Plant Kingdom Lecture Notes

Vocabulary flashcards covering the classification, characteristics, and economic importance of the Plant Kingdom, including Algae, Bryophytes, Pteridophytes, and Gymnosperms.

Cryptogams

Non-seeded plants that produce spores instead of seeds, including Thallophyte, Bryophytes, and Pteridophyte.

Phanerogams

Seed-bearing plants also known as Spermatophyta, classified into Gymnosperms and Angiosperms.

Artificial system of classification

A classification system used for $2000$ years based on superficial morphological characters.

Natural system of classification

A system based on natural affinity towards characters such as cytological, morphological, and embryological features.

Phylogenetic system

A classification system based on evolutionary and genetic relationships, often utilizing fossil records.

Numerical taxonomy

A computerized classification method that assigns codes or numbers to each character.

Cytotaxonomy

Taxonomy based on cytological information such as chromosome number, cell structure, and cell behavior.

Chemotaxonomy

Taxonomy based on the chemical constituents or secondary metabolites of plants, such as amino acids and hormones.

Thalloid

A plant body that is not differentiated into roots, stems, or leaves.

Isogamous

Sexual reproduction involving the fusion of two morphologically similar gametes.

Anisogamous

Sexual reproduction involving the fusion of two dissimilar gametes where the male is typically more motile than the female.

Oogamous

Sexual reproduction involving a motile male gamete and a non-motile female gamete.

Chlorophyceae

Green algae containing Chlorophyll a and b, with starch as the reserved food and cell walls made of cellulose and pectose.

Pyrenoids

Storage bodies located in the chloroplasts of Chlorophyceae that contain protein and starch.

Phaeophyceae

Brown algae containing pigments like Chlorophyll a, c, and Fucoxanthin, which gives them an olive green to brown color.

Algin

A gelatinous substance (phycocolloid) extracted from the outer cell walls of brown algae used as an emulsifier and thickener.

Rhodophyceae

Red algae characterized by the dominant pigment r-phycoerythrin, which allows them to absorb high-energy blue-green light at great depths.

Floridean starch

The reserve food in red algae, which is structurally similar to amylopectin and glycogen.

Agar

A commercial product yielded from Gelidium and Gracilaria used for growing microbes and in products like ice cream and jellies.

Bryophytes

Known as the "Amphibians of Plant Kingdom," these non-vascular plants live in soil but depend on water for fertilization.

Protonema

The first creeping, green, branched, and filamentous stage of the gametophyte in mosses.

Gemmae

Green, multicellular, asexual buds produced in gemma cups in liverworts like Marchantia.

Pteridophytes

Known as the "Reptiles of plant kingdom," they are the first terrestrial plants to possess vascular tissues (xylem and phloem).

Prothallus

The small, inconspicuous, photosynthetic thalloid gametophyte of pteridophytes.

Gymnosperms

Plants with "naked seeds" where ovules are not enclosed by an ovary wall and remain exposed before and after fertilization.

Sequoia

A giant redwood tree and one of the tallest gymnosperm species, reaching heights of up to $100\,m$.

Mycorrhiza

A symbiotic association between fungal hyphae and the roots of certain gymnosperms like Pinus.

Coralloid roots

Specialized roots found in Cycas that are associated with nitrogen-fixing cyanobacteria like Nostoc and Anabaena.

Microsporophyll

The male leaf-like structure in gymnosperms that produces microspores (pollen grains).

Megasporophyll

The female leaf-like structure in gymnosperms that bears megasporangia and produces megaspores.

Ephedrin

An antibiotic prepared from the gymnosperm Ephedra used to treat respiratory diseases like asthma.

Taxol

An anti-cancer drug extracted from the gymnosperm Taxus.