Plant Biology and Microbiology Review

Vocabulary and key concepts related to plant biology and microbiology.

Sporophyte

Diploid stage in the plant life cycle that produces spores.

Gametophyte

Haploid stage in the plant life cycle that produces gametes.

Bacterial transformation

Uptake of naked DNA from the environment by bacteria.

Bacterial transduction

Transfer of DNA via bacteriophage (virus) to bacteria.

Bacterial conjugation

Direct DNA transfer between bacteria using a pilus.

Pilus

A protein tube that facilitates DNA transfer during bacterial conjugation.

Phylogeny branch point

Represents a common ancestor in an evolutionary tree.

Fossil record limitations

Fossils are rare, biased, and mostly preserve hard parts.

Oxygen absence

Oxygen was absent before life evolved on Earth.

Domain of protists

Protists belong to the domain Eukarya.

Mitochondria vs Chloroplasts

All eukaryotes have mitochondria; only some have chloroplasts.

Secondary endosymbiosis

Occurrence when plastids have 3-4 membranes.

Photoautotroph

Organism that uses light energy and CO₂ for energy.

Photoheterotroph

Organism that uses light energy and organic carbon for energy.

Chemoheterotroph

Organism that uses chemical energy and organic carbon for energy.

Direct ancestor of land plants

Charophyte green algae.

Ground tissue types corresponding to parenchyma, collenchyma, sclerenchyma

These tissues are types of plant ground tissue.

Tuber

A swollen underground stem in plants.

Ediacaran period successor

The Cambrian period follows the Ediacaran.

Evolutionary reversal example

Snakes losing legs exemplifies evolutionary reversal.

Synapomorphy

A shared derived trait among a group of organisms.

Plant major parts

The two major parts of a plant are the shoot system and the root system.

Casparian strip

A suberin barrier in the endodermis that regulates water entry.

Casparian strip function

Prevents backflow and controls entry into vascular tissue.

Water movement in plants

Occurs through the cohesion-tension mechanism in xylem.

Sugar movement in plants

Involves the pressure-flow mechanism in phloem.

Stomata opening cause

K⁺ enters guard cells, causing water to enter and cells to swell.

Stomata closing cause

ABA increases leading to K⁺ exiting, causing water exit and cells to shrink.

Contractile vacuoles

Used by protists to pump out excess water.

Shoot system structure

The shoot system is composed of stems and leaves.

Phloem function

Transports sugars throughout the plant.

Xylem function

Transports water and minerals in plants.

Collenchyma characteristic

Cells that have unevenly thickened walls.

Sclerenchyma characteristic

Cells that have lignified, dead walls.

Parenchyma characteristic

Thin-walled and living plant cells.

Unique structure of angiosperms

Flowers are unique to angiosperms.

Unique structure of gymnosperms

Cones are unique to gymnosperms.

Gametophyte production

Gametophyte structure produces gametes in plants.

Sporophyte production

Sporophyte structure produces spores in plants.

Monophyletic group

Includes a common ancestor and all its descendants.

Homoplasy definition

A similar trait that evolved independently in different species.

Evolutionary reversal definition

A return to an ancestral trait.

Order of plant evolution

Bryophytes → seedless vascular → gymnosperms → angiosperms.

Order of major eukaryotic evolution

Mitochondria → chloroplasts → multicellular eukaryotes.

Closest algal group to land plants

Green algae (charophytes) are the closest to land plants.

Brown algae pigment

Fucoxanthin is the pigment found in brown algae.

Red algae pigment

Phycoerythrin is the pigment found in red algae.

Birdhouse tree growth example

A nailed birdhouse remains at the same height as a tree grows.

Peptidoglycan function

Found in bacterial cell walls.

Suberin definition

Waxy material that makes up the Casparian strip.

Endodermis function

Regulates entry of water and minerals into xylem.