Biology

Photosynthesis and Plant Growth (CH 1)

★ Definitions
➔ Carbohydrate - compound made from carbon, hydrogen and
oxygen
➔ Glucose - sugar made by digesting carbohydrates or by
photosynthesis
➔ Photosynthesis - chemical reaction inside chloroplasts in plant
cells that uses energy from light, carbon dioxide and water to
produce oxygen and glucose
➔ Product - the new substance produced in a chemical reaction
➔ Reactant - the substance being changed in a chemical reaction
➔ Biomass -mass of all the compounds in an organism
➔ Diffusion - the movement of particles from the region of
higher concentration to the region of lower concentration
➔ Chloroplasts - green part of a plant cell where photosynthesis
happens
➔ Chlorophyll - green substance in chloroplasts that cultures
light to get energy for photosynthesis
➔ Producers - organisms that produce their own food
➔ Consumers - organisms that feed on other organisms
➔ Endothermic - process in which the products of a reaction
store more energy than the reactants
➔ Evaporation - when a liquid becomes a gas.
➔ Xylem cell - plant cell that is adapted to form hollow tubes to
transport water
➔ Phloem cell - plant cell that is adapted to form living tubes to
transport sugars and other substances
★ Photosynthesis
➔ Equation: carbon dioxide + water → glucose + oxygen
6CO2 + 6H2O → C6H12O6 + 6O2
➔ Reactants: carbon dioxide and water
➔ Products: glucose and oxygen
➔ Glucose - sugar / a small soluble carbohydrate
➔ Glucose usage: For energy and to make storage materials
➔ Glucose is converted into starch during photosynthesis.
➔ When it’s dark, starch is turned back into glucose and
transported to different parts of the plant.
➔ Photosynthesis - Endothermic reaction
➔ Plants - producers (make their own food)
➔ Animals - consumers (feed on other organisms)
➔ The energy stored in plants’ biomass is passed to the
consumer.
➔ The availability of light, carbon dioxide, temperature and the
amount of chlorophyll affect the rate of photosynthesis.

★ Section through a Leaf

 ➔ Guard cell - helps form stoma in a leaf to allow gases in and
out
➔ Stoma(ta) - hole in a leaf to allow gasses in and out formed
between two guard cells

★ Water and Gas Exchange

➔ Root hair cells - specialised cells that have a large surface area
- can absorb water quickly
➔ The gases move in and out by diffusion.
➔ Guard cells can change shape to open and close the stomata.
(allow leaf to control the movement of gases and water loss)
➔ More stomata on the underside of the leaf than on top
➔ Water evaporates inside the lead → water vapour is lost from
the leaf by diffusion through the stomata

★ Water
➔ Water - constant supply for photosynthesis and for support
➔ Essential part of plant (95% of the total mass)
➔ Plants store a lot of water in vacuoles (cell saps)
➔ Turgid - when the cell is swollen and stiff as it is full of water
❖ The water in the vacuole and cytoplasm pushes outwards
❖ Cell wall stops the cell from bursting
❖ Cells push out against each other (gives the plant support)
❖ Plant stays upright
➔ Flaccid - when the cell is bendy as it loses too much water
❖ Vacuole shrinks
❖ Cell membrane pulls away from the cell wall
❖ Cells don’t push out against each other (plant loses support)
❖ Plant wilt
 ★ Movement of Water and Sugar
➔ Water travels in one direction only
➔ Water is carried in xylem cells
➔ Specialised xylem cells die and the walls between them
disappear which leaves hollow tubes called xylem vessels
➔ Transpiration - movement of water through a plant
➔ The speed of transpiration depends on the conditions around
the plant
➔ Sugars made in the leaves are transported to all parts of the
plant in phloem cells.

★ Mineral Salts
➔ Different plants need different minerals in different quantities.
➔ If plants don’t get the elements needed from mineral salts, they
have deficiency symptoms.

Element Usage Deficiency symptom

Nitrogen To make proteins so that the plant Reduced plant growth
can grow and repair itself
Phosphorus For respiration and growth Reduced plant growth
Potassium To help plants absorb and The edges of leaves turn
transport water brown
Magnesium To make chlorophyll The plant turns yellow due
to a lack of chlorophyll
Sexual Reproduction in Flowering Plants (CH 2)

★ Definitions
➔ Stamen - part of a flower containing male reproductive organs
➔ Carpel - part of a flower containing female reproductive
organs
➔ Ovules - contain the female gametes, made and stored in ovary
➔ Pollen grains: contain male gametes made in anther
➔ Nectar: sugary liquid made by plants which rely on animal
pollination
➔ Pollen tube: hollow tube that grows from a pollen grain

★ Some Notes
➔ Plants are multicellular organisms (made of many cells).
➔ Function of flower - contain sexual organs to reproduce
➔ Sex cells - gametes

★ Structure of Flower

➔ Petal - to attract animals

 ➔ Nectary - produces nectar that insects feed on
➔ Anther - produces pollens that contain male gamete
➔ Filament - supports anther
➔ Stigma - sticky structure to receive pollen grains
➔ Style - supports stigma and connects stigma and ovary
➔ Ovary - produces female gamete and later will develop into
fruit
➔ Ovule - female gamete and produces seeds after fertilisation
➔ Sepals - protects flower bud before blossom and protects petals
➔ Stem - supports flower to be elevated
➔ Receptacle - connects stem and flower

★ Pollination
➔ Transfer of pollen grains from an anther to a stigma in a flower
of the same species
➔ Self-pollination - pollen grain is transferred to a stigma in the
same flower or a flower on the same plant
➔ Cross-pollination - pollen grain is transferred to a different
plant of the same species

Self-pollination Cross-pollination
Advantages Successful pollination is more Produces offspring with lots of
likely variation - more likely to
survive a new disease or
environment
Disadvantages Produces offspring without Requires wind or animals to
offspring - it may not survive transfer pollen - less likely to
a new disease or environment succeed
★ Animal Pollination
➔ Agent - animals
➔ To attract animals - brightly coloured petals and produce
nectar
➔ Most insects can detect ultraviolet(UV) light
➔ When the animal visits the flower to drink nectar, it rubs
against the anthers and pollen grains stick to its body and when
it moves to another flower, pollen grains may transfer onto the
stigma.
➔ Pollen grains are covered in spikes to make the grains more
likely to stick to an animal’s body.

★ Wind Pollination
➔ Agent - wind
➔ Flowers are very small, plain green or brown and produce very
little or no scent or nectar (they don’t need to attract animals)
➔ Anthers are hung outside the flowers so the wind is able to
carry the pollen grains away
➔ Stigmas are hung outside the flowers to catch pollen grains
carried by the wind.
➔ Release huge numbers of very light, smooth pollen grins to
make it easy for the grains to be carried by the wind.

★ Fertilisation
➔ When the pollen grain has landed on the stigma, a pollen tube
begins to grow from the pollen grain, through the style and
towards the ovary.
➔ When the pollen tube reaches an ovule inside the ovary, the
nucleus from the pollen grain and the nucleus from the ovule
join together.
➔ Fertilisation - the fusion of nuclei from the ovule and pollen
grain
➔ A fertilised ovule becomes a seed.
➔ The ovary becomes the fruit.
➔ If the ovary contained lots of ovules and were fertilised, the
fruit will have lots of seeds. (E.g. a watermelon)
➔ If there was only one ovule, there will be only one seed. (E.g.
cherry)