:1:2:1.

Test Cross:
A cross between F1 hybrid (Aa) and its homozygous recessive parent (aa) is
called Test Cross. This cross is called test cross because it helps to find out
whether the given dominant phenotype is homozygous or heterozygous.

Incomplete dominance:
When neither of the alleles of a character is completely dominant over the other
and the F1 hybrid is intermediate between the two parents, the phenomenon is
called incomplete dominance.

The most common example of incomplete dominance is that of flower colour in

4’O clock plant. Homozygous red (RR) flowered variety was crossed with
 34

white (rr) flowered variety. F1 offspring had pink flowers (Rr). This is called
incomplete dominance. Incomplete dominance is also known to occur in
snapdragon. The phenotypic ratio and genotypic ratio in F2 generation in case
of incomplete dominance is 1:2:1.

Multiple Allelism / Codominance:

When a gene exists in more than two allelic forms, it shows the phenomenon of
multiple allelism. A well known example is the inheritance of A, B and O
blood groups in human being. The gene for blood group occurs in three allelic
forms IA, IB and i. A person carries any two of these alleles. The gene IA
produces glycoprotein (sugar) A and the blood group is A. The gene IB
produces glycoprotein B and the blood group is B. The gene ‘i’ is unable to
produce any glycoprotein and so the person homozygous for it , has O group
blood. The genes IA and IB are dominant over ‘i’. When IA and IB are
present together, both are equally dominant and produce glycoproteins A and B
and the blood group is AB. They are called codominant alleles.

Phenotypic (Blood group) Genotype

A IAIA / IA IO
B IBIB / IB IO
AB IAIB
O IOIO (ii)

Chromosome theory of Inheritance:

Chromosome theory of inheritance was proposed by Sutton and Boveri
independently in 1902. The two workers found a close similarity between the
transmission of hereditary characters and behaviour of chromosomes while
passing from the one generation to the next through agency of gametes.

Salient features of chromosome theory:

 Both chromosomes as well as genes occur in pairs in the somatic or

diploid cells.
 A gamete contains only one chromosome of a type and only one of the
two alleles of a character.
 The paired condition of both chromosomes as well as Mendelian factors
is restored during fertilization.

Parallelism of behaviour between chromosomes and Mendelian factors:

 35

 Both the chromosomes as well as Mendelian factors (whether dominant

or recessive) are transmitted from generation to generation in an unaltered
form.

 A trait is represented by only one Mendelian factor inside a gamete. A

gamete similarly contains a single chromosome out of a pair of
homologous chromosomes due to meiosis that occurs before the
formation of gametes.
 An offspring contains two chromosomes of each type, which are derived
from the two parents through their gametes that are involved in fusion
and formation of zygote. It also contains two Mendelian factors for each
character. The factors come from two different parents through their
gametes.

Linkage and Recombination:

Linkage is the phenomenon, where two or more linked genes are always
inherited together and their recombination frequency in a test cross progeny is
less than 50%.

A pair of genes may be identified as linked, if their recombination frequency in

a test cross progeny is lower than 50 percent. All the genes present on one
chromosome form a linkage group and an organism possesses as many linkage
groups as its haploid number of chromosomes. If the two genes are fully linked,
their recombination frequency will be 0%.

Sex Determination by chromosomes:

Those chromosomes which are involved in the determination of sex of an
individual are called sex chromosomes while the other chromosomes are called
autosomes.

1) XX – XY type: In most insects including fruit fly Drosophila and mammals

including human beings the females possess two homomorphic sex
chromosomes, named XX. The males contain two heteromorphic sex
chromosomes, i.e., XY. Hence the males produce two types of gametes /
sperms, either with X-chromosome or with Y-chromosome, so they are called
Heterogamety.

2) ZZ – ZW type: In birds and some reptiles, the males are represented as ZZ

(homogamety) and females are ZW (heterogamety).

3) XX – XO type: In round worms and some insects, the females have two sex
chromosomes, XX, while the males have only one sex chromosomes X. There
 36

is no second sex chromosome. Therefore, the males are designated as XO. The
females are homogametic because they produce only one type of eggs. The
males are heterogametic with half the male gametes carrying X-chromosome
while the other half being devoid of it.

Sex determination in Humans:

Human beings have 22 pairs of autosomes and one pair of sex
chromosomes. All the ova formed by female are similar in their chromosome
type (22+X). Therefore, females are homogametic. The male gametes or
sperms produced by human males are of two types, (22+X) and
(22+Y). Human males are therefore, heterogametic. The two sexes produced in
the progeny is 50:50 ratio.

Mutation:
It is a phenomenon which results in alteration of DNA sequences and
consequently results in changes in the genotype and phenotype of an organism.

Gene / Point mutation:

Due to change in a single base pair of DNA. Ex. Sickle cell anemia
(GAGàGUG).

Chromosomal mutation:
Due to change in structure or number of chromosomes. Ex. Down’s syndrome.

Mutagens:
The chemical and physical factors that induce mutations are known as
Mutagens. Ex. UV rays.

Genetic Disorders:
Pedigree analysis: It is a system to analyse the distribution and movement of
characters in the family tree.

Mendelian Disorders:
These are mainly determined by alteration or mutation in the single gene. These
disorders are transmitted to the offspring on the same line as the principle of
inheritance.
Examples : Haemophilia, Cystic fibrosis, Sickle cell anemia, Colour blindness,
Phenylketonuria, Thalesemia, etc.

Haemophilia:
It is a sex linked recessive disease, which shows its transmission from
unaffected carrier mother to some of the male progeny. Haemophilia is a
disorder in which a vital factor for clotting of blood is lacking. So clotting of
 37

blood is abnormally delayed and it can be fatal. Bleeding can be checked by

transfusion of the entire volume of blood or the clotting factor in concentrated
form.

Sickle cell anemia:

It is an autosome linked recessive trait. It is due to a mutant allele on
chromosome 11 (autosome), that causes change of glutamine (GAG) to valine
(GUG) at the sixth position of β-chain of haemoglobin. The disease is
controlled by a single pair of allele, HbA HbA (normal) ; HbA HbS
(carrier) and HbS HbS (diseased). The patient has sickle shaped RBCs with
defective haemoglobin. They are destroyed more rapidly than normal RBCs.

Phenylketonuria:
It is due to a recessive mutant allele on chromosome 12 (autosome). The
affected individual lacks an enzyme (phenylalanine hydroxylase) that converts
the amino acid phenylalanine into tyrosine. As a result, this phenylalanine and
its derivatives accumulate in the cerebrospinal fluid leading to mental
degeneration (retardation) and are excreted in the urine due to its poor
absorption by kidney.

Chromosomal Disorders: Due to absence or excess or abnormal arrangement

of one or more chromosomes.
A change in the number of chromosomes in an organism arises due to non-
disjunction of chromosomes, during gamete formation.

Aneuploidy: This arises due to loss or gain of one or more chromosomes

during gamete formation. Example: Down’s syndrome (47) and Turner’s
syndrome (45).

Polyploidy: In this, the number of chromosomes is the multiple of the number

of chromosomes in a single set (haploid). Accordingly, these may be haploid,
diploid and polyploid.

Down’s Syndrome: It was first described by Langdon Down (1866). It is due

to trisomy of 21st chromosome, arising from non-disjunction of chromosomes
during gamete formation. As the maternal age increases, the instances of non-
disjuction increase. When such an ovum containing two 21st chromosomes
(24) is fertilized by a normal sperm (23), the zygote (47) comes to possess three
copies of 21st chromosome.

Symptoms: Short statured with small round mouth, palm is broad with
characteristic palm crease, physical, psychomotor and mental development is
retarded.
 38

Klinefelter’s syndrome: It arises due to non-disjunction of X-chromosomes

during ova formation. When an ovum containing two X-chromosomes is
fertilized by a Y-carrying sperm, XXY individual (47) appears.

Symptoms: A male with underdeveloped breasts (gynaecomastia), sparse body

hair, mentally retarded and sterile.

Turner’s Syndrome: It arises due to non-disjunction of X-chromosomes

during ova formation. When an ovum carrying no X-chromosome is fertilized
by a sperm carrying X- chromosome, a zygote with XO appears.

Symptoms: A female with rudimentary ovaries, short stature, lack of secondary

sexual characters, they are sterile.

IMPORTANT TERMS:

1. Heredity: - It can be defined as the transmission of characters from one

generation to successive generations of living organisms.
2. Alleles: - The various forms of a gene are called alleles.
3. Phenotype: - The external / observable characteristics of an organism
constitute its phenotype.
4. Genotype: - The genetic constitution of an organism is its genotype.
5. Homozygote: - It is an individual organism in which the members of a
pair of alleles for a character are similar.
6. Heterozygote: - It is an individual organism in which the members of a
pair of alleles of a character are different.
7. Dominant character: - The form of the character which is expressed in the
F1 hybrid is called dominant character.
8. Recessive character: - The form of the character which is suppressed in
the presence of the dominant character in a hybrid is called recessive
character.
9. Monohybrid cross: - It is a cross between individuals of the same species,
in which the inheritance of contrasting pairs of a single trait is considered.
10. Dihybrid cross: - It is a cross between two individuals of the same
species, in which the inheritance of contrasting pairs of two traits is
considered.

CHAPTER – 6 : MOLECULAR BASIS OF INHERITANCE

 39

Structure of DNA:
Watson and Crick proposed a double helical model for DNA, based on X-ray
crystallography of the molecule. Each strand (helix) is a polymer of
nucleotides, each nucleotide consisting of a deoxyribose sugar, a nitrogen base
and a phosphate. The sugar – phosphate chain is on the outside and act as back
bone and the bases are on the inside (like in ladder). The two strands are held
together by weak hydrogen bonds between the nitrogen bases. A purine base,
always pairs with a pyrimidine base, i.e., adenine (A) pairs with thymine (T)
and guanine (G) pairs with cytosine (C). So the two strands are complementary
to each other and run in antiparallel direction with one chain having 5’ – 3’
orientation and the other having a 3’ – 5’ orientation. The purine and
pyrimidine bases are stacked 0.34 nm apart in the chain and the helix makes a
turn after ten base pairs, i.e., 3.4 nm.

Central dogma of molecular biology:

Crick proposed the Central dogma in molecular biology, which states that the
genetic information flows from DNA à RNA à Protein. In some viruses like
retroviruses, the flow of information is in reverse direction, that is from RNA à
DNA à mRNA à Protein.

Packaging of DNA helix:

In prokaryotes, negatively charged DNA is held with some positively charged
proteins and form as nucleoid.

In eukaryotes, negatively charged DNA is held with positively charged proteins

called Histones (octomer) and form a structure called Nucleosome.

The search for Genetic Material:

1. Bacterial Transformation (Transforming Principle) :

Fredrick Griffith conducted his experiment on Streptococcus pneumoniae, the
pneumonia causing bacterium. He observed that there are two strains of this
bacterium, one forming smooth colonies (S-type) with capsule (virulent) and the
other forming rough colonies (R – type) without capsule (avirulent).

Experiment:
a) Smooth type bacteria were injected into mice. These mice died as a
result of pneumonia caused by bacteria.

b) Rough type bacteria were injected into mice. These mice lived and
pneumonia was not produced.
 40

c) Smooth type bacteria which normally cause disease were heat killed
and then injected into the mice. The mice lived and pneumonia was not caused.

d) Rough type bacteria (living) and heat killed S-type were injected
together into mice. The mice died due to pneumonia and virulent smooth type
living bacteria could also be recovered from their bodies.

This indicates that some factor from the dead S-cells converted the live R-cells
into S-cells (transformation).

Later Avery, MacLeod and McCarty (1944) found out that when DNA isolated
from the heat killed S-cells was added to R-cells in a culture, the R-cells
changed into S-cells and pathogenic.

Evidence from experiments with bacteriophage:

This experiment was devised by Hershey and Chase with two different
preparations of T2 phage. In one preparation, the protein part was made
radioactive and in the other, nucleic acid (DNA) was made radioactive. These
two phage preparations were allowed to infect the culture of E.coli. Soon after
infection, before lysis of cells, the E.coli cells were gently agitated in a blender,
to loosen the adhering phage particles and the culture was centrifuged. The
heavier infected bacterial cells pelleted to the bottom and the lighter viral
particles were present in the supernatant. It was found that when T2 phage
containing radioactive DNA was used to infect E.coli, the pellet contained
radioactivity. If T2phage containing radioactive protein coat was used to infect
E.coli, the supernatant contained most of the radioactivity. This suggests that
during infection by the virus, the viral DNA enters the bacterial cell and that has
the information for the production of more viral particles. It proves that DNA
and not proteins, is the genetic material in bacteriophage.

Properties of Genetic Material:

a) It should be able to generate its replica (replication)

b) It should chemically and structurally be stable.

c) It should provide the scope for slow changes (mutation) that are required
for evolution.

d) It should be able to express itself in the form of ‘Mendelian Characters’.

Replication:
The Watson – Crick model of DNA immediately suggested that the two strands
of DNA should separate. Each separated or parent strand now serves as a
 41

template (model) for the formation of a new but complementary strand. Thus,
the new or daughter DNA molecules formed would be made of one old or
parental strand and another newly formed complementary strand. This method
of formation of new daughter DNA molecules is called semi-conservative
method of replication.

The Experimental Proof:

Meselson and Stahl conducted an experiment to prove that DNA replication is
semi conservative. They grew bacterium E. coli in a medium containing
nitrogen salts (15NH4Cl) labeled with radioactive 15N. 15N was incorporated
into both the strands of DNA and such a DNA was heavier than the DNA
obtained from E.coli grown on a medium containing 14N. Then they transferred
the E.coli cells on to a medium containing 14N. After one generation, when
one bacterial cell has multiplied into two, they isolated the DNA and evaluated
its density. Its density was intermediate between that of the heavier 15N-DNA
and the lighter 14N-DNA. This is because during replication, new DNA
molecule with one 15N-old strand and a complementary 14N-new strand was
formed (semi-conservative replication) and so its density is intermediate
between the two.

Mechanism of DNA replication:

The intertwined DNA strands start separating from a particular point called
origin of replication (single in prokaryotes and many in eukaryotes). This
unwinding is catalysed by enzymes called Helicases. Enzymes called
Topoisomerases break and reseal one of the strands of DNA, so that the
unwound strands will not wind back. When the double stranded DNA is
unwound upto a point, it shows a Y-shaped structure called Replication
Fork. Enzyme DNA dependent DNA polymerase catalyses the joining of
Deoxyribonucleotides (A, G, C and T) in the 5’ – 3’ direction. The enzyme
forms one new strand in a continuous stretch (leading strand) in the 5’ – 3’
direction, on one of the template strands. On the other template strand, the
enzyme forms short stretches (discontinuous) strand of DNA also in the 5’ – 3’.
The discontinuous fragments are later joined by DNA-ligase to form a leading
strand. The two strands are held together by hydrogen bonds between
nucleotides.

Transcription:
Transcription is the process by which DNA gives rise to RNA. It can also be
defined as, the process of copying genetic information from one strand of the
DNA into RNA is termed as Transcription.

Transcription Unit:
A transcription unit in DNA is defined primarily by the three regions in the
 42

DNA;

 A Promoter
 The Structural gene
 A Terminator

Mechanism of Transcription:
Transcription involves the binding of RNA-polymerase at the promoter site on
DNA. As it moves along (through structural gene), the DNA unwinds and one
of the two strands acts as template to synthesize a meaningful RNA and other
strand act as non-coding. A complementary RNA strand is synthesized with A,
U, C and G as bases. RNA synthesis is terminated when the RNA-polymerase
falls off a Terminator sequence on the DNA.

Transcription Unit and the Gene:

A gene is defined as the functional unit of inheritance. In eukaryotes, DNA
consists of both coding and non-coding sequences of nucleotides. The coding
sequences / expressed sequences are defined as Exons. Exons are said to be
those sequence that appear in mature / processed RNA. These exons are
interrupted by non-coding sequences called Introns. These introns do not
appear in mature RNA.

Types of RNA:
In prokaryotes, a single RNA polymerase enzyme (composed of different
subunits) catalyses the synthesis of all types of RNA(mRNA, tRNA and rRNA)
in bacteria.

Where as in eukaryotes, there are three different RNA polymerase enzymes I, II

and III, they catalyse the synthesis of all types of RNA.

RNA polymerase I – rRNAs

RNA polymerase II - mRNA

RNA polymerase III – tRNA

Process of transcription in Prokaryotes:

RNA polymerase binds to promoter and initiates transcription. RNA
polymerase associates with initiation factor and termination factor to initiate and
terminate the transcription respectively. In prokaryotes, since the mRNA does
not require any processing, the transcription and translation take place in the
 43

same compartment and can be coupled.

Process of transcription in Eukaryotes:

In eukaryotes, the primary RNA contains both the exons and introns and is non-
functional. Hence, these non-coding introns will be removed by the process
called Splicing. Then this mature RNA undergoes Capping (addition of unusual
nucleotide methyl guanosine triphosphate at 5’ –end) and Tailing (addition of
adenylate residues at 3’ –end). Now, this fully matured RNA will be
transported out of the nucleus for translation.

Genetic Code:
Genetic code refers to the relationship between the sequence of nucleotides
(nitrogen bases) on mRNA and the sequence of amino acids in proteins. Each
code is known as Codon with three nucleotides (triplet). It has been deciphered
by Nirenberg, Khorana, Severo Ochoa and Crick.

Salient features of Genetic code:

 The codon is triplet. 61 codons code for 20 different amino acids and 3
codons do not code for any amino acids, hence they function as Stop
codons (UAG, UGA and UAA).
 One codon codes for only one amino acid, hence, it is unambiguous and
specific.
 Some amino acids are coded by more than one codon, hence the code is
degenerate.
 The codon is read in mRNA in a contiguous fashion. There are no
punctuations.
 The code is nearly universal. For example, from bacteria to human, UUU
would code for Phenylalanine (phe) amino acid.
 AUG has dual function. It codes for Methionine (met), and it also act as
Initiator codon.

Mutations and Genetic Code:

Mutation caused due to insertion / deletion of single base pair is known as Point
mutation. Effect of point mutations that inserts or deletes a base in structural
gene can be better understood by following simple example;

Consider a statement that is made up of the following words each having three
letters like genetic code;
 44

RAM HAS RED CAP

If we insert a letter B in between HAS and RED and rearrange the statement, it
would read as follows;

RAM HAS BRE DCA P

Similarly, if we now insert two letters at the same place, say BI’. Now it would
read,

RAM HAS BIR EDC AP

Now we insert three letters together, say BIG, the statement would read,

RAM HAS BIG RED CAP

The conclusion is, insertion or deletion of one or two bases changes the reading
frame from the point of insertion or deletion. Insertion or deletion of three or its
multiple bases insert or delete one or multiple codon hence one or multiple
amino acids, and reading frame remains unaltered from that point
onwards. Such mutations are referred to as Frame-shift insertion or deletion
mutations.

Structure of t-RNA : The Adapter Molecule:

tRNA molecule appears like a clover leaf , but in actual structure, the tRNA is a
compact molecule which looks like inverted L.

tRNA has three loops,

a) an anticodon loop that has bases complementary to the codon.

b) An amino acid accepter end to which it binds to amino acids.

c) Ribosomal binding loop.

tRNAs are specific for each amino acid. There are no tRNAs for stop codons.

Translation: It refers to the process of polymerization of amino acids to form a

polypeptide. The order and sequence of amino acids are defined by the
sequence of bases in the mRNA. The amino acids are joined by a bond which is
known as a peptide bond.
 45

It involves four steps namely

 Activation of amino acids (charging of tRNA / aminoacylation of tRNA)

 Initiation of polypeptide synthesis
 Elongation of polypeptide synthesis
 Termination of polypeptide synthesis

a) Activation of amino acids: In this process, a particular amino acid binds

to a specific tRNA molecule.

b) Initiation of polypeptide chain: The initiator methionyl-tRNA charged

with amino acid methionine and anticodon UAC interacts with the initiation
codon by codon-anticodon interaction. With the initiator methionyl-tRNA at P
site, the larger subunit binds to the smaller subunit, thus forming an initiation
complex.

c) Elongation of polypeptide chain: A second tRNA charged with an

appropriate amino acid enters the ribosome at the A site, close to the P site. A
peptide bond is formed between the first amino acid and the second amino
acid. Then the first tRNA is removed from the P-site and the second tRNA at
the A site, now carrying a dipeptide, is pulled along with mRNA to the P-site
(translocation). Now the A-site is occupied by a third codon and an appropriate
aminoacyl tRNA will bind to it. This process of peptide bond formation and
translocation will be repeated and the polypeptide chain grows in length.

d) Termination of polypeptide chain: When untranslated regions /

termination codons come at the A-site, no amino acid would be added, as it is
not recognized by any tRNA. So protein synthesis will stop. At the end, a
release factor binds to the stop codon, terminating translation and releasing the
complete polypeptide from the ribosome.

Regulation of Gene Expression:

All the genes are not needed constantly. The genes needed only sometimes are
called regulatory genes and are made to function only when required and remain
non-functional at other times. Such regulated genes, therefore required to be
switched ‘on’ or ‘off’ when a particular function is to begin or stop.

The Lac operon:

Jacob and Monod (1961) proposed a model of gene regulation, known

as operon model. Operon is a co-ordinated group of genes such as structural
 46

genes, operator genes, promoter genes, regulater genes and repressor which
function or transcribed together and regulate a metabolic pathway as a unit.

There are three structural genes, lac Z, lac Y and lac A, coding for
galactosidase, permease and transacetylase respectively. These three genes are
controlled by a single switch called operator. The operator switch is controlled
by the repressor protein which coded by the regulator gene.

When the repressor binds to the operator, the genes are not expressed
(switched off). When the operator switch is on, the three structural genes
transcribe a long polycistronic mRNA catalysed by RNA – polymerase.

A few molecules of lactose (inducer) enter the cell by the action o

enzyme permease. They are converted into an active form of lactose which
binds to the repressor and changes its configuration and prevents it from binding
to the operator. Beta-galactosidase breaks lactose into glucose and
galactose. (Fig. Text book p.117).

Human Genome Project:

Goals of HGP:

 Identify all the approximately 20,000-25,000 genes in human DNA;

 Determine the sequences of the 3 billion chemical base pairs that make up
human DNA
 Store this information in databases;
 Improve tools for data analysis;
 Transfer related technologies to other sectors, such as industries.

Methodologies:
The methods involved two major approaches. One approach focused on
identifying all the genes that expressed as RNA referred as Expressed Sequence
Tags (ESTs). The other approach is blind approach of simply sequencing the
whole set of genome that contained all the coding and non-coding sequence,
and later assigning different regions in the sequence with functions, referred
as Sequence Annotation.

Steps involved in sequencing:

a) Isolation of total DNA from a cell and converted into random fragments.

b) Cloning of DNA fragments can be performed by using cloning vectors

 47

like BAC (Bacterial Artificial chromosomes) and YAC (yeast artificial

chromosomes).

c) The fragments were sequenced using automated DNA sequencers that

worked on the principle of a method developed by Frederick Sanger.

d) These sequences were then arranged based on some overlapping regions

present in them.

Salient features of Human Genome:

a) The human genome contains 3164.7 million nucleotide bases.

b) The average gene consists of 3000 bases, but sizes vary greatly, with the
largest known human gene being dystrophin at 2.4 million bases.

c) Less than 2 per cent of the genome codes for proteins.

d) Repeated sequences make up very large portion of the human genome.

e) Repetitive sequences are stretches of DNA sequences that are repeated

many times, sometimes hundred to thousand times.

f) Chromosome 1 has most genes (2968), and the Y has the fewest (231).

g) Scientists have identified about 1.4 million locations where single base
DNA differences (SNPs – single nucleotide polymorphism) occur in humans.

DNA Fingerprinting:
DNA fingerprinting involves identifying differences in some specific
regions in DNA sequence called as repetitive DNA, because in these sequences,
a small stretch of DNA is repeated many times. These repetitive DNA are
separated from bulk genomic DNA as different peaks during density gradient
centrifugation. The bulk DNA forms a major peak and the other small peaks
are referred to as satellite DNA. These sequence show high degree of
polymorphism (variation at genetic level) and form the basis of DNA
fingerprinting.

Polymorphism can be defined as, an inheritable mutation is observed

in a population at high frequency, it is referred to as DNA polymorphism.

The technique of DNA fingerprinting was initially developed by Alec

Jeffreys. He used a satellite DNA as probe that shows very high degree of
 48

polymorphism. It was called Variable Number of Tandem Repeats (VNTRs).

Mechanism of DNA fingerprinting :

Extraction: DNA is extracted from the small amounts of blood, semen or hair
bulbs available.

Amplification: Many copies of this DNA are made by a technique called

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR).

Restriction Digestion: DNA is cut into desired reproducible segments using

restriction enzymes.

Separation: These DNA sequences (restriction fragments) are separated by Gel

Electrophoresis.

Southern Blotting: The separated DNA sequences are transferred from Gel
onto a nitrocellulose membrane.

Hybridisation with probe, the DNA sequence complementary to VNTR

sequences.

Exposure of the membrane to X-ray film, whose specific bands are developed.

Applications:

It is used effectively in forensic science for identifying;

a) the biological father (in case of paternity disparity)

b) the criminals such as murderers and rapists.

CHAPTER – 7 : EVOLUTION

Theory of Special Creation:

According to this theory, life originated on this earth from super
natural powers like god. He created all plants and animals, which appeared on
earth in the form they exist today.

Theory of Spontaneous generation or Abiogenesis:

According to this theory life originated on earth from non-living
objects spontaneously by a process called Abiogenesis (origin of life from non-
 49

living matter). It was believed that fishes and frogs originated from mud,
maggots arouse from decaying meat and insects from plant juices and
microorganisms from air & water. But later Louis Pasteur disproved this theory
and stated that life originate from pre-existing life.

Conditions of Primitive earth/ Origin of life:

It is believed that earth has originated about 4,600 million years ago. It is
formed by the condensation and cooling from a cloud of gases and dust. At first
the earth was very hot and had various gases and vapour of several
elements. With the passage of time, the earth gradually cooled down and gases
condensed. Thus a solid crust of earth was formed. There were torrential rains
for thousands of years resulting in the formation of large water bodies like
oceans.

The earth’s atmosphere at the time was a reducing atmosphere and not an
oxidizing one as today. There were large quantities of hydrogen, nitrogen,
water vapour, carbon monoxide, methane and ammonia in the primitive
atmosphere. However, free oxygen was not present, so the atmosphere is
known as reducing atmosphere and this led to the continuous series of chemical
reactions among the gases to form amino acids. Hence life originates from
reducing atmosphere.

The present atmosphere is oxidizing one and no life is originating today because
oxygen will not allow any continuous series of chemical reaction and if any
product is formed among the gases that will be oxidized.

A.I. Oparin and J.B.S. Haldane believed that methane, ammonia and water
vapours contain the kinds of atoms needed to form various substances such as
alcohol and amino acids. Accumulation of such organic compounds within the
oceans, lakes, ponds, pools, etc. over million of years must have produced a
kind of ‘hot soup’. In this ‘hot soup’ or ‘Darwin’s warm little pond’ smaller
organic compounds must have combined together to form larger organic
compounds and various macromolecules like polypeptides, proteins, nucleic
acids, carbohydrates etc. These compounds then interacted to produce the first
living cell. So according to them, the first living cell arose from simple
inorganic and organic non-living elements – a process called Abiogenesis.

The energy for such chemical reactions must have come from the heat of the
atmosphere and from the electrical energy of lightening.

The most important compound that initially formed is a nucleoprotein (nucleic

acid and protein) since it is the chemical characteristic of genes. They might
have aggregated in various combinations and must have formed the colloidal
 50

masses at the base of oceans. They formed the small globules. They are then
covered by fatty acids to form their surface membranes. This membrane also
became selectively permeable so a specific organization inside was maintained.
Experimental evidences have also shown that such types of cells formed are
called as coacervates (pre-cell) and then they gradually transformed into a living
cell.

Then enzymes and other important compounds inside were formed. In the
present day cells, all these macromolecules are formed by the actions of
enzymes. But the enzymes are protein in nature. So initially all
macromolecules were formed by non-enzymatic actions.

Urey and Miller experiment:

Stanley Miller and Harold C. Urey in 1953 tested the Oparin-Haldane
theory. They made an apparatus to circulate methane, ammonia, water vapour
and hydrogen gases. All these gases were put in a flask fitted with
electrodes. In another flask, water was being boiled continuously. The
electrical charges, to provide energy similar to lightening etc. were passed for
one week or more. After that they collected and analysed the contents of the
apparatus. He was able to get a number of amino acids, some of which are
known to be present in the proteins e.g., glycine, alanine, aspartic acid and
glutamic acid. Miller also got several of the simple acids that are known to
occur in the living organisms such formic acid, acetic acid, propionic acid,
lactic acid and succinic acid.

Hence they proved the Oparin and Haldane theory and now it is clear that
reducing atmosphere was essential for such abiotic synthesis.

Organic evolution:
It is defined as the process of gradual and orderly changes in organisms from
one form to another over a period of millions of years. It is a slow and
continuous process.

Morphological Evidences:
Homologous organs (Divergent Evolution):
Organs having similar embryonic origin and basic plan, but differing in their
functions are known as homologous organs. E.g., The arm of man, the leg of a
horse, the wing of a bat, the wing of a bird and the flippers of a seal have the
same basic plan of development but they are used for different works. All of
them possess humerus in upper arm, radius and ulna in the forearm, carpals in
the wrist, metacarpals in the palm and phalanges in digits. They also show
similarities in the arrangement of the muscles and nerves and also show same
pattern of embryonic development.
 51

Homology in plants:
In plants, the homologous organs are a thorn of Bougainvillea and a tendril
in Cucurbita both arising in the axillary position, but perform different
functions. Thorn for protection and tendril for support.
Analogous organs (Convergent Evolution):
Organs having similar functions but different in their basic plan of development
are known as analogous organs. For example, the wing of insects and that of
birds or bats are analogous structure. Their basic plan of development is
different but has a similar function of flying. In insects wing is an extension of
the integument whereas a birds wing is formed of bones covered with flesh, skin
and feathers.
In plants:

 In Opuntia/Cactus, a stem is modified to look like a leaf and may perform

the function of a leaf (photosynthesis).
 In potato and sweet potato, potato is a stem tuber and sweet potato is a
root tuber. Storage of food is the same function.

Geological time scale:

It shows the ages of the various eras and periods together with the major groups
of plants and animals that are believed to have existed during that period. It
helps in the study of palaeontology.

It has been divided into 6 eras which are further divided into periods or
epochs. Each being characterised by some specific living forms and climatic
changes geological time scale is the calender of earth past history indicating the
evolution of life through time recorded in sequence of rocks.

Biological Evolution:
The essence of Darwinian theory about evolution is natural
selection. Branching descent and natural selection are the two key concepts of
Darwinian Theory of Evolution.

Lamarck’s concept of evolution/Inheritance of acquired characters:

This theory states that characters are acquired by animals in two ways,

1. The effects of environment

2. Use and disuse of body parts.
 52

For example, the long neck of giraffe is explained by Lamarck on the same
principle. Giraffe, which lived in the dry and arid deserts of Africa, tried to
reach the foliage high up on the trees to eat them as there was no vegetation on
the ground. In the process its neck and forelegs got stretched a bit and this was
inherited to the next generation. Then in the next generation same efforts were
continued. Gradually through many successive generations, we got giraffe
having such a long neck and forelegs.

Lamarck’s idea of the use and disuse of body parts and the inheritance
of acquired characters was not accepted by the scientists. It was disproved
by August Wiesmann. He showed that even after cutting the tail of rats for
several generations, no rat was born without a tail.

Darwin’s Theory:
Charles Darwin and Alfred Russel Wallace independently gave the theory of
evolution. This theory is known as ‘Darwin’s theory of natural selection’ and is
published in a book, “Origin of Species by Natural Selection”. The main
features of this theory are as follows,

Reproduction: All organisms reproduce and multiply enormously. Eg. A pair

of mice produces dozens of young ones, insects lay thousands of eggs and
plants also produce thousands of seeds.
Variations: No two individuals are alike. They differ from each other in size,
shape, behaviour, etc. even the offspring of the same parent are never exactly
alike except identical twins.
Struggle for existence: All the offspring are not able to reach adulthood. When
offspring

become adulthood, then they start to reproduce. This reproductive capacity

varies from animal to animal; some reproduce more and some minimum. This
differential capacity of reproduction is known as differential reproduction.

Since the number of individuals is far more than actually can survive,
so they compete among themselves for food, shelter and space.
Survival of fittest/ Natural selection: Only those individuals which have
favourable variations survive and reproduce while others not suited by the
environment perish away. Thus nature exercises its selection and only those
individuals that are ‘fit’ to survive and reproduce successfully.
Origin of Species/Speciation: This continuous process of variation and natural
selection will ultimately result in elimination of certain individuals; while others
will gradually establish. In this process new characters, which are good, will set
in. Thus new species may be produced in due course of time.
 53

Mechanism of Evolution:
Hugo deVries believed that it is mutation which causes evolution and not the
minor variations (heritable) as Darwin said. Mutations are random and
directionless while Darwinian variations are small and directional. Evolution
for Darwin was gradual while deVries believed mutation caused speciation and
hence called it Saltation (single step large mutation).

Hardy-Weinberg Principle:

 According to this law, if all the factors / conditions remain constant, the
frequency of particular genes and their alleles will remain constant in a
population of sexually reproducing organisms from generation to
generation.
 The difference between the observed frequencies of alleles and those
predicted by Hardy-Weinberg Principle indicates the degree of
evolutionary change. Evolution occurs when the genetic equilibrium is
disturbed.

Factors affecting Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium:

 Gene migration / Gene flow

 Genetic drift
 Mutation
 Genetic recombination
 Natural Selection

Examples of Natural Selection:

1.Industrial melanism.
A case of natural selection was seen in Great Britain in a peppered
moth (Biston betularia). This moth had two forms: grey colour and black
colour (Carbonaria). In the early part of the nineteenth century only the grey
coloured forms of moths were present; the dark forms were rare. The grey
coloured moths were seen on the tree trunks covered with lichens and so they
were able to escape from their enemies. Later on, due to the development of
industries the lichens were killed and the tree trunks looked dark due to the
deposition of industrial soot. Birds, now were able to spot these moths and feed
upon them. So the grey coloured moths were eaten by the birds and the dark
 54

coloured moths escaped from the birds. Then now the coal is replaced by the
industries and oil and electricity is used. This has reduced the soot production
and ultimately less deposition of soot on the tree trunks. These tree trunks have,
now, again become grey in colour. Consequently, grey coloured moths have
again increased in number. This example clearly brings out the action of natural
selection.

2.Resistanceof mosquitoes to pesticides.

When DDT was introduced to control mosquitoes it was tremendously
successful. Most of the mosquitoes were sensitive to DDT and were therefore
killed. In that population of mosquitoes, few mosquitoes became resistant to
DDT and survived. They multiplied and now almost total population of
mosquitoes became resistant to DDT.

Hence the principle of natural selection shows that the chemical

insecticides can remain effective only for a limited period.

Adaptive Radiation:
The Process of evolution of different species in a given geographical area
starting from a point and literally radiating to other areas of geography
(habitats) is called Adaptive radiation. Ex. Darwinian Finches, Australian
Marsupials.

A Brief Account of Evolution:

 About 2000 million years ago the first cellular forms of life appeared on
earth. Some of these cells had the ability to release O2.
 Slowly single-celled organisms became multi-cellular forms and by the
time 500 mya, invertebrates were formed and active.
 Jawless fish evolved around 350 mya.
 Organisms started to invade from water to land. Fish with stout and
strong fins could move on land and go back to water. These fishes
evolved into the first amphibians
 Later, these amphibians evolved into reptiles. They lay shelled
eggs. Then reptiles of different shapes and sizes dominated on earth
(dinosaurs).
 Some of the reptiles evolved into birds and later some of them to
mammals. Mammals were viviparous and more intelligent in sensing and
avoiding danger at least.
 55

Origin and Evolution of Man:

 About 15 mya, primates called Dryopithecus and Ramapithecus were

existing. They were hairy and walked like gorillas and
chimpanzees. Ramapithecus was more man like and Dryopithecus was
more ape-like.
 Two mya, Australopithecines probably lived in East aftrican
grasslands. Evidence shows that they hunted with stone weapons but
essentially ate fruits.
 Fossils of first human like being the hominid were found and their brain
capacity were between 650-800cc, they were called as Homo habilis.
They did not eat meat.
 Fossils discovered in Java 1891 revealed the next stage, i.e., Homo
erectus about 1.5 mya and had a large brain around 900 cc and they ate
meat.
 Neanderthal man with a brain size of 1400 cc. They used hides to protect
their body and buried their dead.
 Homo sapiens arose in Africa and moved across continents and
developed into distinct races.
 During ice age between 75,000-10,000 years ago modern Homo
sapiens arose.

CHAPTER – 8 : HUMAN HEALTH AND DISEASE

Health:-
It can be defined as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-
being. When people are healthy, they are more efficient at work.

Health is affected by –

 Genetic disorders – inheritable defects of parents to offspring.

 Infections and
 Life style including food and water we take, rest and exercise we give to
our bodies, habits that we have or lack etc.

Diseases can be broadly grouped into infectious and non-infectious. Diseases

which are easily transmitted from one person to another, are called infectious
 56

diseases. Among non-infectious diseases, cancer is the major cause of death.

Common Diseases in Humans:

Pathogen :- Disease causing organisms.

Typhoid:

 Pathogen: Salmonella typhi.

 Symptoms: High fever, weakness, stomach pain, constipation, headache
and loss of appetite, intestinal perforation and death may occur in severe
cases. Typhoid fever could be confirmed by Widal test.
 Mode of transmission: These pathogens generally enter the small intestine
through contaminated food and water and migrate to other organs through
blood.

Pneumonia:

 Pathogen: Streptococcus pneumoniae and Haemophilus infuenzae.

 Symptoms: the alveoli get filled with fluid leading to severe problems in
respiration. Symptoms include fever, chills, cough and headache, in
severe cases the lips and finger nails may turn gray to bluish in colour.
 Mode of transmission: transmitted through droplets of infected persons.

Common Cold:

 Pathogen: Rhino viruses.

 Symptoms: nasal congestion and discharge, sore throat, hoarseness,
cough, headache, tiredness.
 Mode of transmission: through droplets of infected persons.

DISEASES CAUSED BY PROTOZOANS.

Malaria.(means bad air)

 Pathogen. Protozoan Plasmodium.

 Vector. Female Anopheles mosquito
 57

 Symptoms. Head aches, muscle pain, high fever. During fever the patient
feels chill and shivering.
 Prevention. Eradication of vector and keeping the surrounding clean.
 Treatment. It involves the use of medicine like quinine and protection of
patients from the mosquitoes.
 Mode of spread. This disease spreads by the bite of infected Anopheles
mosquito. Only the female Anopheles is capable of spreading the disease
because it sucks the blood of man.

Amoebiasis.

 Pathogen. It is due to an intestinal protozoan parasite Entamoeba

histolytica.
 Symptoms. This parasite lives in the large intestine and destroys the
mucus membrane. This may cause bleeding and ulcer that produce
dysentery. Hence patient passes out blood and mucus with the
stool. There will be severe pain in abdomen, fever, nausea and
nervessness.
 Mode of transmission: As the cysts of pathogen are found in the
intestinal discharge the possibility of infection to healthy persons is
through contaminated water or improperly washed or cooked vegetables
and fruits. The pathogen can also be transmitted through dirty hands.
 Prevention. Proper disposal of faecal matter of the patient. Vegetables
and fruits when used raw, should be thoroughly washed. Water should be
boiled before drinking.

DISEASE CAUSED BY HELMINTHES WORM.

Ascariasis.

 Pathogen. A round worm Ascaris lumbricoides.

 Symptoms. This parasite is found in the small intestine of man and is of
world wide distribution. It causes a lot of stomach ache, nausea and
cough.
 Mode of transmission: Through food, when soil consist of cyst and eggs,
it will be transmitted through vegetables growing on it or through dirty
hands or by ingestion of soil.
 58

 Prevention: The disposal of human faeces by underground sewer canals is

an efficient measure to prevent the spread. Washing of vegetables and
fruits before eating help of keep away the eggs of the worm.

Filariasis.

 Pathogen. Wuchereria bancrofti.

 Vector. Culex mosquito.
 Symptoms. The worm lives in the lymph vessels and block them, this
causes swelling of the body parts like, legs scrotum, foot, etc. This
enlargement of legs gives the disease its name as Elephantiasis.

 Prevention. Eradication of vector.

DISEASE CAUSED BY FUNGI

Ringworms:

 Pathogens: Trichophyton and Epidermophyton

 Symptoms: appearance of dry, scaly lesions on various parts of the body
such as skin, nails and scalp with intense itching.

Measures for prevention and control of infectious diseases –

 Personal hygiene: It includes cleanliness of body, drinking of clean

water, etc.
 Public hygiene: It includes cleaning of water reservoirs, proper disposal
of sewage, etc.

Immunity

 Ability of the body to fight infectious agents

 59

 On the basis of the immunity possessed by the body, immunity can be

innate immunity and acquired immunity.

1. Innate immunityis a non-specific type of defense mechanism.

It has four types of barriers –

 Physical barrier: Example, skin covering of the body, secretion of

mucous in the respiratory tract
 Physiological barrier: Example, acid in the stomach, tears from the eyes
 Cellular barrier: Example, monocytes and lymphocytes in blood
 Cytokine barrier: Example, interferon

2. Acquired immunity: itis a specific type of defense mechanism. It shows two

types of responses: primary response and secondary response. It involves two
types of lymphocytes –

 B lymphocytes: Show humoral immune response (HI)

 T lymphocytes: Show cell mediated immunity (CMI)

Structure of an Antibody:

 The antibodies are protein molecules called immunoglobulins and are of

various types like IgA, IgM, IgE, IgG.

 Each antibody molecule consists of four polypeptide chains, two are long
called heavy chains and other two are short called light chains. Both are
arranged in the shape of ‘Y’, hence an antibody is represented as H2L2.

On the basis of production of antibodies, immunity can be further categorised as

–

 Active immunity: Body produces its own antibodies against antigens

 Passive immunity: Readymade antibody is transferred from one
individual to another
 Colostrum (contains antibodies IgA) is an example of passive immunity
provided by the mother to her child.
 60

Auto immunity:
Production of antibodies against the tissues of its own cells. Example –
Rheumatoid arthritis.

Lymphoid organs:
It acts as the sites of formation and maturation of lymphocytes.
Primary lymphoid organ – where lymphocytes are produced and matured.
Example – Bone marrow and Thymus.

Secondary lymphoid organ– where lymphocytes fight with antigens. Example -

Spleen, lymph nodes, tonsils, Peyer's patches Mucosal Associated Lymphocyte
Tissues (MALT).

Vaccination:
It is the protection of the body from communicable diseases by administration
of agents (called vaccines) that mimic the microbes. Vaccines are available
against tetanus, polio, etc.

Allergies:
Hypersensitivity to a particular allergen (such as pollens, dust) is termed as
allergy. IgE is an antibody responsible for allergy. Symptoms include,
sneezing, watery eyes, running nose and difficulty in breathing. Allergy is due
to secretion of histamine and serotonine by mast cells. Allergy is treated with
anti-histamine, adrenaline and steroids.

AIDS (Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome) :

It can spread –

 through sexual contact with the infected person

 from the mother to her child, through the placenta
 infected blood transfusion
 by the use of infected syringe

It is caused by HIV virus (a retro virus) and has RNA as genetic material. HIV
stands for Human Immunodeficiency Virus.

When HIV virus enters the host cell, the virus enters into macrophages, where
RNA replicates and forms viral DNA by the help of enzyme reverse
 61

transcriptase. The viral DNA gets incorporated into the host cell’s DNA and
directs the infected cells to produce daughter viruses. The macrophages
continue to produce virus that enters the helper T-lymphocytes. Thus the
number of helper T-lymphocytes progressively decreases in the body and
weaken the immune system.

Diagnostic test for AIDS: ELISA (enzyme-linked-immuno-sorbent assay)

Cancer

 Tumour caused by abnormal and uncontrolled cell division. It is of two

types –
 Benign tumour: Remains confined to a particular location and does not
spread
 Malignant tumour: Cells divides and invades new locations by getting
transported through blood to distant sites
 Metastasis: Property of malignant tumour to invade the distant body
parts, thereby initiating formation of new tumours.
 Carcinogen: Cancer-causing agents; e.g., X-rays, UV rays
 Cancer detection and diagnosis: Techniques involved are radiography,
computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging

Treatment of cancer:

1. Surgical – cancerous tissues are surgically removed.

2. Radiotherapy – tumor cells are irradiated lethally by radiation.
3. Chemotherapy – drugs are used to kill cancerous cells, but shows side
effects like hair loss, anemia, etc.
4. Immunotherapy – patients are given with alpha-interferon which activate
their immune system and help in destroying the tumor.

Drugs and Alcohol

Drugs and alcohol abuse includes –

 Opioids: Morphine is obtained from Poppy plant. It is a sedative

(depressant) and pain killer. Heroin is chemically diacetylmorphine. It
slows down body functions. Example, Heroin (extracted from Papaver
somniferum)
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 Cannabinoids: Itis obtained from Cannabis sativa. These are taken by

inhalation and oral ingestion, they affect the cardiovascular system of the
body. Example, marijuana, hashish, charas, ganja (obtained
from Cannabis sativa),
 Coca alkaloids / Cocaine: it is obtained from Erythroxylon coca. It is
taken by smoking. It is a stimulant and activates central nervous system.
 Hallucinogens: It is obtained from Atropa belladonna and Datura sp.
LSD (Lysergic acid Diethylamide) is obtained from fungus.
 Tobacco: it contains nicotine, which is stimulant. It stimulates adrenaline
and increases the secretion of adrenaline. Smoking of tobacco leads to
lung cancer, bronchitis, emphysema, coronary heart diseases.

Adolescence and Drug abuse

 Adolescence is the period during which the child becomes matured.

 It is between 12 – 18 years of age.

Causes of drug abuse –

 Curiosity
 Adventure
 Excitement
 Experimentation
 Stress or pressure to excel in examination

Effects of drug/alcohol abuse –

 Reckless behaviour
 Malicious mischief
 Violence
 Drop in academic performance
 Depression, isolation, aggressiveness, etc.

Prevention and control –

 Avoid peer pressure

 Counselling and education
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 Take help from teachers, parents and peers

 Take professional and medical help

CHAPTER - 9 : STRATEGIES FOR ENHANCEMENT IN FOOD

PRODUCTION

Animal Husbandry:
It is the agricultural practice of breeding and raising livestock. Animal
husbandry deals with the care and breeding of livestock like buffaloes, cows,
pigs, horses, cattle, sheep, camels goats, etc., that are useful to humans.

Management of Farms and Farm Animals:

1) Dairy Farm Management:

Dairying is the management of animals for milk and its products for human
consumption. In dairy farm management, we deal with processes and systems
that increase yield and improve quality of milk.

 Selection of good breeds having high yielding potential, combined with

resistance to diseases is very important.
 Cattle have to be housed well, should have adequate water and be
maintained disease free.
 The feeding of cattle should be carried out in a scientific manner (quality
and quantity of fodder).
 Stringent cleanliness and hygiene are importance while milking, storage
and transport of the milk and its products.

2) Poultry Farm Management:

 Poultry is the class of domesticated fowl used for food or for their eggs.
 Selection of disease free and suitable breeds, proper and safe farm
conditions, proper feed and water, and hygiene and health care are
important components of poultry farm management.

Animal Breeding:
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 Animal breeding aims at increasing the yield of animals and improving

the desirable qualities of the produce.
 When breeding is between animals of the same breed it is called
Inbreeding, while crosses between different breeds are called
Outbreeding.

Inbreeding:

 It refers to the mating of more closely related individuals within the same
breed for 4-6 generations. The breeding strategy is, superior males and
superior females of the same breed are identified and mated in pairs.
 Inbreeding increases Homozygosity. However, continued inbreeding,
especially close inbreeding, usually reduces fertility and even
productivity. This is called Inbreeding Depression. Whenever this
becomes a problem, selected animals of the breeding population should
be mated with unrelated superior animals of the same breed. This usually
helps restore fertility and yield.

Out-breeding:
It is the breeding of the unrelated animals, which may be between individuals of
the same breed or between different breeds or different species.

Out-crossing:
This is the practice of mating of animals within the same breed, but having no
common ancestors on either side of their pedigree up to 4-6 generations. The
offspring of such a mating is known as an out-cross. A single outcross often
helps to overcome inbreeding depression.

Cross-breeding:
In this method, superior males of one breed are mated with superior females of
another breed. Cross-breeding allows the desirable qualities of two different
breeds to be combined. The progeny hybrid animals may themselves be used
for commercial production. For example, Hisardale is a new breed of sheep
developed in Punjab by crossing Bikaneri ewes and Marino rams.

Interspecific Hybridisation:
In this method, male and female animals of two different species are mated. In
some cases, the progeny may combine desirable features of both the parents,
and may be of considerable economic value. Eg. Mule.
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Artificial Insemination:
Controlled breeding experiments are carried out using artificial
insemination. The semen is collected from the male that is chosen as a parent
and injected into the reproductive tract of the selected female by the breeder.

The success rate of crossing mature male and female animals is fairly low even
though artificial insemination is carried out.

To improve chances of successful production of hybrids, other means are also

used (MOET).

Multiple Ovulation Embryo Transfer Technology (MOET):

In this method, a cow is administered hormones, with FSH-like activity, to
induce follicular maturation and super ovulation-instead of one egg, which they
normally yield per cycle; they produce 6-8 eggs. The animal is either mated
with an elite bull or artificially inseminated. The fertilized eggs at 8-32 cells
stages, are recovered non-surgically and transferred to surrogate mothers. The
genetic mother is available for another round of super ovulation.

3) Bee-keeping / Apiculture:
Bee-keeping or Apiculture is the maintenance of hives of honeybees for the
production of honey. There are several species of honeybees which can be
reared. Of these, the most common species is Apis indica.

Honey is a food of high nutritive value and also finds use in the indigenous
systems of medicine. Honeybee also produces beeswax, which finds many uses
in industry, such as in the preparation of cosmetics and polishes of various
kinds.

The following points are important for successful bee-keeping:

 Knowledge of the nature and habits of bees,

 Selection of suitable location for keeping the beehives,
 Catching and hiving of swarms (group of bees),
 Management of beehives during different seasons, and
 Handling and collection of honey and of beeswax.
 Keeping beehives in crop fields during flowering period increases
pollination efficiency and improves the yield.
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4) Fisheries:

 Fishery is an industry devoted to the catching, processing or selling of

fish, shellfish or other aquatic animals. Freshwater fishes – Catla, Rohu
and common crab; Marine fishes – Hilsa, Sardines, mackerel and
Pomfrets.
 In order to meet the increasing demands on fisheries, different techniques
have been employed to increase production.
 Through aquaculture and pisciculture we have been able to increase the
production of aquatic plants and animals, both fresh-water and marine.

II Plant Breeding: Green revolution was dependent to a large extent on plant

breeding techniques for development of high – yielding and disease resistant
varieties in wheat, rice, maize, etc.

What is Plant Breeding? Plant breeding is the purposeful manipulation of plant

species in order to create desired plant types that are better suited for
cultivation, giver better yields and are disease resistant.

The main steps in breeding a new genetic variety of a crop are –

a) Collection of variability – Collection and preservation of all the different
wild varieties, species and relatives of the cultivated species.
b) Evaluation and selection of parents – Evaluation is done to identify
plants with desirable characters. The selected plants are multiplied and used in
the process of hybridization.
c) Cross hybridization among the selected parents – By cross hybridizing
the two parents to produce hybrids that genetically combine the desired
characters in one plant.
d) Selection and testing of superior recombinants – The selection process is
crucial to the success of the breeding objective and requires careful scientific
evaluation of the progeny. These are self pollinated for several generations till
they reach a state of uniformity, so that the characters will not segregate in the
progeny.
e) Testing, release and commercialization of new cultivars – This
evaluation is done by growing these plants in the research fields and recording
their performance under ideal fertilizer application irrigation, and other crop
management practices. It will be followed by testing the materials in farmers’
fields, for at least three growing at several locations in the country.

Wheat and Rice:

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 In 1963, several varieties such as Sonalika and Kalyan Sona, which were
high yielding and disease resistant, were introduced all over the wheat-
growing belt of India.
 Semi-dwarf rice varieties were derived from IR-8, and Taichung Native-
1 were introduced in 1966. Later better-yielding semi-dwarf
varietiesJaya and Ratna were developed in India.

Sugar cane:

 Saccharum barberi and Saccharum officinarum were crossed to get the

desirable qualities of high yield, thick stems, high sugar and ability to
grow in the sugar cane areas of north India.

Millets:

 Hyrbid maize, jowar and bajra have been developed in India, which are
high yielding and resistant to water stress.

a) Plant Breeding for Disease Resistance:

Methods of Breeding for disease resistance: The various sequential steps are;
Screening germplasm for resistance, hybridization of selected parents, selection
and evaluation of the hybrids and testing and release of new varieties.

CROP VARIETY RESISTANCE

TO DISEASES
Wheat Himgiri Leaf and stripe rust,
hill bunt
Brassica Pusa swarnim White
rust Cauliflower Pusa Shubhra, Pusa
Snowball K – 1 Black rot and Curl blight black rot
Cowpea Pusa Komal Bacterial blight
Chilli Pusa Sadabahar Chilly mosaic virus,
Tobacco mosaic virus and Leaf curl

Mutation Breeding:
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 It is the process by which genetic variations are created through changes

in the base sequence within genes resulting in the creation of a new
character or trait not found in the parental type.
 It is possible to induce mutations artificially through use of chemicals or
radiations, and selecting and using the plants that have the desirable
character as a source in breeding.
 For example, in mung bean, resistance to yellow mosaic virus and
powdery mildew were induced by mutations.
 Resistance to yellow mosaic virus in bhindi (Abelmoschus esculentus)
was transferred from a wild species and resulted in a new variety of A.
esculentus called Parbhani kranti.

b) Plant Breeding for Devloping Resistance to Insect Pests:

 Insect resistance in host crop plants may be due to morphological,

biochemical or physiological characteristics.
 Hairy leaves in several plants are associated with resistance to insect
pests, e.g., resistance to jassids in cotton and cereal leaf beetle in wheat.
 High aspartic acid, low nitrogen and sugar content in maize leads to
resistance to maize stem borers.
 Smooth leaved and nectar-less cotton varieties do not attract bollworms.

CROP VARIETY INSECT PESTS

Brassica Pusa Gaurav Aphids
Flat bean Pusa Sem 2, Pusa Sem 3 Jassids, aphids and fruit
borer
Okra (bhindi) Pusa Sawani, Pusa A – 4 Shoot and Fruit borer

c) Plant Breeding for Improved Food Quality:

 Diets lacking essential micronutrients – particularly iron, vitamin A,

iodine and zinc – increase the risk for disease, reduce lifespan and reduce
mental abilities.

Biofortification:- It is the process of breeding crops with higher levels of

vitamins and minerals, or higher protein and healthier fats.

Breeding for improved nutritional quality is undertaken with the objectives of

improving;
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 Protein content and quality

 Oil content and quality
 Vitamin content ; and
 Micronutrient and mineral content

Examples;- Vitamin A enriched carrots, spinach, pumpkin; Vitamin C enriched

bitter gourd, mustard, tomato; Iron and Calcium enriched spinach and Protein
enriched Beans.

d) Single Cell Protein (SCP):

 Single cell proteins can be produced from algae, fungi, yeasts and
bacteria.
 Some low-cost substrates are used to produce microbial biomass to
produce single cell proteins.
 SCP is rich in high quality protein and is low in fat content, hence it is a
desirable human food.
 SCP should also reduce the pressure on agricultural production systems
for the supply of proteins and it can reduce environmental pollution.
 For example, microbes like Spirulina can be grown easily on materials
like waste water from potato processing plants, straw, molasses, animal
manure and even sewage, to produce large quantities and can serve as
food rich in protein, minerals, fats, carbohydrate and vitamins.

d) Tissue Culture: Plant tissue culture refers to the maintenance and growth of
plant cells, tissues and organs on a suitable synthetic medium in vitro and the
whole plants could be regenerated from explants.

Explant: An explant is the plant part excised from a specific location in a plant,
to be used for initiating a culture.

In this tissue culture process, explant, i.e., any part of a plant is taken out and
grown in a test tube, under sterile conditions in special nutrient media. This
capacity to generate a whole plant from any cell / explant is called Totipotency.
This method of producing thousands of plants through tissue culture is called
Micropropagation. Each of these plants will be genetically identical to the
original plant from which they were grown i.e., they are somaclones.

Somatic Hybridisation / Somatic Hybrids: The first step in somatic

hybridization is to remove the cell wall by digesting it with enzymes like
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pectinase and cellulase.

Isolated protoplasts from two different varieties of plants – each having a

desirable character – can be fused to get hybrid protoplasts, which can be
further grown to form a new plant. These hybrids are called somatic hybrids
while the process is called somatic hybridization. For example, a protoplast of
tomato is fused with that of potato to form new hybrid plants combining tomato
and potato characteristics.

CHAPTER – 10 : MICROBES IN HUMAN WELFARE

Microbes in Household products:

 A common example is the production of curd from milk. Micro-

organisms such as Lactobacillus and others commonly called Lactic Acid
Bacteria (LAB) grow in milk and convert it to curd. During growth, the
LAB produces acids that coagulate and partially digest the milk proteins.
It also improves its nutritional quality by increasing vitamin B12. In our
stomach too, the LAB play very beneficial role in checking disease
causing microbes.
 The dough, which is used for making bread, is fermented by using
baker’s yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae).
 “Toddy”, a traditional drink of some parts of southern India is made by
fermenting sap from palms.
 Microbes are also used to ferment fish, soya bean and bamboo-shoots to
make foods. Cheese, is one of the oldest food items in which microbes
were used. The large holes in ‘Swiss cheese’ are due to production of a
large amount of CO2 by a bacterium named Propionibacterium
sharmanii. The ‘Roquefort cheese’ is ripened by growing a specific
fungus on them for a particular flavour.

Microbes in Industrial products:

Production on an industrial scale requires growing microbes in very
large vessels called Fermentors.

a) Fermented Beverages:
The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae used for bread making and
commonly called brewer’s yeast, is used for fermenting malted cereals and fruit
juices to produce ethanol. Wine and beer are produced without distillation
whereas whisky, brandy and rum are produced by distillation of the fermented
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broth.

b) Antibiotics:
Antibiotics are chemical substances, which are produced by some
microbes and can kill or retard the growth of other disease causing microbes.
Pencillin was the first antibiotic to be discovered and it was a chance
discovery. Alexander Fleming while working on Staphylococci bacteria, once
observed a mould growing in one of his unwashed culture plates around
which Staphylococci could not grow. He found out that it was due to a
chemical produced by the mould and he named it Pencillin after the
mould Pencillium notatum. Later, Ernest Chain and Howard Florey made its
full potential effective antibiotic.

c) Chemicals, Enzymes and other Bioactive Molecules:

 Aspergillus niger (fungus) – Citric acid

 Acetobacter aceti (bacterium) – Acetic acid
 Clostridium butylicum (bacterium) – Butyric acid
 Lactobacillus (bacterium) – Lactic acid
 Saccharomyces cerevisiae – Ethanol

Enzymes:

 Lipase – used in laundry detergents

 Pectinase and protease – used in bottled juices
 Streptokinase (Streptococcus bacterium) – used as clot buster (to remove
clots)

Bioactive molecules:

 Cyclosporin A (Trichoderma polysporum fungi) – used as

immunosuppressive agent (for organ transplant patients).
 Statins (Monascus purpureus yeast) – used as blood cholesterol lowering
agents.

Microbes in Sewage Treatment:

Treatment of waste waster is done by heterotrophic microbes
naturally present in the sewage. This treatment is carried out in two stages;
Primary treatment / Physical treatment: It involves physical removal
of particles from the sewage through filtration and sedimentation.
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 Sequential filtration – to remove floating debris

 Sedimentation – to remove grit (soil and small pebbles)

All solids that settle form the primary sludge, and the supernatant
forms the effluent. The effluent from the primary settling tank is taken for
secondary treatment.

Secondary treatment / Biological treatment:

 The primary effluent is passed into large aeration tanks, this allows
vigorous growth of aerobic microbes into flocs. While growing, these
microbes consume the major part of the organic matter in the
effluent. This significantly reduces the BOD (biochemical oxygen
demand) of the effluent. BOD is a measure of the organic matter present
in the water. The greater the BOD of waste water, more is its polluting
potential.
 Once the BOD of sewage water is reduced significantly, the effluent is
then passed into a settling tank where the bacterial ‘flocs’ are allowed to
sediment. This sediment is called Activated sludge.
 A small part of this sludge is pumped back into the aeration tank to serve
as the inoculum.
 The remaining major part of the sludge is pumped into large tanks called
anaerobic sludge digesters.
 During this digestion, bacteria produce a mixture of gases such as
methane, hydrogen sulphide and carbon dioxide. These gases form
biogas.
 The effluent from the secondary treatment plant is generally released into
natural water bodies like rivers and streams.

Microbes in Production of Biogas:

Biogas is mixture of gases produced by the microbial activity and
which may be used as fuel. Certain bacteria, which grow anaerobically on
cellulosic material, produce large amount of methane along with CO2 and
H2. These bacteria are collectively called Methanogens (Methanobacterium).

These bacteria are also present in the rumen of cattle. A lot of

cellulosic material present in the food of cattle is also present in the rumen. In
rumen, these bacteria help in the breakdown of cellulose and play an important
role in the nutrition of cattle. Thus, the excreta (dung) of cattle, commonly
called Gobar, is rich in these bacteria. Dung can be used for generation of
biogas commonly called gobar gas.
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Biogas Plant:

 The technology of biogas production was developed in India mainly due

to the efforts of Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI) and Khadi
and Village Industries Commission (KVIC).
 The biogas plant consists of a concrete tank in which bio-wastes are
collected and slurry of dung is fed.
 A floating cover is placed over the slurry, which keeps on rising as the
gas is produced in the tank due to the microbial activity.
 The biogas plant has an outlet, which is connected to a pipe to supply
biogas to nearby houses.
 The spent slurry is removed through another outlet and may be used as
fertilizer.
 The biogas thus produced is used for cooking and lighting.

Microbes as Biocontrol Agents:

Biological control of pests and diseases:

 Lady bird – to control aphids

 Dragon fly – to control mosquitoes
 Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt Cotton) – to control wide range insects
 Trichoderma (fungi) – protects root system and control plant pathogens.
 Baculoviruses (Nucleopolyhedrovirus) – to attack insects and other
arthropods.

Microbes as Biofertilisers: Biofertilizers are organisms that enrich the

nutrient quality of the soil. The main sources of biofertilisers are bacteria, fungi
and cyanobacteria.

Bacteria:

 Symbiosis – Rhizobium with root nodules of leguminous plants

 Free living (in the soil) – Azotobacter and Azospirillum.

Fungi:

 Symbiosis – Mycorrhiza with root system of genus Glomus and absorb

phosphorus and water from the soil for the plant growth.
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Cyanobacteria:

 Symbiosis – Anabaena in Azolla

 Free living – Nostoc, Oscillatoria and Blue green algae.

CHAPTER – 11 : BIOTECHNOLOGY : PRINCIPLES AND PROCESSES

 Biotechnology deals with techniques of using live organisms or enzymes

from organisms to produce products and processes useful to humans.

 The definition given by EFB (European Federation of Biotechnology) is

as follows; ‘The integration of natural science and organisms, cells, parts
thereof, and molecular analogues for products and services’.

Principles of Biotechnology:

 Genetic engineering: Techniques to alter the chemistry of genetic

material (DNA and RNA), to introduce these into host organisms and
thus change the phenotype of the host organism.
 Maintenance of sterile ambience in chemical engineering processes to
enable growth of only the desired microbe / eukaryotic cell in large
quantities for the manufacture of biotechnological products like
antibiotics, vaccines, enzymes, etc.

The techniques of genetic engineering which include creation of recombinant

DNA, use of gene cloning and gene transfer,helps to overcome the limitation of
undesired genes getting multiplied along with the desired genes in traditional
hybridisation techniques and allow us to isolate and introduce only one or a set
of desirable genes without introducing undesirable genes into the target
organism.

In a chromosome there is a specific DNA sequence called the origin of

replication, which is responsible for initiating replication. Therefore, for the
multiplication of any alien piece of DNA in an organism it needs to be a part of
a chromosome which has a specific sequence known as ‘origin of
replication’. Thus, an alien DNA is linked with the origin of replication, so that,
this alien piece of DNA can replicate and multiply itself in the host
organism. This is known as Cloning.
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The construction of the first recombinant DNA emerged from the possibility of
linking a gene encoding antibiotic resistance with a native Plasmid
ofSalmonella typhimurium.

The cutting of DNA at specific locations became possible with the discovery of
the so-called ‘Molecular scissors” – restriction enzymes. The cut piece of DNA
was then linked with the plasmid DNA with the help of another enzyme called
DNA ligase. These plasmid DNA act as vectors to transfer the piece of DNA
attached to it. A plasmid can be used as vector to deliver an alien piece of DNA
into the host organism.

“Recombinant DNA technology” or also called “Genetic Engineering” deals

about, the production of new combinations of genetic material (artificially) in
the laboratory. These “recombinant DNA” (rDNA) molecules are then
introduced into host cells, where they can be propagated and multiplied.

Basic steps in rDNA:

 Identification of DNA with desirable genes

 Introduction of the identified DNA into the host
 Maintenance of introduced DNA in the host and transfer of the DNA to
its progeny.

Tools of Recombinant DNA Technology:

Restriction Enzymes (Molecular Scissors):

Restriction enzymes belong to a larger class of enzymes called
Nucleases. There are of two kinds; Exonucleases and
Endonucleases. Exonucleases remove nucleotides from the ends of the DNA
whereas, endonucleases make cuts at specific position within the DNA.

Example, the first restriction endonuclease – Hind II, always cut DNA
molecules at a particular point by recognizing a specific sequence of six base
pairs. This specific base sequence is known as the Recognition Sequence for
Hind II.

Each restriction endonuclease recognizes a specific Palindromic Nucleotide

Sequences in the DNA.

What are Palindromes?

These are groups of letters that form the same words when read both forward
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and backward, eg. “MALAYALAM”. The palindrome in DNA is a sequence of

base pairs that reads same on the two strands when orientation of reading is kept
the same.

Restriction enzymes cut the strand of DNA a little away from the centre of the
palindrome sites, but between the same two bases on the opposite strands. This
leaves single stranded portions at the ends called Sticky ends. The same enzyme
cuts both DNA (vector and foreign DNAs) strands at the same site with sticky
ends and these can be joined together using DNA-ligase.

Separation and Isolation of DNA fragments (DNA of interest):

 The cutting of DNA by restriction endonucleases results in the fragments

of DNA.
 These fragments can be separated by a technique known as Gel
Electrophoresis.
 The DNA fragments are separated according to their size.
 The separated DNA fragments can be visualized only after staining the
DNA with Ethidium bromide followed by exposure to UV
radiation. Now DNA fragments appear bright orange coloured bands.
 The separated bands of DNA are cut out from the agarose gel and
extracted from the gel piece. This step is known as Elution.
 These DNA fragments are purified and used in constructing recombinant
DNA with cloning vector.

Cloning Vectors (Vehicles for Cloning):

Vector serves as a vehicle to carry a foreign DNA sequence into a given host
cell.

Salient features of a Vector:

 It should contain an origin of replication (ori) so that it is able to multiply

within the host cell.
 It should incorporate a selectable marker (antibiotic resistance gene),
which will allow to select those host cells that contain the vector from
amongst those which do not.
 The vector must also have atleast one unique restriction endonuclease
recognition site to enable foreign DNA to be inserted into the vector
during the generation of a recombinant DNA molecule.
 The vector should be relatively small in size.
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The most commonly used vectors are – Plasmids and Bacteriophages.

Identification of recombinants:

Insertional inactivation:
The most efficient method of screening for the presence of recombinant
plasmids is based on the principle that the cloned DNA fragment disrupts the
coding sequence of a gene. This is termed as Insertional Inactiviation.

For example, the powerful method of screening for the presence of recombinant
plasmids is referred to as Blue-White selection. This method is based upon the
insertional inactivation of the lac Z gene present on the vector. The lac Z gene
encodes the enzyme beta-galactosidase, which can cleave a chromogenic
substrate into a blue coloured product. If this lac Z gene is inactivated by
insertion of a target DNA fragment into it, the development of the blue colour
will be prevented and it gives white coloured colonies. By this way, we can
differentiate recombinant (white colour) and non-recombinant (blue colour)
colonies.
Competent Host (Introduction of recombinant DNA into host cells):
In rDNA technology, the most common method to introduce rDNA into living
cells is transformation, during which cells take up DNA from the surrounding
environment.
1) Simple chemical treatment with divalent calcium ions increases the
efficiency of host cells (through cell wall pores) to take up the rDNA plasmids.
2) rDNA can also be transformed into host cell by incubating both on ice,
followed by placing them briefly at 42oC (Heat Shock), and then putting them
back on ice. This enables the bacteria to take up the recombinant DNA.
3) In Microinjection method, rDNA is directly injected into the nucleus
of cells by using a glass micropipette.
4) Biolistics / Gene gun method, it has been developed to introduce rDNA
into mainly plant cells by using a Gene / Particle gun. In this method,
microscopic particles of gold / tungsten are coated with the DNA of interest and
bombarded onto cells.
5) The last method uses “Disarmed Pathogen” Vectors (Agrobacterium
tumefaciens), which when allowed to infect the cell, transfer the recombinant
DNA into the host.

Processes of Reombinant DNA Technology:

rDNA technology involves several steps in specific sequence such as,

 Isolation of DNA
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 Fragmentation of DNA by restriction endonucleases

 Isolation of desired DNA fragment
 Ligation of the DNA fragment into a vector
 Transferring the recombinant DNA into the host
 Culturing the host cells in a medium at large scale and extraction of the
desired product

Isolation of DNA:
DNA should be isolated in pure form, without macromolecules. Hence cell wall
can be broken down by treating the bacterial cells / plant or animal tissue with
enzymes such as Lysozyme (bacteria), cellulose (plant cells), chitinase (fungus).

DNA should be removed from its histones proteins and RNAs. This can be
achieved by using enzymes ribonuclease for RNA and Proteases for histone
proteins.

Finally purified DNA precipitates out after the addition of chilled Ethanol.
Fragmentation of DNA:

 Restriction enzyme digestions are performed by incubating purified DNA

molecules with the restriction enzyme.
 DNA is a negatively charged molecule, hence it moves towards the
positive electrode (anode).
 After having cut the source DNA as well as the vector DNA with a
specific restriction enzyme, the cut out gene of interest from the source
DNA and the cut vector with space are mixed and ligase is added. This
results in the preparation of recombinant DNA.

Amplification of Gene of Interest using PCR: PCR stands for Polymerase

Chain Reaction. In this reaction, multiple copies of the gene of interest is
synthesized in vitro using two sets of primers and the enzyme DNA polymerase.

The process of replication of DNA is repeated many times, the segment of DNA
can be amplified to approximately billion times. Such repeated amplification is
achieved by the use of a themostable DNA polymerase (Taq DNA Polymerase –
isolated from a bacterium, Thermus aquaticus). The amplified fragment if
desired can now be used to ligate with a vector for further cloning.

Insertion of Recombinant DNA into the Host Cell / Organism: There are
several methods of introducing the ligated DNA into recipient cells. If a
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recombinant DNA bearing gene for resistance to an antibiotic (ampicillin) is

transferred into E.coli cells, the host cells become transformed into ampicillin-
resistant cells. If we spread the transformed cells on agar plates containing
ampicillin, only transformants will grow, untransformed recipient cells will die.
The ampicillin resistance gene in this case is called a selectable marker.

Obtaining the Foreign Gene Product: The cells harbouring cloned genes of
interest may be grown on a small scale in the laboratory. The cultures may be
used for extracting the desired protein and then purifying it by using different
separation techniques.

Bioreactors : To produce in large quantities, the development of bioreactors,

where large volume of culture can be processed, was required. Thus,
bioreactors can be thought of as vessels in which raw materials are biologically
converted into specific products, individual enzymes, etc., using microbial
plant, animal or human cells. A bioreactor provides the optimal conditions for
achieving the desired product by providing optimum growth conditions
(temperature, pH, substrate, salts, vitamins, oxygen).

Stirred-tank reactor: It is usually cylindrical or with a curved base to facilitate

the mixing of the reactor contents. The stirrer facilitates even mixing and
oxygen availability throughout the bioreactor. Alternatively air can be bubbled
through the reactor. The bioreactor has an agitator system, an oxygen delivery
system and a foam control system, a temperature control system, pH control
system and sampling ports so that small volumes of the culture can be
withdrawn periodically.

Downstream Processing: The processes include separation and purification,

which are collectively referred to as downstream processing. Strict quality
control testing for each product is also required.

CHAPTER – 12 : BIOTECHNOLOGY AND ITS APPLICATIONS

The applications of biotechnology include therapeutics, diagnostics and

genetically modified crops for agriculture, processed food, bioremediation,
waste treatment, and energy production.

Three critical research areas of biotechnology are;

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 Providing the best catalyst in the form of improved organism usually a

microbe or pure enzyme.
 Creating optimal conditions through engineering for a catalyst to act, and
 Downstream processing technologies to purify the protein / organic
compound.

Biotechnological Applications in Agriculture:

The three options that can be thought for increasing food production are,

 Agro-chemical based agriculture

 Organic agriculture; and
 Genetically engineered crop-based agriculture.

The Green Revolution has succeeded in tripling the food supply but yet it was
not enough to feed the growing human population. Scientists have decided that
use of genetically modified crops is a possible solution.

Plants, bacteria, fungi and animals whose genes have been altered by
manipulation are called Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO). Genetic
modification has;

 Made crops more tolerant to abiotic stresses

 Reduced reliance on chemical pesticides
 Helped to reduce post harvest losses
 Increased efficiency of mineral usage by plants
 Enhanced nutritional value of food, eg., Vitamin ‘A’ enriched rice.

Bt Cotton:
Some strains of Bacillus thuringiensis produce a toxic insecticidal protein. The
Bt toxin protein exist as inactive protoxins but once an insect ingest the inactive
toxin, it is converted into an active form of toxin due to the alkaline pH of the
gut which solubilise the crystals. The activated toxin binds to the surface of
midgut epithelial cells and creates pores that cause cell swelling and lysis and
eventually cause death of the insect.

Bt toxin genes were isolated from B. thuringiensis and incorporated into the
several crop plants such as cotton. The toxin is coded by a gene named
‘cry’. There are a number of them, for example, the proteins encoded by the
genes cryIAc and cryIIAb control bollworms and cryIAb controls corn borer.
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Pest Resistant Plants: A nematode Meloidegyne incognitia infects the roots of

tobacco plants and causes a great reduction in yield. A novel strategy was
adopted to prevent this infestation which was based on the process of RNA
interference (RNAi). This method involves silencing of a specific mRNA due
to a complementary dsRNA molecule that binds to and prevents translation of
the mRNA (silencing).

Using Agrobacterium vectors, nematode-specific genes were introduced into the

host plant. The introduction of DNA was such that it produced both sense and
anti-sense RNA in the host cells. These two RNA’s being complementary to
each other formed a double stranded (ds DNA) that initiated RNAi and thus,
silenced the specific mRNA of the nematode. The consequence was that the
parasite could not survive in a transgenic host expressing specific interfering
RNA. The transgenic plant therefore got itself protected from the parasite.

Biotechnological Application in Medicine: The rDNA technological processes

have made immense impact in the area of healthcare by enabling mass
production of safe and more effective therapeutic drugs. At present, about 30
recombinant therapeutics have been approved for human use the world over. In
India, 12 of these are presently being marketed.

Genetically Engineered Insulin: Insulin consists of two short polypeptide

chains; chain A and chain B, that are linked together by disulphide bridges. In
mammals, including humans, insulin is synthesized as a prohormone, which
contains an extra stretch called the C peptide. This C peptide is not present in
the mature insulin and is removed during maturation into insulin.

In 1983, Eli Lilly an American company prepared two DNA sequences

corresponding to A and B, chains of human insulin and introduced hem in
plasmids of E.coli to produce insulin chains. Chains A and B were produced
separately, extracted and combined by creating disulfide bonds to form human
insulin.
Gene Therapy: Gene therapy is a collection of methods that allows correction
of a gene defect that has been diagnosed in a child / embryo. Correction of a
genetic defect involves delivery of a normal gene into the individual or embryo
to take over the function of and compensate for the non-functional gene.

The first clinical gene therapy was given in 1990 to a 4-year old girl with
adenosine deaminase (ADA) deficiency. This enzyme is crucial for the immune
system to function.

As a first step towards gene therapy, lymphocytes from the blood of the patient
are grown in a culture outside the body. A functional ADA cDNA is then
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introduced into these lymphocytes, which are subsequently returned to the

patient. However, if the gene isolate from marrow cells producing ADA is
introduced into cells at early embryonic stages, it could be a permanent cure.

Molecular Diagnosis:
Recombinant DNA technology, Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) and Enzyme
Linked Immuno-sorbent Assay (ELISA) are some of the techniques that serve
the purpose of early diagnosis.

PCR:
A very low concentration of a bacteria or virus can be detected by amplification
of their nucleic acid by PCR. PCR is now routinely used to detect HIV in
suspected AIDS patients. It is being used to detect mutations in genes in
suspected cancer patients too.

ELISA:
It is based on the principle of antigen-antibody interaction. Infection by
pathogen can be detected by presence of antigens or by detecting the antibodies
synthesized against the pathogen.

Transgenic Animals:
Animals that have their DNA manipulated to possess and express an extra
(foreign) gene are known as Transgenic Animals.

Reasons for the production of transgenic animals:

a) Normal physiology and development: Transgenic animals can be
specifically designed to allow the study of how genes are regulated and how
they affect the normal functions of the body and its development.
b) Study of disease: Many transgenic animals are designed to increase our
understanding of how genes contribute to the development of disease, so that
investigation of new treatments for diseases is made possible.
c) Biological products: Transgenic animals that produce useful biological
products can be created by the introduction of the portion of DNA (gene) which
codes for a particular product such as human protein (alpha – 1-antitrypsin)
used to treat emphysema. The first transgenic cow, Rosie, produced human
protein-enriched milk (alpha-lactalbumin - 2.4 gm / litre).
d) Vaccine safety: Transgenic mice are being developed for use in testing
the safety of vaccines before they are used on humans (polio vaccine).
e) Chemical safety testing: Transgenic animals are made that carry genes
which make them more sensitive to toxic substances than non-transgenic
animals. They are then exposed to the toxic substances and the effects studied.

Ethical Issues:
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The Indian Government has set up organizations such as GEAC (Genetic

Engineering Approval Committee), which will make decisions regarding the
validity of GM research and the safety of introducing GM-organisms for public
services.

Biopatent:
A patent is the right granted by a government to an inventor to prevent others
from making commercial use of his invention. Now, patents are granted for
biological entities and for products derived from biological resources.

Biopiracy:
It is the term used to refer to the use of bio-resources by multinational
companies and other organizations without proper authorization from the
countries and people concerned without compensatory payment.

In 1997, an American company got patent rights on Basmati rice through the
US Patent and Trademark Office. This allowed the company to sell a ‘new
variety of Basmati, in the US and abroad. This ‘new’ variety of Basmati had
actually been derived from Indian farmer’s varieties. Indian Basmati was
crossed with semi-dwarf varieties and claimed as an invention or a novelty.

Several attempts have also been made to patent uses, products and processes
based on Indian traditional herbal medicines, e.g., turmeric and neem.

CHAPTER 13 – ORGANISMS AND POPULATIONS

ECOLOGY:Branch of Science which deals with relationship between

organisms & their physical & biological environment.

LEVELS OF ORGANISATION:
• Organisms- every individual of a species
• Population- individuals of the same species at a given place
• Communities- assembly of population of all different species living in an
area and interacting.
• Biomes- large unit of flora and fauna in a specific climatic zone

ENVIRONMENT
Sum of all biotic and abiotic factors that surround and influence an organism in
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it’s survival and reproduction.

Factors affecting environment:

• Rotation of earth
• Seasonal and annual variation in temperature and precipitation
• Habitats

MAJOR BIOMES
1. Artic & Alpine Tundra
2. Coniferous Forest
3. Temperate Forests
4. Grassland
5. Tropical Forest
6. Desert

MAJOR ABIOTIC FACTORS

• Temperature
• Water
• Light
• Soil
Temperature
• Ecologically most imp. Factor
• Decreases progressively from equator towards pole and from plane to
mountain tops
• Polar Region and high altitudes- sub zero level Tropical deserts > 50°C
• Organisms survive only in suitable range of temperature
• Based on tolerance to temperature

- Eurythermal
Organisms that tolerate wide range of temperature
- Stenothermal
Organisms that tolerate only narrow range of temperature

Water
• Life on earth originated in water
• Productivity and distribution of plants depends on water

Based on tolerance to salinity

- Euryhaline
Organisms that can tolerate wide range of salinity
- Stenohaline
Organisms that can only tolerate narrow range of salinity
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• Freshwater animals cannot live in sea water and vice versa because of
osmotic problems.

Light
• sunlight source of energy- photosynthesis
• Small plants (canopied by tall plants) adapted to photosynthesize at low
light conditions.
• Flowering dependent on sunlight
• Foraging, Reproductive and migratory activities of animals depend on
seasonal variation in light intensity
• UV component – harmful to organisms

Soil
Nature of soil depends on
I. climate
II. weathering process
III. sedimentary or transported
IV. soil development

Characteristics of soil
a. soil composition
b. grain size
c. aggregation- determine percolation and water holding capacity of soil

RESPONSES TO ABIOTIC FACTORS

Homeostasis: The ability of an organism to maintain the constancy of its
internal environment despite varying external environmental conditions.

Q: How does Homeostasis occur?

1. Regulate: maintain homeostasis by ensuring constant body temp

(thermoregulation), and constant osmotic concentration (osmoregulation).
Examples – mammals regulate temperature by shivering in cold and sweating
in heat
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2. Conform: internal environment of conformers changes with external

environment

Q:Why small animals are rarely found in polar regions?

A: Small animals have large surface area compared to volume so they lose heat
easily in cold and have to expend energy to generate body heat.

But, if stressful external conditions are localized or remain for short duration,
then alternatives are migrate / suspend.

3. Migrate: Move from stressful habitat temporarily to hospitable area and

return when stressful period over.

E.g.- Migration of birds to Keolado National Park, Rajasthan from Siberia

4. Suspend: Organisms develop mechanisms to deal with stressful situation

Examples- Spores (bacteria and fungi)

- Seeds (angiosperms)- dormancy

- Hibernation (Bears)
- Aestivation ( snails)
- Diapause (stage of suspended development) in zoo plankton

Adaptation

Any ability of an organism that enables an organism to survive and reproduce in

its habitat
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ADAPTATIONS IN ORGANISMS

1. Kangaroo rat: internal fat oxidation to produce water as by product-

concentrated urine
2.Desert plants: thick cuticle, stomata in deep pits to minimize transpiration and
special photosynthetic pathway (CAM). Ex. OPUNTIA - leaves reduced to
spines, photosynthetic stems
3. Cold climate mammals: short ears and limbs to minimize heat loss. This is
Allen’s Rule.
4. People living at high altitude: increased RBC production and increased
breathing rate
5. Desert lizards: bask in sun when cold and move to shade when hot.

POPULATION

Group of individuals living in a well defined area which share or compete for
similar resources and potentially interbreed

Example: Lotus plants in a pond

Bacteria in a culture plate

Population ecology is therefore, an imp. area of ecology because it links

ecology to population genetics and evolution

POPULATION ATTRIBUTES

1.Birth rate- Average no. of young ones born in a period of time with
reference to the members of the population.
2. Death rates- Average no. of deaths in a period of time with reference to the
members of the population.
3.Sex Ratio- No. of females and males per 1000 individuals
4. Age pyramid: Plot of age distribution (% individuals of a given age or age
group)

It reflects whether growth is

(i) Expanding
(ii) Stable
(iii) Declining
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POPULATION DENSITY:
Number of individuals present per unit area at a given time.

POPULATION GROWTH
Factors affecting change in population density

1. Food availability
2. Predation pressure
3. Weather

Density changes by change in four basic processes

(a) Natality - Increase population
(b) Immigration - Increase population
(c) Mortality - Decrease population
(d) Emigration - Decrease population

1.Natality (B) : Number of births during given period in the population that are
added to the initial density
2.Mortality (D) : Number of deaths in the population during a given period.
3.Emigration (E) : Number of individuals of the population who left the habitat
and went elsewhere during the given period
4. Immigration (I) : Number of individuals of the same species that have come
into the habitat from elsewhere during the time under consideration.

 If N is the population density at time ‘t’, then its density at time ‘t+1’
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Nt+1 = Nt + [(B + I) – (D + E)]

 Population density will increase if (B+I) > (D+E)

GROWTH MODELS

 EXPONENTIAL
 LOGISTIC

EXPONENTIAL GROWTH

• When resources are unlimited, each species realizes its innate potential
to grow in no. – population grows exponentially
• N – Population size
b – Birth rates( per capita births)
d – Death rates (per capita deaths
dN/dt – increase/decrease in N during time t

Then, dN/dt = (b – d)*N

Let (b – d) = r, then
dN/dt = r*N
Where, r – intrinsic rate of natural increase
For human population in 1981, r = 0.0205

Integral form of exponential growth eq.

Nt = N0ert

Where Nt = Population density after t

N0 =Initial population density
r = Intrinsic rate of natural increase
e = base of natural logarithms

• Species growing exponentially under unlimited resources reaches

enormous population density in short time.

LOGISTIC GROWTH
• No population has unlimited resources-leads to competition for
resources
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• Fittest individual survive and reproduce

• Carrying capacity (K)- Maximum population density a habitat’s
resources can support
• When a population has limited resources it shows

1. lag phase
2. phase of acceleration
3. asympote- population density = K

Verhulst Pearl Logistic Growth

dN/dt = rN [(K – N)/K]

Where N = Population density at time t

r = Intrinsic rate of natural increase
K = Carrying capacity

• As resources for most organisms are finite logistic growth more realistic

LIFE HISTORY VARIATIONS

• Darwinian fitness – Reproductive fitness

• Organisms adopt most efficient reproductive strategy suited to their
habitat

Examples:

1. Breed once in lifetime – pacific salmon fish ,Bamboo

2. Breed many times in life time – birds, mammals
3. Produce large no. of small sized offspring - Oysters, pelagic fishes
4. Produce small no. of large sized offspring - birds, mammals
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Ecologists say life history traits depend on constraints of biotic and abiotic parts

Population Interactions

Minimum requirement of species- one more species to feed on.

Interspecific interactions - Interactions of populations of two different species.

Types of Interactions:

Name of Interaction Species A Species B

Mutualism + +
Competition - -
Predation + -
Parasitism + -
Commensalism + 0
Ammensalism - 0

+ Positive effect - Detrimental effect 0 Neutral

effect

PREDATION

It is an Interspecific Interaction where one animal kills and consumes the other
weaker animal.

Roles of Predators

 Transfer energy from plants to higher trophic levels (position of organism

in food chain)
 Control Prey population – Prickly pear cactus- moth
 Biological control of Agricultural pest
 Maintain species diversity by reducing intensity of competition among
competing prey species

Q: Why predators are prudent?

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A: Over exploitation of prey by the predators results in extinction of prey and

predator.

Defense to lessen impact of predation

 Insects and frog – camouflage

 Monarch butterfly – poisonous

PLANTS MORPHOLOGICAL AND CHEMICAL DEFENCES

 Thorns- cactus and Acacia

 Produce and store chemical – Calotropis
 Nicotine, Caffeine, Quinin, Strychnine, opium – against grazers &
browsers

COMPETITION
Interaction either among individuals of same species or between individuals of
different species.

Occurs among closely related species but not always true

1. Unrelated species also compete- flamingo & fish compete for zooplankton
2. Feeding efficiency of a species reduce due to other species even if resources
are plenty – Abingdon tortoise.

Evidence for competition

Competitive release – species distribution restricted to small areas due to
competitively superior species.

GAUSE’S COMPETITION EXCLUSION PRINCIPLE

“Two closely related species competing for same resources cannot coexist as
the competitively inferior one will be eliminated.”

Resource partition- Two competing species avoid competition by diff. feeding

and foraging patterns-Mc Arthur (warblers foraging activities)

PARASITISM
It is the interaction where one species (parasite) depends on the other species
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(host) for food and shelter, host is harmed.

 Parasites and host self-evolve.

 Adaptations of parasites

- Loss of unnecessary sense organs

- Hooks and sucker
- Loss of digestive system
- High Reproductive capacity

 Parasites-

(i) Reduce the survival of host

(ii) Growth and reproductive rate are reduced
(iii) Render the host vulnerable to its predators by making them weak

Types of parasite

ECTOPARASITES-depend on external surface of host

Example - head lice on humans, ticks on dogs

ENDOPARASITES-take shelter within the body of the host organism

Example - Liverfluke, Plasmodium

MUTUALISM
It is interaction in which both the interacting species are benefited

Examples
1. Lichen – fungi and algae
2. Mycorrhizae - fungi and roots of higher plants
3. Pollination of plants by insects
4. Mediterranean orchid- sexual deceit for pollination- appears as female bee

AMENSALISM
Interaction between two different species, in which one species is harmed and
the other species is neither harmed nor benefited. Example. Bacterial culture,
after few days fungus growth will be there on it like Pencillium, and its
secretions of chemical will kill bacteria, but no benefits to fungi.
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CHAPTER – 14 : ECOSYSTEM

British ecologist Arthur Tansley first defined the term Ecosystem.

ECOSYSTEM :- the functional unit of nature, where living organisms interact

among themselves and with the surrounding physical environment.

Types of Ecosystems:
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New Species Discovered in Different Ecosystems:

· Pinocchio: long nosed frog found in Indonesia
· Bald headed parrot in Amazon
· Yeti Crab (Kiwa hirsuta) near Easter islands.

Structure of Ecosystems
An Ecosystem has two components:
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· Biotic components and

· Abiotic components
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Stratification:

This is the Vertical Distribution of Different Species occupying Different

Levels.

The levels are called STRATA.

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Aspects Affecting the Functioning of an Ecosystem are:

1. PRODUCTIVITY
The rate of synthesis of organic matter (biomass) during a given period of time.
It is measured as weight (g-2) or as energy (kcal m-2). It is used to compare
productivity of different ecosystems.

 Primary productivity:

It is the amount of biomass produced per unit area in a given time period by
Plants during Photosynthesis.
GPP – R = NPP
*GPP-Gross Primary Productivity *NPP-Net Primary Productivity

 Secondary productivity

It is the amount of biomass produced at any of the Consumer levels in a given

period of time.

2. DECOMPOSITION

It is the process of breaking down of dead organic matter into smaller organic
molecules and inorganic molecules by Decomposers (bacteria, fungi)

DETRITUS: Dead remains of plants and animals is called detritus.

DETRITIVORES: Animals that feed on decaying organic matter (detritus).

Examples: earthworms, termites, snails etc

Mechanism of Decomposition:

1. Fragmentation of Detritus: Detritivores feed on detritus ---breakdown ---

increases the surface area of detritus particles for microbial action.
2. Leaching: Soluble inorganic nutrients dissolve in water -– percolate
through the soil ---removed due to leaching action.
3. Catabolism: Decomposers (bacteria, fungi) release enzymes ---
decompose detritus --- simpler inorganic compounds.
4. Humification: Simplified detritus--- converted to HUMUS
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- Humus is a Dark, Amorphous substance.

- Highly resistant to Microbial Action
- Undergoes Decomposition very Slowly.
- Reservoir of nutrients (due to colloidal nature)

5. Mineralisation: Humus is degraded – releases inorganic substances

( CO2, H2O etc) and nutrients (Ca2+, Mg2+,K+ etc)

Factors affecting rate of Decomposition:

o Chemical composition - decomposition rate will be slow when

detritus is rich in lignin and chitin and rate increases when detritus
is rich in nitrogen and water soluble substances like sugsrs.
o Climatic conditions – warm and moist environment favour
decomposition and low temperature and anaerobiosis inhibit
decomposition.

3. ENERGY FLOW
► SUN- Main Source of energy
► 50% of incident light is PHOTOSYNTHETICALLY
ACTIVE RADIATION (PAR)
► 2- 10 % of PAR is captured by plants.
► Only a small fraction of this (stored as organic compounds) is transferred
to consumers; the rest is used up in respiration and other life-supporting
activities of the plants.
► As energy is transferred as food, most part is lost as heat at each stage
(10% LAW)

Unidirectional flow of Energy:

Sun -> Producers -> Consumers

Transfer of energy / food from the producer through a series of organisms is

known as FOOD CHAINS.

FOOD CHAINS

 Food chains represent energy flow through ecosystems.

 Different steps in a food chain are TROPHIC LEVELS
 Basic terms:
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Producers, Herbivores, Carnivores, Omnivores.

1.GRAZING FOOD CHAIN (GFC)

 Primary source of energy - Solar radiations.

 First trophic level includes - All Herbivores.
 -GFCs are Long-sized chains

2) DETRITUS FOOD CHAIN (DFC)

· Primary source of energy is Detritus.
· First trophic level includes Detritivores.
· Detritus Food Chains are small-sized chains.

SAPROPHYTES:These include decomposers (fungi, bacteria) which feed on

detritus.

FOOD WEBS
• The Natural Interconnection of Several Food Chains forms a FOOD
WEB.
• Provides alternate pathways for food availability.
• Unlike food chains, food webs are never straight.
• Help in ecosystem development and stability.

TEN PERCENT LAW:

Ø By Lindemann in 1942

Ø States that : during transfer of energy from one trophic level to another, only
about 10% is stored at higher levels; remaining 90% is lost in respiration (heat)

4. ECOLOGICAL PYRAMIDS

 Developed by Charles Elton in 1927.

 Pyramids are an expression of the relationship between organisms at
different trophic levels in terms of their number, biomass or energy.
 Three types of pyramids:

1. Pyramid of Number
2. Pyramid of Biomass
3. Pyramid of energy
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1. Pyramid of Number: The relationship between producers and

consumers in an ecosystem can be represented in the form of a pyramid
in terms of number called pyramid of number.
2. Pyramid of Biomass: The relationship between producers and
consumers in an ecosystem can be represented in the form of a pyramid
in terms of biomass called pyramid of biomass. It can be of two types:

a) Upright (in case of grassland ecosystem)

b) Inverted (in case of pond ecosystem)

3. Pyramid of energy: The relationship between producers and consumers in

an ecosystem can be represented in the form of a pyramid in terms of flow of
energy called pyramid of energy. It is always upright.
Learn more from your teachers in class along with diagram

Limitations of Ecological Pyramids:

 ž It does NOT consider the same species belonging to two or more

trophic levels.
 ž It is based on simple food chains, which hardly exist. It does NOT
accommodate food webs.
 ž Saprophytes (decomposers) are NOT given any place in the
ecosystem.

Climax Community:

 Changes that lead finally to a community that is in near equilibrium with

the environment.
 It remains stable as long as the environment remains unchanged.

The Rainforest is an example of climax community ecosystem.

Ecological Succession:
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 Refers to predictable and orderly change in the composition or structure

of a community.
 May be initiated either by formation of new, unoccupied habitat or by
some form of disturbance of an existing community.
 Sere – entire sequence of community that successively change in a given
area.
o Seral stages – individual transitional communities.

Seral Communities:

Hydrosere - Community in freshwater

Lithosere - Community on rock
Pssamosere - Community on sand
Halosere - Community in saline body
Xerosere - Community in dry area
Primary Succession

 If the development begins on an area that has not been previously

occupied by a community.
 Pioneer species – lichens, phytoplankton, etc.
 Examples:

- newly exposed rock or sand surface

- a lava flow
- glacial tills
- newly formed lake,

Secondary Succession

 If the community development is proceeding in an area from which a

community was removed.
 Pioneer species – grasses, wildflowers, algae.
 Examples:

- an abandoned crop field

- cut-over forest
- natural forces such as wind storms and floods

Succession in Plants:
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Hydrarch succession

 It takes place in wetter areas and the successional series progress from
hydric to the mesic conditions.

Phytoplankton in pond -> Submerged plant stage-> Submerged free floating

plant stage -> Reed – swamp stage -> Marsh – meadow stage – scrub stage ->
Forest

Xerarch succession

 It takes place in dry areas and the series progress from xeric to mesic
condition.

Bare rock -> Lichens and mosses -> Annual grasses -> Perennial grasses ->
Shrubs -> Tall Trees

The Nutrient Cycle

 Also known as biogeochemical cycle.

 Environmental factors like soil, moisture, temperature, etc. regulate the
rate of release of nutrients into the atmosphere.
 Standing state – amount of nutrients, such as C, N, P, Ca, etc. present in
the soil at any given time.
 Nutrients are never lost from the ecosystem; they are recycled time an
again indefinitely.
 There are two types:

- Gaseous cycle
- Sedimentary cycle
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Ecosystem Services

 Humankind benefits from a multitude of resources and processes that are

supplied by natural ecosystems. Collectively, these benefits are known as
ecosystem services.

1. Purify air and water

2. Decomposition of waste materials
3. Cycle nutrients
4. Pollinate crops
5. Maintain biodiversity

 Researchers have put an average price tag of US $33 trillion a year on

these fundamental ecosystems services, which is largely taken for granted
because they are free.

CHAPTER 15 – BIODIVERSITY & CONSERVATION

• Definition- Biodiversity can be defined as the totality of genes, species and
ecosystems of a given region.
• This term was coined by EDWARD WILSON
• Diversity ranges from macromolecules to biomes.
• Biodiversity can be studied at-
1. Genetic diversity
2. Species diversity
3. Ecological/Ecosystem diversity

1. GENETIC DIVERSITY
• Greater the genetic diversity among organisms of a species, more
sustenance it has against environmental perturbations.
• Genetically uniform populations are highly prone to disease harsh
environment.
• Rauwolfia vomitoria shows genetic variation in terms of concentration and
potency of chemical reserpine
• There are more than 50,000 varieties of rice and nearly 1000 varieties of
mangoes.

2. SPECIES DIVERSITY

Important measures-
1. Species richness: It refers to the number of species per unit area.
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2. Species Evenness: It refers to the relative abundance with which each

species is represented in an area.

• The variety and number of individuals determine the level of diversity of

an ecosystem.
• The Western Ghats have a greater diversity of amphibian species than the
Eastern Ghats.

3. ECOLOGICAL DIVERSITY
• Ecological Diversity is related to species diversity.
• India has greater ecosystem diversity than any other Scandinavian country.
• India has several biomes like alpine meadows, rain forests, deserts,
wetlands, mangroves…etc..
GLOBAL BIODIVERSITY

 According to the IUCN(2004) the total number of plant and animal

species is about 1.5 million.
 More than 70% of the species recorded are animals and plants account for
about 22%; 70% of the animals are insects.
 A more conservative and scientifically sound estimate has been made by
Robert May ; it puts the global species diversity at about seven million.
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These estimates do not give any figure for prokaryotes for the following
reasons:

1.The conventional taxonomic methods are not sufficient for identifying these
microbial species
2. Many of these species cannot be cultured under laboratory conditions.
3. Biochemical and molecular biology techniques would put their diversity into
millions.

BIODIVERSITY IN INDIA
• India is one of the twelve mega biodiversity countries of the world.
• India has only 2.4% of the land area of the world, it has 8.1% of the global
species biodiversity.
• There are about 45,000 species of plants and about 90,000-1,00,000
species of animals.
• New species are yet to be discovered and named.
• Applying Robert May’s global estimate, only 22% of the total species have
been recorded, India has probably more than 1,00,000 species of plants and
3,00,000 species of animals to be discovered and described.

PATTERNS OF BIODIVERSITY
• Biodiversity is not uniform throughout the world but varies with latitude
and altitude.
• Favourable environmental conditions favour speciation and make it
possible for a larger number of species to exist there , i.e., biodiversity is more
in such areas than the others.

1.Latitudinal Gradients

 Species diversity decreased from equator towards poles.

 The tropics harbor more species than temperate and polar regions.
 Example- Colombia (near equator) has 1400 species of birds whereas
New York(41° N) has 105 species, Greenland(71 ° N) has 56 species and
India(equator region) has 1200 species.

VARIATION OF SPECIES WITH LATITUDE

• The number of species of vascular plants in tropics is about ten times more
than that of temperate forests.
• Amazonian Rainforest has the greatest biodiversity on earth. It has more
than 40000 species of plants, 1,25,000 species of insects, 300 species of fish,
427 of amphibian and 378 of reptiles, 1300 species of birds and 427 of
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mammals.

2.Species-Area Relationship
• Alexander Von Humboldt has observed that within a region, species
richness gets increased when explored area is increased, but only up to a limit.
• The relationship between species richness and area for a number of taxa
like angiospermic plants, fresh water fishes and birds is found to be a
rectangular hyperbola.

Graph showing Species-Area Relationship

The equation is described by –

log S = log C + Z log A

S – Species Richness
Z – Slope of the line (regression coefficient)
A – Area
C – y-intercept

• Ecologists have found that Z value ranges between 0.1 & 0.2 irrespective
of the taxonomic group or the region.
• In very large area like continents, Z value ranges between 0.6 & 1.2.

IMPORTANCE OF SPECIES DIVERSITY TO ECOSYSTEM

• Ecologists believe that communities with more species tend to be more
stable than those with less species.

Attributes of a stable community-

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1. It shall not show too much of variations in the year-to-year productivity.

2. It must be either resistant or resilient to seasonal disturbances.
3. It must be resistant also to alien species.

Feature of David Tilman’s ecology experiments-

1. The plots with more species showed less year-to-year variation in the total
biomass.
2. Plots with increased diversity showed higher productivity.

Hence, we realize that species richness and diversity are essential for
ecosystem health as well as survival of human race on earth.

LOSS OF BIO-DIVERSITY :
• Caused by Population, Urbanisation and Industrialisation.
• The colonisation of tropical Pacific Islands by human has led to the
extinction of more than 2000 species of native birds.
• 15,500 species are facing the threat all around.
• At now 31% gymnosperms,32%amphibians,12% bird species and 23% of
mammals face the threat.
• Loss of bio-diversity in a region leads to :
(1) decrease in plant production.
(2) less resistance to environmental disturbances such as droughts.
(3) increases variability in ecosystem processes like plant productivity,
water use, pest
and disease cycles etc.

CAUSES OF BIODIVERSITY LOSSES.

1. Habitat loss and fragmentation

2. Over-exploitation
3. Alien species invasion
4. Co-extinction

I. HABITAT LOSS AND FRAGMENTATION

• Destruction of habitat is the primary cause of extinction of species.
• The tropical rainforests initially covered 14% of land but now only 6%.
• The Amazon rain forest is also called ‘‘The lungs of the planet’’.
• When large sized habitats are broken or fragmented due to human
settlements, buildings of roads, digging of canals etc.., animals requiring large
territories and some animals with migratory habitats are badly affected.
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ll. OVER-EXPLOITATION
• When biological system is over exploited by man for the natural resources
,it results in degradation and extinction of the resources , e.g Steller’s sea cow,
passenger pigeon etc.

III. ALIEN SPECIES INVASIONS.

• Some alien invasion has become invasive and causes maximum harmful
impact and the extinction of the indigenous species.
• Introduction of African catfish for aquaculture purposes is posing a threat
to the existing species of catfishes of Indian rivers.

IV. CO-EXTINCTIONS
• When a species become extinct, the plant and animal species associated
with it in an obligatory manner, also become extinct.
• For example, if the host fish species becomes extinct, all those parasites
exclusively found on it will also become extinct.

Recent extinctions
· Quagga, Africa
· The Dodo Bird, Mauritius
· Thylanine ,Australia
· Steller’s sea cow.
· Dugong resembling the steller’s sea cow

BIO-DIVERSITY CONSERVATION

1. Narrowly utilitarian
• Humans derive a number of economic benefits from nature like food,
firewood, fibres, medicines and more…
• More than 25% of the drugs are derived from plants and more than 25,000
species of plants are used by natives for medicine.

2. Broadly utilitarian
• Biodiversity plays an important role in maintaining and sustaining supply
of goods and services.
• Amazon forest contributes 20% of the total oxygen in the atmosphere on
earth.
• Pollination of plants by providing pollinators, layer bee, birds and bats etc..

Ethical
• There are thousands of plants, animals and microbes on this earth which
are not useless.
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• Each one has some intrinsic value even if it is not of any economic value
to us.
• It is therefore our moral duty to ensure well-being of all the living
creatures for the utilization.

CONSERVATION OF BIODIVERSITY
There are two basic approaches towards conservation of bio diversity:

 In situ conservation
 Ex situ conservation

I. In situ conservation:

a) Biosphere reserves: Out of 425 biosphere reserves in the world, 14 are in

India. Hot spots are the areas / regions of high endemism and very high levels
of species richness. There are 34 hot spots in the world, of which three are in
India; namely Western Ghats and Sri Lanka, Indo-Burma and Himalaya.

b) National parks and wildlife sanctuaries: India has 90 nationals parks and 448
wildlife sanctuaries.
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c) Sacred groves: These are forest patches which were venerated and given total
protection. It includes a number of rare, endangered and endemic species. Ex.
Western Ghats, Khasi and Jaintia Hills in Meghalaya.

II. Ex situ conservation: India has 35 botanical gardens and 275 zoological
parks. By using Cryopreservation (-196o C) technique, sperms, eggs, animal
cells, tissues and embryos can be stored for long period. Plants
are propagated by using tissue culture methods called micropropagation.

CONVENTIONS ON BIODIVERSITY

• The Earth Summit-Rio de Janeiro, 1992.

• The World Summit, South Africa 2002.

In the Summit, 190 countries pledged to reduce the current rate of

biodiversity loss at global, regional and local levels by 2010.

CHAPTER 16 – ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

Human population is increasing tremendously; therefore there is a lot of
demand for food, electricity, clothing, roads, housing, vehicles etc. These are
exerting a lot of pressure on land, water, air and other resources. This leads to
pollution and degradation of the environment and biodiversity that is a part of it.

Pollution
Pollution is any undesirable change in physical, chemical or biological
composition of air, water and land, and the agents that cause these are called
pollutants.

Air pollution
It’s the increase in amount of particles in the air, especially particles smaller
than 2.5um such as CO, NO, lead, arsenic, cyanide CFCs ammonia etc., that
cause respiratory diseases, lung cancer, Tuberculosis, lack of O2 to the brain
and premature deaths.

CAUSES:
Use of vehicles is the main cause of air pollution due to release of harmful
gases. Use of petrol & coal in industries and cigarette smoking also contribute
to air pollution. Improper disposal of domestic & industrial wastes led to the
release of methane.

Smog: Mixture of air pollutants (like arsenic, lead, NO, CO etc), dust & fog is
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called smog and is deadly to the body as it results in deposition of dry mucus in
the alveoli of lungs, tuberculosis, lung cancer, aging, premature death etc

Health fact: Studies show that living in cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Banglore,
Kolkata and many others is equal to smoking an average of 20 cigarettes a day
and this problem is fast increasing.

Ways we can help reduce air pollution and global warming:

• Reducing the use of vehicles for travelling short distances & carpooling.
• Use of hydrogen power in cars & machines or Hybrid cars.
• By planting trees across town or growing plants in our homes.
• Use of Electrostatic precipitators, Bag houses, Particulate scrubbers.
• Use of magnetic trains.
• Upgrading industries, factories & aircraft with better engines & turbines
• Use of renewable sources of energy such as wind, water, solar &
infrared, geothermal, tidal etc
• Carbon credits are the most effective way of reducing carbon footprint.
These credits can be sold to companies or individuals for cash and at the same
time reduce CO2 production.
• An electrostatic precipitator is a particulate removing device that
removes particles such as dust, smoke etc from air using force of an electrostatic
charge. They are highly effective & consume very less energy for their use.
• In particulate scrubbers, the polluted gas is passed through a layer of
scrubbing liquid, or forced through a pool of liquid. These are highly effective
in the removal of pollutants from the gas. But these scrubbers have a high
chance of corrosion as the toxic gases removed are highly acidic & these
scrubbers require large amount of power. Also it is hard to dispose of the waste
– water.

Laws passed by some countries to control Air Pollution:

• Environmental Protection Act (1990)_Environment Act (1995)_British
Clean Air Act (1956)~UK
• Air Pollution Control Act (1955)_Clean Air Act (1963,1970,1990)~US
• Air Act (1981)_Environment Act (1986)~India
• Environmental Promotion Act (1994)_Environmental Compatibility Act
(1994)~Austria

Water pollution:
• It’s the pollution of water bodies with substances like domestic
wastes, industrial, thermal, mineral, toxic, nitrogen & phosphorous rich wastes.
The nutrient rich wastes multiply the algae concentration in the water bodies &
this leads of depletion of oxygen in these bodies & hence leads to the death of
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fish and other biodiversity in the area.

It’s harmful effects include:
• Biomagnification: It is increase in the toxicity among the food chain at
successive trophic levels. This phenomenon is well known with mercury and
DDT.
• Accelerated Eutrophication: Eutrophication is the aging of a lake to
convert into land, which generally takes 1000s of years or more. But human
activities have accelerated this natural process & as a result many lakes are
already extinct. It is caused due to dumping of nutrient rich and thermal waste
into lakes.
• Death of biodiversity living near the polluted water bodies, accelerated
global warming & extinction of many species.

DDT reduces fat levels, it is an endocrine disruptor, causes cancer, causes

developmental and reproductive toxicity, causes parkinsons & asthma &
thinning of eggshells.

India has the most polluted rivers in the world. The excuse of religion &
spirituality has been the main reason for their degradation.

BOD : Biochemical Oxygen Demand for various organisms.

BOD is the amount of oxygen required by the biodegradable material & the
organic matter living in a certain water body like lake or pond.

Invasive plant water hyacinth: It is used to control and remove BOD,

suspended solids, nutrients (phosphorous, nitrogen), heavy metals &
organochlorides from water bodies that have been polluted with mineral,
industrial & chemical wastes. Water Hyacinth Scrubbers manage and optimize
water hyacinth’s natural capability to extract nutrient pollutants to ensure
sustainability and increased treatment performance. But if their growth is
unchecked then it spreads across water bodies quickly. In India it is also
called ‘Terror of Bengal’.

It is necessary to control water pollution as it leads to diseases like jaundice,

cholera, typhoid, dysentery, dengue, malaria etc many of which are very hard to
cure.

• The waste water should be treated before dumping in rivers and lakes.
• Domestic waste water can be mildly treated and used for irrigation.
• Planting of trees to reduce acid rain & pollution of ground water.
• Rainwater harvesting to conserve water and reduce wastage of fresh
water.
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• Prevention/control of use of rivers for purposes related to religious

ceremonies.
• Use of dry composting toilets that do not require water, also the human
waste collected can be used as a good natural fertilizer.

Some important actions taken by governments to reduce pollution of water

bodies:

• The International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships,

1973, as modified by the Protocol of 1978.
• International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and
Cooperation, 1990.
• International Convention on Liability and Compensation for Damage in
Connection with the Carriage of Hazardous and Noxious Substances
(HNS) by Sea.
• Water Act 1974-India
• Agricultural Nitrates Directive-UK
• Anything that is thrown out along with garbage such as wastes from our
homes, schools, offices, shops, hospitals etc are classified as solid
wastes. These include glass, plastic, wood, metals, organic matter, food,
electrical equipment etc.

It is classified into three main types:

• Bio Degradable waste.

• Non-Bio Degradable waste.
• Recyclable waste.
• Everyday humans produce millions of tonnes of waste all over the world.
But what happens to this waste produced?
• In many countries the waste produced is burnt to reduce it’s volume, but
burning is not an effective way to reduce waste as it causes pollution &
release of toxic wastes.
• Wastes are also dumped in landfills- a landfill is a deep trench covering a
very large area in which waste is dumped. In countries like Germany, the
methane produced from the wastes is collected & used as fuel, & the
decomposed waste is used as fertilizer as it is highly rich in nutrients. Modern
landfills are designed such that the waste is fully made use of & such that they
do not pollute the ground water levels. The toxic seepage from under the
landfills is collected & treated before being used as fertilizer.

Landfills aren’t much of a solution to solving the problem of the large amounts
of wastes generated as they get filled up overtime, faster than the waste can be
removed or recycled.
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Only we can reduce the amount produced by us. We could:

• Use jute bags for shopping instead of plastic or even paper.
• Glass or metal waste must be recycled & reused.
• Waste produced from hospitals must be incinerated before dumping into
landfills as these wastes contain pathogens & harmful germs, & toxic
chemicals.
• Using E-Book readers for reading and writing instead of using books.
Use of E-Books can save hundreds of millions of trees around the world
every year.
• Recycling of electronic items instead of dumping or burning them.
• Use of bio degradable plastic for packaging.

Agro-chemicals and their effects

Over the years the use of agro chemicals has increased considerably. Most of
the crops are treated with Pesticides, in-organic fertilizers, insecticides etc to
increase crop yield.
• But use of these chemicals results in bio-magnification &
eutrophication.
• Many useful insects, rodents & micro-organisms are also killed by the
use of these chemicals.
• These chemicals seep into the ground & pollute the soil & ground water.
• These cause cancer and inhibit development of brain and the body.

The use of agro-chemicals can be overcome by smart farming strategies:

• Bee-keeping. Placing a bee hive in the centre of a crop field drastically
increases crop yield & provides honey & beeswax that can be sold for
profit. Also bees help keep elephants away as elephants are afraid of
bees.
• Use of ladybugs and worms. Lady bugs help protect the crops against
smaller insects & worms help aerate the soil.
• Using cow manure or plant waste to fertilize the soil.
• Planting tree belts around the crop fields helps protect the crops from
winds & rains.
• Growing more than one crop in a given farmland per year not only
provides variety but also helps replenish nutrients in the soil.
• Placing guard dogs such as German Shepards helps protect the farmlands
against animals like rabbits & wild cattle.

Steps such as these can help reduce the use of chemicals in growing
crops and help to increase crop yield. Growing of crops in such a manner is
called organic farming.
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Radioactive wastes

The waste produced from the nuclear fission of heavy atoms such as uranium,
thorium etc for the production of power is radioactive waste.

This waste is highly toxic and causes mutations and cancer. It has to be dealt
with utmost caution.

The nuclear waste should be stored after heavy treatment and packed in special
containers. It should be buried deep under the ground for minimum of 60 – 80
years for the waste to stabilize. Even then there is a high chance of nuclear
contamination of the surrounding areas & the ground water. Failure of nuclear
power plants can have disastrous consequences. The use of nuclear fuels should
be avoided if possible.

Greenhouse effect and global warming

Global warming refers to the heating up of the Earth due to greenhouse effect.
Greenhouse effect is caused when gases such as CO2, CH4 etc increase in the
atmosphere & this leads to the heating up of the earth as these are good
absorbers of heat. These gases prevent the excess heat from leaving the Earth’s
atmosphere thus resulting in greenhouse effect.

Presently the earth is 0.9oC hotter than normal, if earth’s temperature continues
to rise then it could give rise to runaway global warming or the El Nino Effect.
Over time this could disrupt the delicate pattern of ocean currents & give rise to
another Ice Age which could be followed by mass extinction of several species
and even endanger the Human Race.

Global warming can have grave consequences on the health of the planet & the
biodiversity within it. Already thousands of species of flora & fauna have
become extinct. The melting of ice caps will result in flooding of low lying
areas; massive tsunamis; more powerful, fierce & unpredictable tornados;
terrible storms & droughts etc.

Scientists predict that about 3 – 4 billion humans would lose their

lives mostly from developing countries by the year 2050. Finally the resulting
Ice Age would have a devastating effect on the planet.

We must control global warming to ensure that the biodiversity on

Earth is conserved. The following steps can help reduce global warming
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 Use of Hydrogen fuels & reducing the dependence on fossil fuels.

 Improving the efficiency of engines & turbines can drastically reduce
pollution & also help save millions of Dollars\Euros every year.
 Controlling & reducing the human population.
 Planting hundreds of trees across cities & in homes.
 Using Magnetic trains. Mag - Lev trains are faster than planes & cause
very little or no pollution compared to electric trains.
 Preventing Deforestation & use of Carbon Credits.

Depletion of ozone layer

The depletion of ozone layer is one of the major cause for cancer.

Ozone is formed in the stratosphere by the effect of UV rays on O2. The

thickness of ozone is measured in Dobson units.

The UV rays act on the CFCs to release freons that react with ozone to release
pure oxygen. The freons merely act as catalysts & are not used up in the
reaction. Hence the released freons have a continuous harmful effect on the
ozone layer.

The CFCs released in the lower part of the atmosphere move upwards towards
the south pole, hence depleting the ozone layer over Antarctica.

There are around 10 types of UV rays. Out of these the most common ones are
UVa, UVb, UVc.

UV-a or black light (long wave) : It is used in tanning beds & to find counterfeit
money.

UV-b (medium wave): Absorbed by ozone layer under normal conditions. It

causes snow blindness, cataract, inflammation of cornea, aging of skin, skin
cancer etc if exposed to the body.

UV-c (short wave) : Used as a germicidal , in laboratories & in the treatment of

water.

Realizing the harmful effects of CFCs an international treaty called the

Montreal Protocol was signed at Montreal, Canada in 1987 (effective 1989) to
control CFCs emission throughout the world.

Degradation by improper utilization & maintenance of resources

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Soil erosion & Desertification: It is a result of poor maintenance of top soil.

Fertile top soil takes years to form but it can easily be removed especially due to
human activities such as over – cultivation, over – grazing, deforestation, poor
irrigation practices, use of chemicals etc. It results in degradation of the top soil
& the land becomes barren. Urbanization is also a major problem of
desertification.

Water logging & soil salinity: Over irrigation especially without

proper drainage leads to water logging of the soil. It also increases the salt
content of the soil which heavily affects the health of plants. It is a post – green
revolution problem.

Deforestation

Deforestation refers to the cutting down of trees for wood for furniture, fire
wood, paper, to make cigarettes, to clear land for cultivation, due to the
expansion of cities etc. Jhum cultivation is also a major contributor to
deforestation in India.

Deforestation has a very harmful effect on the environment. It leads to

desertification, global warming, acid rain, depletion & pollution of ground
water levels, loss of biodiversity in the affected areas etc.

There are various efforts to conserve the forests.

• Hug a tree movement.

• Organizations fighting to save trees.
• In India Amrita Devi Bishnoi Wildlife Protection Award is given to
individuals or organizations that show courage & dedication towards
biodiversity.

There are various ways in which we can help to conserve trees:

• Avoiding the use paper to read books & news.

• Reforestation
• Controlling growth of Human population & the expansion of cities.
• Forming groups and communities to fight against deforestation.
• Seeking help from governmental and non – governmental organizations
for the conservation of forests.
• Creating awareness about illegal selling of forestlands to companies &
rich social groups.
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• Pressurizing the governments to pass laws to conserve trees & to check

the deforestation caused by private companies, to limit the deforestation
they cause.