Sexual Reproduction In Animals and Plants

Differences between sexual and asexual reproduction

Advantages and disadvantages of each type of reproduction

How plants reproduce

Reproduction can be asexual or sexual

 Asexual reproduction – single parent passes copies of all its genes to

offspring
 Offspring is a clone of its parent
 Prokaryotes and some eukaryotes can reproduce asexually

 Sexual reproduction – two parents form reproductive cells that have

half the number of chromosomes of parents
 Offspring have traits of each parent but is genetically different from each
 Eukaryotes can reproduce asexually
Asexual Reproduction

Types Advantages/Disadvantages
 Fission  Asexual reproduction simplest
and most primitive form of
 Fragmentation reproduction

 Budding  Produce many offspring in short

period of time

 Little genetic variation –

problem in changing
environment
Sexual Reproduction

Evolution
 May have evolved from
mechanisms used by early life to
repair DNA
 Only diploid cells can do DNA
repair
 Many enzymes that are involved
in DNA repair are also involved
in meiosis
Advantages/Disadvantages
 Organism must use energy to
produce gametes and find mate
 Quickly makes different
combinations of genes – creates
genetic diversity which is the
raw material of evolution
Sexual Life Cycles of Eukaryotes

 Animals have a diploid life cycle – life cycle is dominated by diploid

stage – which produces haploid gametes – which fuse to form diploid
zygote

 Plants have a life cycle that alternates between diploid and haploid
 Diploid phase in plants called sporophytes
 Sporophytes produce haploid spores by meiosis
 Spores develop into haploid multicellular individuals called gametophytes
without fusing with another cell
 Gametophyte produces haploid gametes by mitosis.
 Gametes fuse and give rise to the diploid phase
Plant Life Cycle

 Complex plants have

sporophytes and gametophytes
that appear very different

 In mosses, the haploid

gametophyte is dominant

 In flowering plants, the diploid

sporophyte generation is
dominant
Reproduction in Seed Plants

 Seed plant gametophytes are

made up of only a few cells

 Male gametophytes produce

pollen
Ovule

 Female gametophytes develop

within an ovule – which is part
of the sporophyte. After
fertilization by pollen – the
ovule and its contents develop
into a seed

 Seed plants can reproduce

sexually without water –wind,
insects and birds carry pollen to
the female parts of the plant -
pollination
Seeds

 Seeds contain the embryos of

plants

 An embryo is a new sporophyte

 Outer layers of ovule harden to

form protective seed coat

 Leaf-like structures called

cotyledons are part of plant
embryo – they provide nutrients to
embryo
Flowers

 Gametophytes develop within

flowers

 Outermost whorl = sepals

 Second whorl = petals (these are

brightly colored to attract birds
and insects)
 Stamen – produces pollen;
consists of anther and filament

 Pistil – produces ovules; consists

of ovary, style and stigma
(sticky part where pollen sticks)
Fruit

 Structure of the plant that

contains the seed

 Develops from one or more of

the flower’s ovaries

 Apples, tomatoes, avocados,

cucumbers, pumpkins, okra –
anything that contains seed(s) is
a fruit
Vegetables
Other part of plant that we eat – leaf, root, stem…

Any part of the plant that we eat that does not contain the seed

Celery, carrots, potatoes, spinach, etc….

Parts of plant not directly involved in reproduction