Plant Systems Review

Plant Systems

Now that we’ve covered humans, let’s move on to plants. Here we will be observing plant systems to see how they work.

Heirarchy of Biological Organization

*** The hierarchy of biological organization, from simplest to most complex, includes atoms, molecules, organelles, cells, tissues, organs, organ systems, organisms, populations, communities, ecosystems, and the biosphere. But we will only focus on cells, tissues, organs, organ systems, and organisms.

*** This organization is the same for plants and animals. They just look different.

Importance of Cells

EVERY LIVING THING IS MADE OF CELLS!!!

• The larger the organism, the more cells. The smaller the organism, the less cells.

• Scientists estimate that there are 37.2 trillion cells in the human body (37,200,000,000,000).

• All cells are organized.

• As multicellular organisms grow, cells divide to produce/make new cells.

• The first cells made can become any type of cell (these are stem cells)

Thus, cell differentiation.

Cell Differentiation

*** Cell differentiation is the process by which cells become different types of cells.

• Animal (stem) cells can become muscle cells, nerve cells, blood cells, bone cells, or skin cells. But they might also specialize to function for the organism’s needs.

• Plant (stem) cells can become specialized cells as well.

*** Cell differentiation also takes place in plants.

• However, plants have different types of cells with specialized structures & functions.

• They make food, store food, protect the plant, or transport materials.

• These cells might become parts of stems, leaves, flowers, or roots.

Animal Tissue Types

Remember that all organs are made up of tissues? Let’s take a look at different types of tissues.

*** An organ is a group of different tissues working together to perform a particular job.

For example, take the animal heart.

There are four different types of tissues found in the body.

• Muscle Tissue – cardiac muscle, smooth muscle, & skeletal muscle. (these were covered in muscular system earlier on)

• Epithelial Tissue – the skin surface & lining of the GI tract organs, plus other hollow organs like bronchioles & fallopian tubes.

• Nervous Tissue – nervous tissue of the brain, spinal cord & nerves

• Connective Tissue – fat, bone & tendon. Blood is a specialized connective tissue!

Let’s take a look at how they work specifically in the heart.

❤Muscle Tissue pumps blood out of the heart to the rest of the body.

❤Epithelial Tissue lines blood vessels. This allows blood to flow smoothly through the organ.

❤Nervous Tissue controls the beating of the heart.

❤Connective Tissue is found in the walls of blood vessels.

Plant Tissue Types

There are 2 divisions of plants.

• Vascular plants

  • Like Angiosperms are vascular plants that produce flowers and make their seeds in fruit. *They are the largest and most diverse group within the kingdom Plantae, with about 300,000 species.

  • Gymosperms are vascular plants that have exposed seeds, or ovule – unlike angiosperms, or flowering pants, whose seeds are enclosed by mature ovaries or fruits. Conifers, trees with cones, are the largest group of these. Ginkgo trees and their round trees are also included.

  • Ferns are vascular plants that reproduce via spores & have no seeds or flowers.

• Non-Vascular Plants

  • Don’t have tubelike tissues to move water and food.

  • They don’t have true stems and leaves.

  • Example: moss

There are 3 types of tissue in plants.

• Dermal Tissue

  • Covers the outer surface of a leaf, (epidermis for humans)

  • Helps to minimize water loss (similar function to our skin)

  • Stomata located here

  • Has lateral outgrowths called root hairs.

• Ground Tissue

  • The leaf contains ground tissue that produces food for the rest of the body. This makes the leaf a vital organ.

  • Makes up most of the plant interior

  • Has different kinds of tissue

  • Help with storage, and photosynthesis takes place in the ground tissue, more specifically, in the chloroplast.

• Vascular Tissue

  • Moves water, as well as the food produced by photosynthesis, throughout the leaf and the rest of the plant.

  • Transports water and nutrients from one part of a plant to another

  • Comprised of the xylem and the phloem, the main transport systems of plants.

• Xylem and Phloem Tissues

  • Xylem Tissue

    • Transport water and minerals from the roots to the stems and leaves.

    • Comprised of hollow tubes.

  • Phloem Tissue

    • Transport dissolved sugars from the leaves to the rest of the plant for use or storage.

    • Composed of elongated walls which contain pres in their end walls to allow cell sap to move from one phloem cell to the next.

Similarities and Differences Between Plants and Animals

There are lots of similarities between plants and animals, such as the need of glucose/sugars, oxygen and carbon dioxide, the need to excrete waste, and absorption of nutrients.

• Gas Exchange

  • Humans

    • This happens in the lungs of humans. More specifically, in the alveoli.

  • Plants

    • This happens in the leaves of plants. More specifically, the stomata. Therefore, leaves are like the “lungs” of plants. And stomata are like the “alveoli” of plants.

    • Plants also conduct transpiration through the leaves. Think of this like “sweating” plants.

  • Stomata

    • The “alveoli” of plants.

    • Transpiration occurs here.

    • Plants also excrete waste (like carbon dioxide, oxygen, and excess water)

    • Allow gas exchange 

    • Protected by a pair of bean-shaped guard cells that regulate its opening and closing.

• Xylem & Phloem vs Blood

  • Humans

    • Blood is the highway for all nutrients, gases and hormones. It carries things to and from the body.

  • Xylem only moves water and ONLY MOVES UPWARDS.

  • Phloem moves food and MOVES BOTH WAYS

• Tissue Types

  • Humans:

    • 4

      • Epithelial – lines organs

      • Connective – fat, bone, & tendon, INCLUDING BLOOD

      • Nervous – nervous tissue (this should be obvious)

      • Muscle – Cardiac, smooth, and skeletal.

  • Plants:

    • 3

      • Dermal – outer surface

      • Ground – PHOTOSYNTHESIS occurs here, and its pretty much everything that’s not dermal and vascular.

      • Vascular – moves water

Plant Organ Systems

While humans have 11 organ systems, plants only have two – roots and shoots.

• Shoot System

  • Includes leaves and stems and flowers

  • Food, minerals, & water are transported throughout the plant via shoot system.

  • The shoot system is everything ABOVE THE GROUND

• Root System

  • Rarely seen, but they are vital to a plant’s survival.

  • Only part of a plant that ABSORB water and nutrients from the soil

  • Not only essential in the means that it absorbs water and nutrients, it also anchors the plant, either in soil or onto another plant or object.

Organisms

Let’s backtrack a little bit and review organisms? What makes a living thing a living thing? Let’s review!

An organism is the highest level in the hierarchical organization of plants and animals. An organis is something that has or once had all the characteristics of life. Multicellular organisms usually have many organ systems. These systems work together to carry out all the jobs needed for the survival of the organism. Each organ system depends on the others and cannot work alone to kee the organism functioning.

• All organisms rely on their organ systems working together.

  • The cells in the muscle tissue of the stomach cannot survive without oxygen.

  • The stomach cannot get oxygen without working together with the respiratory and circulatory systems.

  • The respiratory system bring oxygen in the body.

  • The circulatory system delivers the oxygen to the cells in the organism.

• Like animals, plants have organ systems that work together to keep the organism alive.

  • The cells in the leaves & the stems of a plant need water to live, but they cannot absorb water directly.

  • Water diffuses into rutes and is transported through the stem to the leaves by the short, or transport, system.

  • Like animals, plants are a group of systems. They can only grow, reproduce, and survive if each part is carrying out its function. They need every cell, tissue, organ, and organ system to be a functioning organism.

Sexual and Asexual Reproduction

TYPES OF ASEXUAL REPRODUCTION

Each new organism is genetically identical to its parent. Learn more about different types below:

• Regeneration

  • Occurs when an offspring grows from a piece of its parent.

  • Examples include sea stars.

  • Think of it as regrowing from parts of a body.

• Budding

  • Orgamism grows on the body of the parent plant

  • Genetically identical

  • When the bud matures, it can break from the parent and live on its own.

  • However, in some cases, the bud remains attached to its parent. This starts to form a colony. An example of this is the hydra.

• Vegetative Reproduction

  • This can happen in many different ways, but in most cases, it involves structures such as the roots, stems, & leaves of plants.

  • Potatoes can sprout and grow into another plant that is genetically identical to the parent plant.

  • Raspberries, geraniums, strawberries, and peppermint can reproduce by sending out long horizontal stems called stolons or runners.

    • Whenever the stolon touches the ground, it can produce roots

    • When the stolon has grown roots, a new plant can grow – even if the stolons hav ebeen broken off from the parent plant.

Types of Sexual Reproduction

Each new organism is genetically different from the parents. Both plants and animals can do this. For both plants and animals, the sperm fertilizes an egg to form a zygote that grows into a new, unique organism.

• Plants

  • Plant sperm is usually pollen.

Take note of this diagram. This is likely to be tested over!

• Animals