BIO F5 C4

TRANSPORT
IN PLANTS
Prepared by: Ruksana Ashruf
 4.1 VASCULAR TISSUE
Vascular tissue ⇒ XYLEM & PHLOEM

 XYLEM
 Transport water & mineral salts absorbed by roots to stems & leaves
 Mechanical support for woody plants
 PHLOEM
 Transports organic comp which are synthesized by leaves via
photosynthesis to stems & roots

 Vascular plants  plants with a transport system

 Non-vascular plants  plants w/o any transport system (alga, moss)
 STRUCTURAL ADAPTATIONS –
XYLEM
XYLEM VESSELS & TRACHEIDS TO TRANSPORT WATER & MINERAL SALTS

XYLEM VESSELS
- Consists of dead cells at maturity (no cytoplasm)
- Cells are arranged longitudinally from end to end to form a continuous
tube
- This allows water to flow from roots to leaves (UPwards)
- Walls have uneven lignin thickening:
a) Give strength to xylem vessels to prevent collapsing due to tension force
& pressure changes when water moves thru it
b) Prevent plants from being bent

TRACHEID

- C.W has lignin thickening & pits to allow water movement to adjacent
cells
STRUCTURAL ADAPTATIONS –
XYLEM
 STRUCTURAL ADAPTATIONS -
PHLOEM
SIEVE TUBES & COMPANION CELLS TO TRANSPORT ORGANIC SUBSTANCE

SIEVE TUBES
- Cylindrical column, no nuclei, ribosomes, vacuoles  allows sucrose to
pass thru
- Has cytoplasm (living cell)
- Both ends have a perforated sieve plate  organic compounds can
flow from one sieve tube to the next

COMPANIAN CELLS
- Has nucleus & mitochondria to provide
energy (ATP)
 transport sucrose from leaves to sieve
tube via active transport
XYLEM VS PHLOEM
 4.2 TRANSPORT OF WATER &
MINERAL SALTS
 Movement of water & mineral salts from soil (roots) to leaves are due to:

a) TRANSPIRATIONAL PULL
- Pulling force due to evaporation of water from leaves that pulls water
from roots to leaves
- Replace water loss thru transpiration
b) CAPILLARY ACTION
- Due to adhesion force & cohesion force of water molecules upwards in
the stem against gravity
c) ROOT PRESSURE
- Mineral ions are actively pumped into the root hair cells
- Causes root hair cells to become turgid
- Moves water from soil into xylem vessels of root via osmosis
4.2 TRANSPORT OF WATER &
MINERAL SALTS
 HOW DOES WATER MOVE
FROM SOIL TO XYLEM VESSEL

 Water potential in root hair cells is lower than water in the soil
 Due to mineral ions being actively pumped by root hair cells into the vacuole
 Causes cell sap of root hair to have low water potential than soil
 Water from soil diffuses into root hair cells & epidermis via osmosis
 High water potential in root hair cells causes water to diffuse from root hair
cells into cortex via osmosis
 Osmosis continuously occur throughout cortex, endodermis & pericycle layers
 Causes root pressure to push water into xylem vessels of root & then into stem
 HOW DOES WATER MOVE IN
THE XYLEM VESSEL
• For tall plants, root pressure CANNOT transport water to the leavesMovement of
water molecule in the xylem vessel is helped by the capillary action of xylem
produced by adhesion and cohesion forces and also transpirational pull
• Adhesion and cohesion forces produce a pulling force which continuously moves
water in the xylem vessel
• When transpiration process happens, water diffuse out as water vapour from the
spaces between the cells to the surroundings through opened stoma.
• Spongy mesophyll cells lose water and they have low water potential towards
adjacent cells.
• Water molecules diffuse from neighbouring cells via spongy mesophyll cells by
osmosis.
• This movement produces a force called transpirational pull that pulls water
molecules in the xylem vessel of the leaves to the outside of the leaves.
 GUTTATION
 Secretion of water droplets through a special structure at the end
of the leaf veins w/o involving the stomata caused by a high root
pressure

 Occurs when the root pressure and the transpiration rate is LOW.
 Usually occurs at night and early morning when the air humidity is high
and the surrounding temp is low.
 Root pressure formed pushes water to the leaves and stems of the plant.

SIMILARITIES BTWN GUTTATION & TRANSPIRATION

 Occur through the leaves
 Causes permanent water loss from plant
 GUTTATION
DIFFERENCES BTWN GUTTATION & TRANSPIRATION
GUTTATION
• At night & early morning (cold)
• In herbaceous plants
• Water released as water droplets
• Water released thru special
structure at end of leaf veins
(hydathodes)
• Happens when root pressure is
high
• Released mineral-rich water
TRANSPIRATION
• On hot & windy days
• All plants
• Water released as water vapour
• Water released thru stomata
• Controlled by stomatal opening &
closing
• Released pure water
 CONDITION OF PLANTS
THAT DON’T UNDERGO:
1. GUTTATION
- W/o guttation, effective root pressure CANNOT be maintained
- Water absorption by root hair cells is disrupted in a surrounding with
high relative humidity.
- Plant waste substances CANNOT be eliminated.
- Leaf vein pressure becomes high and causes the leaf vein to burst.
- Leads to the leaves being exposed to pathogen and eventually fall
2. TRANSPIRATION
- W/o transpiration, optimum temp of plants CANNOT be maintained.
- Increase in temp can denature enzymes and disrupt biochemical
processes such as photosynthesis and respiration.
- Mineral ions (K+) CANNOT be transported from the roots to the leaves for
photosynthesis.
- Water transport throughout the plants will be disrupted and causing the
plants to wilt.
- Plants can die in the long run.
 4.3 TRANSLOCATION
 Process of transporting organic substances such as sucrose,
amino acids and hormones in the phloem from the leaves to other
parts of the plant such as the roots and stem.

IMPORTANCE OF TRANSLOCATION
 Transport photosynthetic products (sucrose) from the leaves to other
parts of the plant that need them for growth and respiration such as
roots, fruits, tip of shoots or developing flowers.
 Transports EXCESS photosynthetic products to other parts of the plants
(storage organs) such as rhizomes, tubers and bulbs in the form of
starch
 4.4 PHYTOREMEDIATION
 One of the treatment methods which uses plants for the purpose of
degradation, extraction or elimination of pollute substances from soil
and water.

 Examples of plants used is Eichhornia crassipes (water hyacinth)

 It has long roots which can accumulate heavy metals (Cu, Pb) in water

Restored
land

Phytoremediation

Contaminated land
 USES OF PHYTOREMEDIATION
1. Sunflowers are used for remediation of soil polluted by the explosion of
the nuclear plant in Chernobyl, Russia.
- acts as hyperaccumulator which can eliminate heavy metals (zinc,
chromium, copper, lead, nickel) & radioactive substances (caesium,
strontium)
2. Pistia stratiotes (water lettuce plant)  fast growth rate
- can accumulate heavy metals & absorb nutrients in the waste plant
3. Roots of ground water spinach
- absorb mercury from the soil
4. Roots of river water spinach
- absorb heavy metals such as cadmium from water
 THANK
YOU!
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