PLANT ORGAN SYSTEMS AND THEIR FUNCTIONS
(REPRODUCTIVE)
Gymnosperms VS Angiosperms
❖ Gymnosperms:
➢ Non-flowering vascular plants with uncovered
seeds in cones.
❖ Angiosperms:
➢ Flowering vascular plants covered seeds in fruit.
Angiosperms Reproduce Sexually and Asexually
➔ Flowers are the sex organs of angiosperms.
➔ Flowers and seeds are produced by angiosperms
that sexually reproduce, yielding genetically
unique offspring with traits derived from two
parents.
➔ Some species of angiosperms also reproduce
asexually,forming new individuals by mitotic
division.
➔ Offspring produced asexually are genetically
identical to each other and to their parents.
➔ Asexual reproduction is advantageous when
conditions are stable and plants are well-adapted to
their surroundings.
➔ Sexual reproduction produces variable offspring,
increasing reproductive success in a changing
world.
➔ The angiosperm life cycle is an alternation of
generations with multicellular diploid and haploid
stages.
❖ Sporophyte (2n)
➢ the multicellular diploid form that results from the
union of gametes
➢ The sporophyte produces haploid spores by
meiosis that develop into gametophytes.
❖ Gametophyte (n)
➢ the multicellular haploid form that produces
haploid gametes by mitosis
➢ The haploid gametes unite and develop into
sporophytes.
Angiosperm Life Cycle Includes Flowers, Fruits, and
Seeds
➔ The first step in angiosperm reproduction is the
formation of flowers on the mature sporophyte.
➔ A typical flower has four whorls of structures, all
of which are modified leaves.
➔ The outer whorl consists of sepals, which enclose
and protect the inner floral parts.
➔ The second whorl is made of petals.
➔ The third whorl is the male reproductive parts.
Stamens are filaments with pollen-producing
anthers on top.
➔ The fourth whorl is the female reproductive parts.
A carpel includes: Ovary, which encloses one or
more ovules; a stalk-like style. The top of the style,
called the stigma, receives pollen.
➔ Inside the flower, meiosis produces haploid spores
that develop into gametophytes.
➔ Anthers produce male gametophytes (pollen
grains).
➔ Ovules produce female gametophytes (embryo
sacs).
➔ If a pollen grain lands on a receptive stigma,
pollination occurs.
➔ When the pollen grain germinates, a pollen tube
begins to grow toward the ovule.
➔ Two sperm nuclei travel through the pollen tube to
the ovule.
◆ The stage is now set for fertilization.
➔ In double fertilization, these sperm nuclei fertilize
the egg and the two polar nuclei.
➔ Double fertilization results in a diploid zygote and
triploid endosperm nucleus.
➔ Double fertilization ensures that the endosperm
develops only in ovules where the egg has been
fertilized, thereby preventing angiosperms from
squandering nutrients on infertile ovules.
◆ After fertilization, the seed starts to develop.
➔ A seed consists of an embryo, endosperm, and
seed coat.
➔ The zygote develops from a single cell into an
embryo.
➔ Cotyledons are the embryo’s ―seed leaves.‖
Embryonic shoots and roots also form.
➔ Endosperm cells divide rapidly and nourish the
embryo.
➔ The seed coat is a tough outer layer that protects
the embryo from damage, dehydration, and
predators.
➔ At the same time, a fruit develops from the ovary
enclosing the developing seed(s).
➔ After pollination, the flower loses its petals. A
developing seed releases hormones that trigger fruit
formation. The ovary swells.
Plant Growth Begins with Seed Germination
How does the embryo continue developing into a
mature sporophyte?
➔ Continued development requires seed
germination, the resumption of growth and
development after a period of seed dormancy.
➔ Germination requires water, O2, and a favorable
temperature.
➔ The seed absorbs water and swells, rupturing the
seed coat and exposing the embryo to O2.
➔ Meanwhile, enzymes break down the endosperm’s
starch into sugars.
➔ The availability of O2 and sugars means cellular
respiration can resume in the embryo. Cell division
at apical meristems rapidly lengthens the young
roots and shoots.
➔ At first, the only energy source is fuel stored in the
endosperm.
➔ After the shoot emerges from the ground and the
first leaves unfold, photosynthesis begins.
Hormones Regulate Plant Growth and
Development
➔ Chemicals called hormones travel between cells
and regulate many aspects of plant growth.
➔ Five hormones cue many of the major changes in
plant growth and development:
◆ Auxins
◆ Cytokinins
◆ Gibberellins
◆ Ethylene
◆ Abscisic acid
❖ Auxins
➢ stimulate fruit development, control elongation of
cells in a stem, and suppress growth of lateral
buds.
❖ Cytokinins
➢ stimulate cell division in many plant parts, delay
shedding of leaves, and stimulate growth of lateral
buds.
➔ Auxins are primarily released from the shoot tip,
and cytokinins are primarily released from the
roots.
➔ The counteracting effect of these hormones is
called apical dominance.
➔ If the shoot tip is in place, auxins suppress the
growth of lateral buds.
➔ Removing the shoot tip reduces the auxin
concentration. Cytokinins stimulate cell division in
lateral buds.
➔ The plant’s growth becomes bushier.
❖ Gibberellins
➢ also stimulate shoot elongation. Farmers use
these hormones to stimulate stem elongation
and fruit growth.
❖ Ethylene
➢ hastens fruit ripening and stimulates shedding of
leaves, flowers, and fruits.
➢ Ethylene caused the flowers on the left to wither.
The flowers on the right are genetically
engineered to have mutant ethylene receptor
genes.
❖ Abscisic acid
➢ inhibits shoot growth, maintains seed dormancy,
and stimulates closure of stomata and shedding
of plant parts.
Light Is a Powerful Influence on Plant Life
➔ Phototropism is a plant’s tendency to grow
toward or away from light.
➔ The hormone auxin has a role in phototropism.
➔ As auxin molecules migrate away from light, they
accumulate on the shaded side of a stem.
➔ Auxin causes water to enter cells on the shaded
side of the stem. As a result, the cells elongate.
➔ Elongation of these cells causes the stem to bend
toward the light.
Plants Respond to Gravity and Touch
➔ Gravity is another important environmental cue.
➔ Gravitropism is directional growth in response to
gravity. Shoots always grow upward.
➔ Roots always grow downward.
➔ Starch-filled organelles sink to the bottom of cells
and therefore might help plants detect gravity.
➔ Plants also respond to touch, a reaction called
thigmotropism.
➔ Specialized epidermal cells detect contact with an
object, which stimulates the tendril to bend.
PLANT ORGAN SYSTEMS AND THEIR FUNCTIONS
HIERARCHICAL ORGANIZATION OF PLANTS
➔ Plants like most animals are composed of organs,
tissues and cells.
Vegetative Plant Parts
➔ Vegetative plant parts include stems, leaves, and
roots. These organs work together.
➔ The shoot is the aboveground part of the plant. -
consists of the supporting stems, photosynthetic
leaves and reproductive flower
➔ The shoot’s stem supports the leaves, which
produce carbohydrates by photosynthesis.
➔ Some of the sugar produced in the shoot system
travels through the stem to the roots, which are
usually belowground.
➔ Roots anchor the plant and absorb water and
minerals that move via the stem to the leaves.
EVOLUTIONARY ADAPTATIONS OF ROOTS
➢ Prop roots
➢ Storage roots
➢ Pneumatophores
➔ Leaves attach to stems at nodes. Spaces between
nodes are internodes.
➔ Each node also features an axillary bud, an
undeveloped shoot that could form a new branch or
flower.
❖ Apical bud
➢ the growing shoot tip where most of the growth of
a young shoot is concentrated.
➢ Also called as terminal bud.
❖ Axillary bud
➢ found in the upper angle (axil) formed by each leaf
and stem which can potentially form a lateral
branch or, in some cases, a thorn and flower
➢ Also called as lateral bud.
EVOLUTIONARY ADAPTATION OF STEMS
➢ Food storage or asexual reproduction
➢ “Modified stems”
➢ Rhizomes, stolons and tubers
➔ Leaves are the main photosynthetic organ,
exchange gases with the atmosphere, dissipate
heat and defend from herbivores and pathogens
EVOLUTIONARY ADAPTATION OF LEAVES
➢ Tendrils
➢ Storage
➢ Spines
➢ Reproductive
➔ Biologists divide plants into two categories based
on the characteristics of the stem.
➔ A herbaceous plant has a green, soft stem.
➔ A woody plant is made of tough, bark-covered
wood.
WHAT ARE THE 2 MAIN DIVISIONS OF THE PLANT
BODY?
➢ Shoot system
➢ Root system
WHAT CONNECTS THE SHOOT SYSTEM TO THE
ROOT SYSTEM?
❖ Vascular tissue/system
➢ (purple strands in the diagram) connects the root
and shoot system
➢ Conducts water and nutrients through the plant
Plants Require 16 Essential Elements
➔ All plants require several nutrients to stay healthy.
➔ Essential elements are required for metabolism,
growth, and reproduction.
➔ Macronutrients are required in large amounts.
Carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen are the most
abundant macronutrients.
➔ Micronutrients are required in much smaller
amounts.
➔ Leaves and roots absorb nutrients from air and
soil.
Leaves and Roots Absorb Essential Elements
➔ Symbiotic relationships with nitrogen- fixing
bacteria help plants obtain useful forms of
nitrogen (fixed nitrogen - inorganic).
➔ Rhizobium – associated with leguminous plants
➔ Bacteria invade the root hairs where they multiply
and stimulate formation of root nodules. In the
nodules, the bacteria convert the available
nitrogen in the atmosphere and convert it to
ammonia which is needed by the host plant for
development
Plant Cells Build Tissues
➔ Plants have three main tissue types:
➔ Ground tissue: makes up most of the plant body.
(storage, photosynthesis, transport)
➔ Vascular tissues: (xylem and phloem) transport
materials within the plant. (transport and support)
➔ Dermal tissue: covers the plant (outer protective
covering).
➔ Ground tissue consists of three main cell types:
parenchyma, collenchyma, and sclerenchyma.
➔ The cells that compose ground tissue are
important sites of photosynthesis, respiration,
storage, and support.
➔ Vascular tissue transport water, minerals,
carbohydrates, and other dissolved compounds.
➔ Xylem tissue transports water and minerals from
the roots to other plant parts. It consists of long,
narrow cells called tracheids and wide, barrel-
shaped cells called vessel elements
➔ Phloem tissue transports dissolved organic
compounds like sugars. Sieve tube elements are
the conducting cells; companion cells transfer
materials in and out of sieve tubes.
➔ Dermal tissue covers the plant; it consists of the
epidermis, which is coated with a waxy cuticle.
➔ The cuticle conserves water and protects the
plant. Pores in the cuticle, called stomata
(singular stoma), allow leaves to exchange gases
with the atmosphere.
➔ Guard cells surround each stoma and control its
opening and closing.
Tissues Build Stems, Leaves, and Roots
➔ Ground tissue occupies most of the stem of a
herbaceous plant.
➔ Vascular bundles are embedded in the ground
tissue.
➔ Dermal tissue covers the stem.
➔ Monocots and eudicots have different
arrangements of vascular tissue and ground
tissue in stems.
➔ In monocots, vascular bundles are scattered
throughout the stem.
➔ In eudicots, vascular bundles are arranged in a
ring near the epidermis.
➔ Ground tissue occupies most of a leaf.
➔ Vascular bundles are embedded in the ground
tissue.
➔ Dermal tissue covers the leaf.
➔ Leaves are flattened blades supported with a
stalk-like petiole.
➔ Simple leaves have undivided blades.
➔ Compound leaves are divided into leaflets
attached to one petiole.
➔ Veins are vascular bundles inside leaves. Many
monocots have parallel veins; most eudicots have
netted veins.
➔ The ground tissue inside a leaf is called
mesophyll, which consists of cells with abundant
chloroplasts that produce sugars by
photosynthesis.
➔ When stomata are open, mesophyll cells
exchange gases with the atmosphere.
➔ Mesophyll cells also exchange materials with
vascular tissues.
➔ In a root, ground tissue surrounds a central core
of vascular tissue.
➔ Dermal tissue forms the root epidermis.
➔ Roots might form a fibrous root system or a
taproot system.
◆ Fibrous roots are slender, shallow, and arise
from the stem base.
◆ Taproots are thick, deep, and have fewer
branches.
➔ Near each root’s tip, root hairs are extensions of
the epidermis that absorb water and minerals.
Plants Have Flexible Growth Patterns
➔ Plants grow by adding units, or modules,
consisting of repeated nodes and internodes.
Growth occurs at meristems, regions of active
cell division.
➔ Apical meristems produce tissues that lengthen
the tips of shoots and roots.
➔ Primary growth occurs at the apical meristems.
New cells can differentiate into any tissue type.
➔ Secondary growth thickens roots and stems; this
growth occurs at lateral meristems.
➔ Secondary growth occurs in woody plants. Two
types of lateral meristems produce wood and
bark:
◆ Vascular cambium
◆ Cork cambium
➔ The vascular cambium produces secondary
xylem toward the inside of the stem and
secondary phloem toward the outside.
➔ The cork cambium produces parenchyma cells
toward the inside and dense, waxy cells called
cork toward the outside.
➔ Cork is the outer protective layer of bark.
 ➔ First, sugars are actively transported from
photosynthetic cells to companion cells and then
into the sieve tube.
➔ Then, water moves by osmosis from xylem into
the sieve tube, increasing sieve tube pressure.
➔ This pressure pushes the sugars toward the sink.
➔ At the sink, transport proteins move sugars out of
the sieve tube. Since the solute concentration in
the phloem decreased, water leaves the sieve
tube by osmosis.
➔ Transport of sugars from sources to sinks explains
how non-photosynthetic cells obtain sugars (and
➔ Secondary xylem eventually becomes unable to why fruits are often sweet).
conduct water, forming heartwood.
SUMMARY OF BULK FLOW BY POSITIVE
Vascular Tissue Transports Substances PRESSURE (PRESSURE FLOW)
➔ Vascular tissue forms the transportation system
that connects plant parts.
➔ Xylem and phloem function in different ways.
➔ Xylem transport is explained by cohesion-
tension theory. Cohesion is the tendency for
water molecules to form hydrogen bonds with one
another.
➔ Because of cohesion, when water evaporates
from the leaves, it pulls adjacent molecules closer
to the stomata.
➔ As the concentration of water within the mesophyll
decreases, water molecules diffuse out of nearby
veins. Those molecules, in turn, pull neighboring
water molecules up the xylem.
➔ This movement of water molecules is repeated all
the way down the xylem. Along the way, water
molecules diffuse into ―thirsty‖ tissues.
➔ According to the cohesion-tension hypothesis,
transpiration provides the pull for the ascent of
xylem sap (water & dissolved minerals in the
xylem), and the cohesion of water molecules
transmits this pull along the entire length of the
xylem from shoots to roots. ANIMAL ORGAN SYSTEMS AND THEIR FUNCTIONS
➔ Hence, xylem sap is normally under negative
pressure, or tension. NUTRITION AND FEEDING MECHANISMS

Where does transpirational pull begin in the
cohesion-tension mechanism?
➢ Since transpiration is a “pulling” process, our
exploration of the rise of xylem sap by the
cohesion-tension mechanism begins not with the
roots but with the leaves, where the driving force
for transpirational pull begins.
➔ The green leaves of the strawberry plant are
sugar “sources” because they carry out
photosynthesis.
➔ Roots and fruits, which require sugar but do not
carry out photosynthesis, are “sinks.”
➔ According to pressure flow theory, phloem sap
moves from high pressure at sources to low
pressure at sinks. Water movement causes the
pressure changes in the phloem tissue.
Animals Have Four Main Feeding Mechanisms
❖ Filter Feeding
➢ Filter feeding in water is a type of suspension
feeding, which includes removing suspended
food particles from the surrounding medium by
capture or trapping mechanisms.
➢ Many aquatic animals strain small organisms or
food particles from the surrounding medium.
➢ The humpback whale has comblike plates called
baleen attached to the whale’s upper jaw, which
remove small invertebrates and fish from
enormous volumes of water and sometimes mud.
❖ Substrate Feeding
➢ Substrate feeders are animals that live on their
food source.
➢ The leaf miner caterpillar, the larva of a moth, is
eating through the soft tissue of an oak leaf,
leaving a dark trail of feces in its wake.
 ➢ Maggots (fly larvae) burrow into animal carcasses. ➔ Lungs are terrestrial adaptations to breathing,
located inside the body and protected by the skin
❖ Fluid Feeding and skeleton from damage.
➢ Fluid feeders suck nutrient-rich fluid from a living ➔ Path of Air:
host. ◆ external nostrils
➢ The mosquito has pierced the skin of its human ◆ nasal passages
host with hollow, needlelike mouthparts and is ◆ pharynx
consuming a blood meal (colorized SEM). ◆ larynx
➢ Hummingbirds and bees fluid-feed on nectar of ◆ trachea
flowers. ◆ bronchi
❖ Bulk Feeding ◆ bronchioles
➢ Most animals, including humans, are bulk feeders, ◆ alveoli
which eat relatively large pieces of food.
➢ Their adaptations include tentacles, pincers, Breathing Mechanisms
claws, venomous fangs, jaws, and teeth that kill
prey or tear off pieces of meat or vegetation. WHEN YOU INHALE, YOUR…
❖ RICE
Four main stages of food processing ➢ Relax your
➢ INGESTION ➢ Internal intercostal muscles &
➢ DIGESTION ➢ Contract your
➢ ABSORPTION ➢ External intercostal muscle
➢ ELIMINATION
WHEN YOU EXHALE, YOUR…
GAS EXCHANGE ❖ ERIC
➢ External intercostal muscles
Breathing through the skin (Cutaneous respiration) ➢ Relax & your
➔ Multicellular animals breathe through their skin ➢ Internal intercostal muscles
provided they have a large surface area relative ➢ Contract
to its volume and abundant permeable blood
vessels that can readily transport gases across CIRCULATION AND TRANSPORT
the skin.
Two Types of Circulatory System
Breathing through the tracheal system
➔ The insect tracheal system is a network of air ❖ Open Circulatory System
tubes that branch throughout the body. Necessary ➢ Blood is pumped from the heart and enters body
gases enter the body through openings called cavities, where the tissues are bathed in the blood
spiracles, conducted through the trachea that ➢ No network of blood vessels
terminates into smaller tubes called tracheoles ➢ Blood flows slowly because there is no blood
that are connected to the body tissues. pressure
➢ The animal must move in order to move the blood in
Breathing under water through gills its body.
➔ Animals under water or thriving in a semi-aquatic
habitat evolved gills to become respiratory ❖ Closed Circulatory System
membranes. ➢ Blood is contained within blood vessels, it is not free
➔ Gills are filamentous organs, with a rich supply in a cavity.
of blood vessels that conduct the exchange of ➢ Valves exist to prevent the backflow of blood.
gases.
➔ Water flows into the gills where the blood vessels
readily extract the oxygen from the flowing water
in a countercurrent manner.
➔ In the gills, oxygen flows from an area of higher
concentration, the water, into an area of lower
concentration, the fish’s blood vessels.
➔ Countercurrent exchange also applies to heat
conservation when warm arterial blood transfers
heat to cold venous blood coming, minimizing
heat loss.

Breathing through lungs

Parts of the Human Circulatory System
➢ The Heart
➢ Arteries
➢ Arterioles
➢ Capillaries
➢ Venules
➢ Veins
EXCRETION AND OSMOREGULATION
Osmoregulation
➔ Homeostasis requires osmoregulation, the
general term for the processes by which animals
control solute concentrations and balance water
gain and loss.
➔ Osmoregulatory Challenges and Mechanisms: An
animal can maintain water balance in 2 ways.
◆ Osmoconformer – to be isosmotic with its
surrounding
◆ All osmoconformers are marine animals.
◆ Osmoregulator – to control internal osmolarity
independent of that of the external environment
◆ Osmoregulation enables animals to live in
environments that are uninhabitable for
osmoconformers, such as freshwater and
terrestrial habitats, or to move between marine
and freshwater environments.
Forms of Nitrogenous Wastes
Malpighian Tubules of Insects
➔ Insects and other terrestrial arthropods have
organs called Malpighian tubules that remove
nitrogenous wastes and that also function in
osmoregulation
❖ Excretion
➢ the process by which metabolic waste products
and toxic materials are removed from the body of
an organism
➢ Excretion is not the same as defecation or
egestion.
❖ Egestion
➢ removal of undigested material from the
alimentary canal
➢ Undigested material from the alimentary canal is
not formed from substances within the cells and
has never been absorbed into the cells.
Major Functions of the Kidney
➔ Eliminating nitrogenous wastes, toxins, and drugs
from the body
➔ Regulating the volume and chemical makeup of
the blood
➔ Maintaining the balance between water and salts
and between acids and bases
IMMUNE SYSTEM
➔ For a pathogen – a bacterium, fungus, virus, or
other disease-causing agent – the internal
environment of an animal is a nearly ideal habitat.
➔ Dedicated immune cells in the body fluids and
tissues of most animals specifically interact with
and destroy pathogens.
 as blood to stimulate cells (target cells) or tissues
(target tissues) into action
➔ Just as a radio signal only plays on radios that are
―tuned in‖ to the right station, hormones only
produce responses in target cells.

Hormones: Slow, Lasting Communication

➔ Hormones affect mood, emotions, feelings of
sexual attraction, and developmental patterns,
among other processes.

Hormones Stimulate Responses in Target Cells

➔ Hormones are divided into two main classes:
water-soluble and lipid-soluble.
➔ Two types of molecular recognition provide the
➔ These hormone classes act differently on target
basis for the two types of immune defense
cells.
found among animals:
➔ Water-soluble hormones cannot enter the target
cell because the fatty acid tails of the cell
❖ INNATE IMMUNITY (all animals)
membrane are hydrophobic.
➢ Recognition of traits shared by broad ranges of
➔ The hormone molecule attaches ("binds") to a
pathogens, using a small set of receptors
receptor molecule protruding from the surface of
➢ Rapid response
the target cell.
➔ Binding of the hormone to the receptor causes
★ Barrier defenses:
("triggers") a chemical reaction ("response") inside
○ Skin
the cell without the hormone molecule itself ever
○ Mucous membranes
entering the cell.
○ Secretions
➔ ACTIVATION: The chemical reaction activates
enzymes which will activate the second
★ Internal defenses:
messenger inside the cell.
○ Phagocytic cells
➔ The second messenger provokes the cell’s
○ Natural killer cells
response, usually by activating an enzyme.
○ Antimicrobial proteins
➔ Water-soluble hormones act quickly. Binding of
○ Inflammatory response
one hormone can activate several second
messenger molecules, all of which can activate
❖ ADAPTIVE IMMUNITY (vertebrates only)
several enzymes present in the cell.
➢ Recognition of traits specific to particular
➔ Unlike water-soluble hormones, lipid-soluble
pathogens, using a vast array of receptors
hormones can pass through the target cell
➢ Slower response
membrane.
➔ The hormone enters the cell and then binds with a
★ Humoral response:
receptor protein in either the cytoplasm or the
○ Antibodies defend against infection in
nucleus.
body fluids.
➔ It forms "hormone-receptor complex".
➔ The hormone-receptor complex moves to the
★ Cell-mediated response:
nucleus of the cell.
○ Cytotoxic cells defend against infection
➔ The receptor protein then activates transcription of
in body cells.
a gene, resulting in the production of one or more
proteins in the target cell.
➔ Immune responses in animals can be divided into
➔ The new protein triggers the hormone’s effects on
innate and adaptive immunity. Some components
the cell.
of innate immunity contribute to activation of
➔ Lipid-soluble hormones typically act fairly slowly
adaptive immune defenses
because the target cell must produce new
proteins.
CHEMICAL AND NERVOUS CONTROL
Key difference between water soluble and lipid
Hormones Interact with Target Cells
soluble
➔ Each hormone travels throughout the body, but it
➢ Water-soluble hormones bind to receptors on
only binds to target cells, those with the correct
the surface of the target cell
receptor protein.
➢ Fat-soluble hormones bind to receptors inside
➔ A hormone is a regulatory substance produced in
the target cell.
an organism and transported in tissue fluids such
Major Human Endocrine Glands ➔ Interneurons in the central nervous system
➢ Hypothalamus receive signals from sensory neurons. The
➢ Pituitary gland message is processed, and a signal is sent to a
➢ Pineal gland motor neuron.
➢ Thyroid gland ➔ A motor neuron conducts a message from the
➢ Parathyroid glands central nervous system to a muscle or gland,
➢ Adrenal glands stimulating contraction or secretion.
➢ Pancreas
➢ Ovaries Action Potentials Convey Messages
➢ Testes ➔ Each neuron in this network sends a message to
➔ The hypothalamus and the pituitary gland the next cell. How is information carried through a
produce hormones that coordinate the action of neuron to its connection with another cell?
other endocrine glands. ➔ The message is an electrical impulse called an
➔ The anterior pituitary has cells that produce and action potential, which travels along a neuron’s
release hormones. axon.
➔ The hypothalamus adjusts hormone production
based on current hormone levels. Negative Messages Move from Cell to Cell
feedback systems such as this regulate many ➔ This communication occurs at a synapse, a
hormone concentrations. junction between a neuron and another cell.
➔ Molecules called neurotransmitters travel across
Many Hormones Regulate Metabolism synapses.
➔ Insulin decreases blood glucose concentration ➔ The synapse includes a sending neuron, a
➔ Glucagon increases blood glucose concentration synaptic cleft, and a receiving cell (which could
be a neuron, muscle cell, or gland cell).
NERVOUS CONTROL: SENSORY AND MOTOR ➔ The end of the sending neuron’s axon is the
MECHANISMS synaptic terminal.
➔ Action potentials stimulate vesicles loaded with
The Nervous System: Rapid Communication neurotransmitters to fuse with the sending
➔ Rapid communication between cells is neuron’s membrane.
fundamental to the function of the animal nervous ➔ Neurotransmitters bind to receptor proteins in the
system. membrane of the receiving cell.
➔ The nervous system consists mainly of nervous ➔ Ion channels open in the receiving cell membrane,
tissue, which has two types of cells: neurons and changing the likelihood of an action potential in
neuroglia. the receiving cell.
➔ Neurons are interconnected cells that
communicate via electrical impulses. Neuroglia Comparison Between Nervous and Endocrine
support neurons. Systems
➔ Many neurons work together as an animal senses
and reacts to its surroundings, makes decisions,
and maintains homeostasis.
➔ Neurons in the peripheral nervous system carry
information to or from the central nervous system.
For example, neurons in sense organs respond to
sensory input.
➔ The central nervous system interprets signals it
receives from the peripheral nervous system.
➔ In a fraction of a second, the central nervous
system signals the peripheral nervous system to
stimulate a motor response.
REPRODUCTION
Neuron Structure and Arrangement
➔ Biologists divide neurons into three classes: Animals Reproduce Asexually or Sexually
◆ Sensory neurons ➔ Animals may reproduce asexually or sexually.
◆ Interneurons ➔ Asexual reproduction does not require a partner
◆ Motor neurons and produces identical or nearly identical
➔ These neurons work together to coordinate offspring.
reactions to stimuli such as pain. ➔ Unfertilized eggs of some bees, aphids, and
➔ Sensory neurons bring information from the lizards, for example, mature into asexually-
body’s organs (such as heat, pain, taste, etc.) produced adults.
toward the central nervous system.
 ➔ In parthenogenesis, an egg develops without
being fertilized. (e.g., male honey bees called
drones are fertile haploid adults)
Asexual Reproduction
❖ Budding
➢ For example, Hydra
➢ Budding is a means of asexual reproduction
whereby a new individual develops from an
outgrowth of a parent, splits off, and lives
independently.
❖ Fragmentation
➢ Fragmentation is a means of asexual reproduction
whereby a single parent breaks into parts that
regenerate into whole new individuals.
❖ Regeneration
➢ Regeneration occurs when a body part has
broken off and the organism grows a new one.
➔ In sexual reproduction, both parents contribute
genes to the offspring, which are genetically
unique.
➔ Yellowhead jawfish, for example, reproduce
sexually and the male keeps the fertilized eggs
protected in his mouth until they hatch.
➔ Although sexually reproducing individuals use
energy finding and courting mates, variation
among offspring is adaptive in changing
environments.
➔ The gonads of sexually reproducing individuals
produce haploid gametes by meiosis. Gametes
unite at fertilization, forming a diploid zygote.
➔ Among sexually reproducing species, fertilization
might be internal or external.
➔ The male sea urchin is releasing sperm into the
water. If a sperm cell unites with an egg cell
released from a female, then fertilization occurs
externally.
➔ Internal fertilization occurs when gametes unite
inside the body of one of the parents (usually the
female, as in birds).
Development Begins with the Zygote
➔ The zygote begins to divide soon after fertilization
is complete.
➔ Soon, cells begin to differentiate, or acquire
specialized functions.
➔ Genes then determine the overall shape and
structure of the animal’s body in a process called
pattern formation.
Development Is Indirect or Direct
➔ Development might be indirect or direct.
➔ An animal that undergoes indirect development
has an immature stage that looks different from
the adult.
➔ Animals undergoing direct development have an
immature stage that looks like a small adult.
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF ANIMALS
SEVEN TAXONOMIC CLASSIFICATION
➢ Kingdom
➢ Phylum
➢ Class
➢ Order
➢ Family
➢ Genus
➢ Species
CHARACTERISTICS OF LIFE
❖ Cellular Organization
➢ It is the basic tool which ascends from simplest to
complex one. Starting from the base: Atoms are
organized into molecules into organelle and here
comes the cell. Cells combined to form tissue,
tissue into organ, organ into organ system, and
finally into an organism.
❖ Reproduction
➢ It is the biological process by which a new
individual organism "offspring― is produced from
their "parents". Reproduction is a fundamental
feature of all known life; each individual organism
exists as the result of reproduction (either sexual
or asexual).
❖ Metabolism
➢ Metabolism refers to all of the chemical reactions
that take place within an organism by which
complex molecules are broken down to produce
energy and by which energy is used to build up
complex molecules. An example of a metabolic
reaction is the one that takes place when a person
eats a spoonful of sugar.
❖ Homeostasis
➢ Homeostasis, from the Greek words for "same"
and "steady,"refers to any process that living
things use to actively maintain fairly stable
conditions necessary for survival. The term was
coined in 1930 by the physician Walter Cannon.
❖ Heredity
➢ Heredity is the passing on of traits from parents to
their offspring, either through asexual reproduction
or sexual reproduction, the offspring cells or
organisms acquire the genetic information of their
parents.
❖ Response to Stimuli
➢ A reaction to an internal or external force. The
ability of an organism or organ to respond to
external stimuli is called sensitivity. When a
stimulus is applied to a sensory receptor, it
normally elicits or influences a reflex via stimulus
transduction.
❖ Growth and Development
➢ Human development is a lifelong process of
physical, behavioral, cognitive, and emotional
 growth and change. In the early stages of life from
babyhood (infant and toddler) to childhood,
childhood to adolescence, and adolescence to
adulthood enormous changes take place.
❖ Adaptation through Evolution
➢ According to Charles Darwin's Theory of Evolution
by means of Natural Selection, organisms that
possess heritable traits that enable them to better
adapt to their environment compared with other
members of their species will be more likely to
survive, reproduce, and pass more of their genes
on to the next generation.
ANIMAL CHARACTERISTICS
❖ Multicellular
➢ Organisms that consist of more than one cell, in
contrast to unicellular organisms. All species of
animals are multicellular however, it's important to
keep in mind that animals aren' the only
multicellular organisms; that honor is also shared
by plants, fungi, and even some species of algae.
❖ Eukaryotic
➢ Eukaryotic organisms have well-defined nuclei
and internal organelles such as mitochondria, and
are capable of grouping together to form
multicellular organisms.
➢ While all animals are eukaryotes, not all
eukaryotes are animals: this hugely diverse family
also includes plants, fungi, and the tiny marine
proto-animals known as protists.
❖ Presence of specialized tissues
➢ One of the most remarkable things about animals
is how specialized their cells are. As these
organisms develop, what seems to be plain-vanilla
"stem cells" diversify into four broad biological
categories: nervous tissues, connective tissues,
muscle tissues, and epithelial tissues which line
the organs and blood vessels.
➢ More advanced organisms display even more
specific levels of differentiation; the various organs
of your body, for example, are made up of liver
cells, pancreatic cells, and dozens of other
varieties. The exceptions that prove the rule here
are sponges, which are technically animals but
have virtually no differentiated cells.
❖ Sexual Reproduction
➢ Most animals engage in sexual reproduction: two
individuals have some form of sex, combine their
genetic information, and produce offspring bearing
the DNA of both parents.
➢ The advantages of sexual reproduction are huge,
from an evolutionary perspective: the ability to test
out various genome combinations allows animals
to adapt quickly to new ecosystems, and thus out-
compete asexual organisms.
➢ Once again, sexual reproduction isn't restricted to
animals: this system is also employed by various
plants, fungi, and even some very forward-looking
bacteria.
❖ Blastula Stage of Development
➢ When a male's sperm encounters a female's egg,
the result is a single cell called a zygote; after the
zygote undergoes a few rounds of division, it's
called a morula.
➢ Only true animals experience the next stage: the
formation of a blastula, a hollow sphere of
multiple cells surrounding an inner fluid cavity. It's
only when cells are enclosed in a blastula that
they start differentiating into different tissue types.
❖ Motility (ability to move)
➢ Most animals are capable of complex and
relatively rapid movement compared to plants and
other organisms.
➢ Organisms that live rooted to one spot are sessile
and those that move around are motile. Even the
most sessile animals can move at least part of
their bodies. This movement is dependent on how
animals obtain food.
➢ Fish swim, birds fly, wolves run, snails slide, and
snakes slither. All animals are capable of
movement at some stage in their life cycles, an
evolutionary innovation that allows these
organisms to more easily conquer new ecological
niches, pursue prey, and evade predators.
➢ Some animals, like sponges and corals, are
virtually immobile once they're fully grown, but
their larvae are capable of movement before they
become rooted to the sea floor. This is one of the
key traits that distinguishes animals from plants
and fungi, if you ignore relatively rare outliers like
Venus flytraps and fast-growing bamboo trees.
❖ Heterotrophy (ability to ingest food)
➢ All living things need organic carbon to support
the basic processes of life, including growth,
development, and reproduction. There are two
ways to obtain carbon: from the environment in
the form of carbon dioxide, a freely available gas
in the atmosphere, or by feeding on other carbon-
rich organisms.
➢ Living organisms that obtain carbon from the
environment, like plants, are called autotrophs,
while living organisms that obtain carbon by
ingesting other living organisms, like animals, are
called heterotrophs.
➢ However, animals aren't the world's only
heterotrophs; all fungi, many bacteria, and even
some plants are at least partially heterotrophic.
❖ Advanced Nervous System
➢ Of all the organisms on earth, only mammals are
sufficiently advanced to possess more-or-less
acute senses of sight, sound, hearing, taste and
touch not to mention the echolocation of dolphins
and bats, or the ability of some fish and sharks to
sense magnetic disturbances in the water using
 their "lateral lines.". These senses, of course,
entail the existence of at least a rudimentary
nervous system as in insects and starfish, and, in
the most advanced animals, fully developed
brains--perhaps the one key feature that truly
distinguishes animals from the rest of nature.
OTHER ANIMAL CHARACTERISTICS
❖ Animal Sizes
➢ Animals range in size from no more than a few
cells like the mesozoans to organisms weighing
many tons like the blue whale.
❖ Animal Habitats
➢ Most animals inhabit the seas, with fewer in fresh
water and even fewer on land.
❖ Asymmetry
➢ It is the absence of, or a violation of, symmetry.
Symmetry is an important property of both
physical and abstract systems and it may be
displayed in precise terms or in more aesthetic
terms. The absence of or violation of symmetry
that are either expected or desired can have
important consequences for a system.
❖ Animal Symmetry
➢ It is the balanced distribution of duplicate body
parts or shapes within the body of an organism. In
nature and biology, symmetry is always
approximate.
➢ For example, plant leaves while considered
symmetrical rarely match up exactly when folded
in half. Symmetry creates a class of patterns in
nature, where the near-repetition of the pattern
element is by reflection or rotation.
➢ Classified asymmetrical, radial and bilateral.
❖ Radial Symmetry
➢ Symmetrical arrangement of parts of an organism
around a single main axis, so that the organism
can be divided into similar halves by any plane
that contains the main axis. The body plans of
echinoderms, ctenophores, cnidarians, and many
sponges and sea anemones show radial
symmetry.
❖ Bilateral Symmetry
➢ Symmetrical arrangement of an organism or part
of an organism along a central axis, so that the
organism or part can be divided into two equal
halves. Bilateral symmetry is a characteristic of
animals that are capable of moving freely through
their environments.
❖ Cephalization
➢ An evolutionary trend in which, over many
generations, the mouth, sense organs, and nerve
ganglia become concentrated at the front end of
an animal, producing a head region.
➢ This is associated with movement and bilateral
symmetry, such that the animal has a definite
head end. This led to the formation of a highly
sophisticated brain in three groups of animals,
namely the arthropods, cephalopod molluscs, and
vertebrates.
❖ Body Cavity
➢ A coelom is a cavity lined by mesothelium, an
epithelium derived from mesoderm.
➢ Organs formed inside a coelom can freely move,
grow, and develop independently of the body wall
while fluid cushions and protects them from
shocks.
➢ The coelom is a structure that has evolved over
time and is only found in Kingdom Animalia.
Animals with a coelom are called coelomates or
sometimes eucoelomates, those with a 'true'
coelom. Among the coelomates, animal members
are classified as protostomes or deuterostomes,
depending on how the coelom forms during
embryonic development.
➢ There are also pseudocoelomates, or those with
a 'fake' coelom for example, roundworms and
acoelomates, those without a coelom for
example, flatworms. Their flat body types do not
allow for such a distinct body feature. The
pseudocoelom is partially lined with mesoderm
and endoderm cells versus a coelom that is
distinctly made of mesoderm cells. The
pseudocoelom functions in much the same way as
a coelom does; it is just a bit more primitive and
made of different cells.
FEEDBACK MECHANISMS
Organ System Interactions Promote Homeostasis
➔ Organ systems interact in many ways. For
example, the circulatory system exchanges
substances with other organ systems to maintain
homeostasis.
➔ The nervous system transmits information
between specific locations
➔ The information conveyed depends on a signal’s
pathway, not the type of signal
➔ Nerve signal transmission is very fast
➔ Nerve impulses can be received by neurons,
muscle cells, endocrine cells, and exocrine cells
FEEDBACK CONTROL MAINTAINS THE INTERNAL
ENVIRONMENT IN MANY ANIMALS
➔ Animals manage their internal environment by
regulating or conforming to the external
environment
➔ A regulator uses internal control mechanisms to
moderate internal change in the face of external,
environmental fluctuation
➔ A conformer allows its internal condition to vary
with certain external changes
➔ Animals may regulate some environmental
variables while conforming to others

HOMEOSTASIS
➔ Organisms use homeostasis to maintain ―steady
state‖ or internal balance regardless of external
environment
➔ In humans, body temperature, blood pH, and
glucose concentration are each maintained at a
constant level
➔ An animal’s body maintains a stable temperature,
blood pressure, and fluid composition.
MECHANISMS OF HOMEOSTASIS
➔ Mechanisms of homeostasis moderate changes in
the internal environment
➔ For a given variable, fluctuations above or below a
set point serve as a stimulus; these are detected
by a sensor and trigger a response
➔ The response returns the variable to the set point
HOW IS HOMEOSTASIS ACHIEVED?
❖ Structural:
➢ the animal or plant has particular physical features
which help its survival in an otherwise hostile
environment.
❖ Functional:
➢ the metabolism of the animal or plant is able to
adjust to changes in conditions as they are
detected.
❖ Behavioral:
➢ the actions and interactions of the individual,
either alone or with others, help it to survive in its
particular environment.
➔ Homeostasis in animal bodies is analogous to a
thermostat and heater maintaining a comfortable
room temperature.
➔ In both systems, homeostasis is maintained by
negative feedback, which is an action that
counters an existing condition.
➔ When the room is too cold, the thermostat signals
the heater to turn on. The room warms.
➔ When the room is too warm, the thermostat
signals the heater to turn off. The room cools.
➔ In both cases, the sensor detects a change from
the optimal temperature and responds by
counteracting the change.
Organ System Interactions Promote Homeostasis
➔ Many sensors in the body also use negative
feedback systems to maintain homeostasis.
FEEDBACK MECHANISMS
Feedback mechanisms are the general mechanism of
nervous or hormonal regulation in animals.
❖ Negative feedback
➢ when the response diminishes the original
stimulus.
❖ Positive feedback
➢ when the response enhances the original
stimulus.
FEEDBACK CONTROL IN HOMEOSTASIS
➔ The dynamic equilibrium of homeostasis is
maintained by negative feedback, which helps to
return a variable to a normal range
➔ Most homeostatic control systems function by
negative feedback, where buildup of the end
product shuts the system off
➔ Positive feedback amplifies a stimulus and does
not usually contribute to homeostasis in animals
NEGATIVE FEEDBACK
POSITIVE FEEDBACK
➔ A few biological functions demonstrate positive
feedback, in which the body reacts to a change
by amplifying it.
➔ Blood clotting is an example of positive
feedback—once started, it perpetuates the
activity.
Negative feedback is most common in biological
systems.
EXAMPLES OF NEGATIVE FEEDBACK
➢ Blood glucose concentrations rise after a sugary
meal (the stimulus),
➢ The hormone insulin is released and it speeds up
the transport of glucose out of the blood and into
selected tissues (the response),
➢ So blood glucose concentrations decrease (thus
decreasing the original stimulus).
➢ Exercise creates metabolic heat which raises the
body temperature (the stimulus),
➢ cooling mechanisms such as vasodilatation (flushed
skin) and sweating begin (the response),
➢ body temperature falls (thus decreasing the original
stimulus).
WHAT IS BLOOD GLUCOSE?
➔ Glucose is a type of sugar used by the body to
provide energy.
➔ Sometimes there is too much glucose in the
blood, and sometimes there is not enough.
➔ What affects the level of blood glucose?
◆ Eating causes blood glucose levels to rise.
◆ Vigorous exercise causes blood glucose levels
to fall.
CONTROLLING BLOOD GLUCOSE
➔ Between meals, blood glucose levels are topped
up from stored deposits in the liver and muscles.
➔ After a meal, blood glucose rises but quickly
returns to normal. Where does the excess go?
Why not leave it in the blood?
➔ Excess glucose makes the blood plasma and
tissue fluid around cells too concentrated. This
can severely damage cells, for example, causing
crenation in red blood cells.
➔ However, low blood sugar levels can be equally
as dangerous, as it can make cells swell up and
burst. This is called lysis.
THE PANCREAS AND BLOOD GLUCOSE
➔ Blood glucose levels are monitored and controlled
by the pancreas.
➔ The pancreas produces and releases different
hormones depending on the blood glucose level.
◆ Insulin is released when blood glucose levels
are high – the liver stores excess glucose as
glycogen.
◆ Glucagon is released when blood glucose
levels are low – the liver converts stored
glycogen into glucose and releases it into the
blood.
HOW IS TEMPERATURE CONTROLLED?
➔ Body temperature is monitored and controlled by
temperature receptors in the skin and brain.
➔ These receptors detect changes in the
temperature of blood flowing through those areas.
➔ The thermoregulatory centre in the brain is called
the hypothalamus
➔ If body temperature deviates from 37 °C, the
hypothalamus and skin receptors send out
electrical signals that trigger actions or behaviours
that increase or decrease heat loss
❖ Thermoregulation
WHY DO WE SHIVER?
➔ When core body temperature drops, muscles
begin to twitch. This rapid and contraction and
relaxation of the muscles is called shivering
➔ Shivering generates heat, which raises body
temperature.
➔ Goosebumps involuntarily appear when a person
becomes cold. Goosebumps are caused by the
tiny muscles at the base of body hairs pulling the
hairs erect.
➔ The upright hairs trap an insulating layer of air,
which helps reduce heat loss.
VASOCONSTRICTION AND WARMING UP
➔ Why do people go pale when they are cold?
➔ When core body temperature falls, blood vessels
in the skin get narrower. This is called
vasoconstriction.
➔ Vasoconstriction is caused by contraction of the
muscular wall of the blood vessels.
➔ This reduces the volume of blood flowing near the
skin surface, and reduces the amount of heat lost
from the body.
VASODILATION AND COOLING DOWN
➔ Why do people turn red when they are hot?
➔ When core body temperature rises, blood vessels
in the skin get wider. This is called vasodilation.
➔ Vasodilation allows a larger volume of blood to
flow near the skin surface, transferring heat to the
environment. This cools the body down.
➔ Additional cooling occurs with the production of
sweat from sweat glands.
➔ As the sweat evaporates it transfers heat away
from the body.
Positive feedback is less common, which is
understandable, as most changes to steady state pose
a threat, and to enhance them would be most
unhelpful.
EXAMPLES OF POSITIVE FEEDBACK
➢ A baby begins to suckle her mother's nipple and a
few drops of milk are released (the stimulus).
➢ This encourages the baby and releases a
hormone in the mother which further stimulates
the release of milk (the response).
➢ The hungry baby continues to suckle, stimulating
more milk release until she stops.
➢ A ripening apple releases the volatile plant
hormone ethylene (the stimulus).
➢ Ethylene accelerates the ripening of unripe fruit in
its vicinity so nearby fruit also ripens, releasing
more ethylene (the response).
➢ All the fruit quickly becomes ripe together.
ANIMALS REGULATE BODY TEMPERATURE
➢ the process by which animals maintain an internal
temperature within a tolerable range
➢ ―Thermoregulation is the control of body
temperature.‖
➔ The main source of an animal’s body heat may be
internal or external.
 ➔ An endotherm regulates body temperature
internally. Body temperature remains constant
because heat generated in metabolism balances
heat lost to the environment.
➔ In endotherms, the hypothalamus detects body
temperature and initiates responses that warm or
cool the body.
➔ An ectotherm thermoregulates by moving to
areas where it can gain or lose heat. Body
temperature varies with external conditions.

Endothermy and ectothermy have advantages and

disadvantages.

❖ Endotherms maintain body temperature even when

the environment is cold, allowing them to be active at
all times of the day.
❖ Ectotherms use far less energy to maintain body
temperature, so they require less food than
endotherms.

➔ In general, ectotherms tolerate greater variation in

internal temperature, while endotherms are active
at a greater range of external temperatures
➔ Endothermy is more energetically expensive than
ectothermy