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DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS OF PHYLA

The four main groups of land plants are the bryophytes, pteridophytes, gymnosperms,
and angiosperms. Bryophytes are different from algae in that they have several
evolutionary adaptations to living on land, most of which are reproductive. This group
includes liverworts, hornworts, and mosses. The group of vascular plants consists of
plants with vascular tissue,
tissue in which cells are joined into tubes that transport water
and nutrients throughout the plant body. The pteridophytes,
pteridophytes the group containing
lycophytes, ferns, and horsetails, are sometimes referred to as seedless plants because
they have no seed stage in their life cycle. In contrast, the gymnosperms and
angiosperms are seed plants. Seeds are plant embryos packed with a food supply into
a protective coat. Examples of gymnosperms are ginkgos, cycads, and conifers. Most
modern-day plant species are angiosperms, also known as flowering plants.

ADAPTATIONS OF LAND PLANTS

Apical Meristems

Terrestrial plants need light and carbon dioxide from the air, while also requiring water and mineral
nutrients in the soil. As a result, most plants have roots and leaf-bearing shoots to allow for maximum
exposure to environmental resources. Growth in length is sustained by the activity of apical
meristems,
meristems localized regions of cell division at tips of shoots and roots. The cells produced by these
meristems differentiate into a plant’s various tissues and also generate leaves in most plants.

Multicellular, Dependent Embryos

Zygotes that are kept within tissues of the female parent give rise to multicellular plant embryos,
which are provided with nutrients from the parental tissues. The embryo has placental transfer cells
that enhance this transfer of nutrients. This is similar to the system in placental mammals. Land
plants are also known as embryophytes,
embryophytes a distinction recognizing multicellular, dependent embryos as
a derived characteristic common to the land plant clade.

Alternation of Generations

The gametophyte and sporophyte generations are the two multicellular body forms that alternate in
the life cycle of land plants. Cells of the gametophyte are haploid and produce gametes. Fusion of
eggs and sperm during fertilization results in diploid zygotes. Mitotic division of the zygote results in
the multicellular, diploid sporophyte.
sporophyte Meiosis in a mature sporophyte will result in haploid
reproductive cells called spores. A spore is a reproductive cell that can develop into a new organism
without fusing with another cell. Mitotic division then produces new multicellular gametophytes.
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Remember – alternation of generations is a special type of haploid ↔ diploid sexual cycle because both
stages can be multicellular.

Walled Spores Produced in Sporangia

Plant spores are haploid reproductive cells with the potential to grow into multicellular, haploid
gametophytes by mitosis. A polymer called sporopollenin,
sporopollenin the most durable organic material known,
makes the walls of plants spores strong and protects from harsh environments. Multicellular organs
called sporangia found on the sporophyte generation of a plant, produce spores. Within a sporangium,
spore mother cells undergo mitosis and generate the haploid spores. The outer tissues of the
sporangium protect developing spores until they are ready to be released into the air.

Multicellular Gametangia

The gametophyte forms of bryophytes, pteridophytes, and gymnosperms all produce their gametes in
multicellular organs called gametangia.
gametangia The female gametangia are called archegonia,
archegonia with each
archegonium producing a single egg cell and retaining it within the base of the organ. Male
gametangia, called antheridia,
antheridia produce many sperm cells that are released to the environment upon
maturity. The sperm cells bear flagella and swim through water droplets or films to eggs. Fertilization
takes place within archegonia, where the zygote will begin developing into an embryo.

Other Terrestrial Adaptations Common to Many Land Plants

I n order to conserve water, the epidermis of leaves and other aerial parts of most land plants is coated
with a cuticle,
cuticle a layer consisting of polymers called polyesters and waxes. The cuticle helps protect
the plant from microbial attack and the waxy nature prevents excessive water loss. The epidermis of
leaves and other photosynthetic organs have pores called stomata that allow exchange of gases
between the outside air and leaf interior. Changes in the shapes of the cells bordering the stomata can
close the pores to minimize water loss.

Excluding bryophytes, land plants have true roots, stems, and leaves, which are defined by the
presence of vascular tissue. The two types of tissue are xylem and phloem,
phloem with xylem carrying water
and minerals up from the roots, and phloem distributing nutrients (sugars, amino acids, and other
organic products) throughout the plant.

Land plants also produce secondary compounds such as alkaloids, terpenes, tannins, and phenolics.
Some of these compounds have bitter tastes, strong odors, or toxic effects that help defend land
plants against herbivores. Adiditonally, Flavonoids absorb harmful UV radiation while some phenolics
deter attack by pathogenic microbes.
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ALTERNATION OF GENERATIONS

Bryophytes

Gametophytes are the most conspicuous, dominant phase of life history, with
sporophytes being typically smaller and present only part of the time. If bryophyte
spores are dispersed to a favorable habitat, they may germinate and grow into
gametophytes by mitosis. Germinating moss spores typically produce a mass of
green, branched, one-cell-thick filaments known as protonema.
protonema They have a large
surface area in order to easily absorb water and minerals. Once sufficient resources
are available, a protonema will produce buds with tissue-producing meristems.
These meristems generate the mature, gamete-producing structure known as a
gametophore.
gametophore Remember: protonema + gametophore = gametophyte (moss)

Bryophyte gametophytes are generally only one to a few cells thick in

order to place all cells close to water and dissolved minerals. Most are
only a few centimeters tall, growing close to the ground, anchored by
rhizoids,
rhizoids which are long, tubular single cells or filaments of cells. They
differ from the roots of vascular plants because they are not composed
of tissue, lack specialized conducting cells, and do not play a primary
role in water and mineral absorption.

Because the structures of bryophytes do not have lignin-coated

vascular cells, they are not true stems and leaves.

Bryophyte sporophytes disperse enormous amounts. These spores stay

attached to the female gametophytes throughout their life, continuing
to be dependent on the gametophyte for sugars, amino acids, minerals,
and water. Moss sporophytes consist of a foot,
foot an elongated stalk
known as a seta,
seta and a spore-producing organ known as the
sporangium or capsule.
capsule An immature capsule is covered with the
calyptras,
calyptras a protective cap of gametophyte tissue, lost when the
capsule is ready to release spores. The upper part of the capsule,
known as a peristome,
peristome is often specialized for gradual spore discharge.
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Pteridophytes: Seedless Vascular Plants

The first instance of a sporophyte-dominant life cycle can be seen in seedless vascular plants. The
sporophyte of a homosporous plant produces one type of spore. Each spore will develop into a
bisexual gametophyte having both female and male sex organs, with the gametangia being called
archegonia and antheridia. In contrast, sporophytes of heterosporous plant produce megaspores
(female gametophytes with archegonia) and microspores (male gametophytes with antheridia). Most
ferns are heterosporous. It is also important to note that the sperm cells of ferns and all other seedless
vascular plants are flagellated and must swim through a film of water to reach eggs, as in bryophytes.

Seed plant evolution resulted in the gymnosperms and angiosperms. The three most important
reproductive adaptations are:

1. Continued reduction of the gametophyte: In bryophytes, the sporophyte was dependent on the
gametophyte for nutrients. In pteridophytes (ferns), the large sporophyte and the small
gametophytes were independent of each other. However, in seed plants, the gametophyte is
dependent on the sporophyte and derives nutrition from the sporophyte.
2. Advent of the seed: Spores were previously used by plants to spread themselves across the Earth.
A seed consists of a sporophyte embryo packaged along with a food supply in a protective coat.
Seed plants have two different types of sporangia that produce different spores – megasporangia
produce megaspores, which give rise to female gametophytes (egg-containing) and
microsporangia produce microspores, which give rise to male gametophytes (sperm-containing).
3. Evolution of pollen: Microspores develop into pollen grains, protected by tough sporopollenin-
containing coats. The use of resistant, far-traveling, airborne pollen to bring gametes together is
an adaptation that contributed to the success and diversity of land plants.

Gymnosperms

The four phyla of gymnosperms are ginkgo, cycads, gnetophytes, and conifers. Conifers are the largest
group and have cones for reproductive structures. The pine tree is a sporophyte, with its sporangia
located on the cones (sporophylls). The female gametophyte generation develops from haploid spores
retained within the sporangia. Small pollen cones produce microspores that develop into the male
gametophytes, or pollen grains. Larger cones make megaspores that develop into female
gametophytes.
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Angiosperms

The flower of the sporophyte produces microspores that form male gametophytes and megaspores that
form female gametophytes. Immature male gametophytes are contained in pollen grains,
grains which
develop in the anthers of stamens. Each pollen grain has two haploid cells. Ovules,
Ovules which develop in
the ovary, contain the female gametophyte, also known as the embryo sac.
sac

After it is released from the anther, the pollen is carried to the sticky stigma at the tip of a carpel.
Although some flowers self-pollinate, most have mechanisms that ensure cross- cross- pollination.
pollination In some
cases, the stamens and carpels of a single flower may mature at different times, or the organs may be
so arranged within the flower that self-pollination is unlikely.

The pollen grain germinates after it

adheres to the stigma of a carpel. The
pollen grain, now containing a mature
male gametophyte, extends a tube
that grows down within the style of
the carpel. After it reaches the ovary,
it penetrates the micropyle (pore in
the integuments of the ovule),
discharging two sperm cells into the
female gametophyte. Double
fertilization takes place, as one
sperm fuses with the egg to form a
diploid zygote and the other sperm
fuses with two nuclei in the large
center cell.

The ovule matures into a seed after

double fertilization. The zygote develops into a sporophyte embryo with a rudimentary root and either
one or two cotyledons.
cotyledons The triploid nucleus in the center divides repeatedly, resulting in in the
endosperm,
endosperm a tissue rich in starch and other food reserves.
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THE BIOLOGY OF ANGIOSPERMS

DICOTS VERSUS MONOCOTS

The two main groups of angiosperms are the monocots and

an dicots.

Monocots Dicots

One cotyledon Two cotyledons

Leaves with Netlike veins in

parallel veins leaves

Complex Vascular
arrangment of bundles
vascular arranged in a
bundles ring

Fibrous root Taproot usually

system present

Floral parts in Floral parts in

multiples of multiples of
three four or five

THE THREE BASIC PLANT ORGANS

The Root System

Roots are responsible for anchoring the plant in the soil, absorbing minerals and water, and storing
food. Monocots generally have fibrous root systems consisting of a mass of thin roots that
tha spread out
below the soil surface to extend the plant’s
plant exposure to soil,, water, and minerals. Many dicots have a
taproot system,
stem, consisting of one large, vertical root that produces many smaller lateral roots.
Taproots firmly anchor the plant in the soil and store food. The plant consumes the food reserves
during flowering and fruit production.
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Most absorption of water and minerals in both monocots and dicots occurs near the root tips, where
vast numbers of tiny root hairs increase the surface area of the root enormously. These hairs are
extensions of individual epidermal cells on the root surface. Some plants have adventitious roots
rising aboveground from stems or leaves. These roots can help support tall stems.

The Shoot System: Stems and Leaves

A stem is an alternating system of nodes (points where leaves are attached) and internodes,
internodes the stem
segments between nodes. In the angle (axil) formed by each leaf and the stem is an axillary bud,
bud a
structure with the potential to form a vegetative branch. Most axillary buds of a young shoot are
dormant, with growth mainly concentrated at the terminal bud. bud The presence of the terminal bud is
partly responsible for inhibiting the growth of the axillary buds, a phenomenon called apical
dominance.
dominance Concentrating resources on growing taller allows the plant to have increased exposure to
sunlight. However, under certain conditions, the axillary buds can break dormancy and form vegetative
branches.

Leaves are the main photosynthetic organs of most plants, although green stems can also perform
photosynthesis. They vary extensively in form, but generally consist of a flattened blade and a stalk,
the petiole,
petiole which joins the leaf to a node of the stem.

A simple leaf has a single, undivided blade. The blade of a compound leaf is divided into several
leaflets, which are themselves divided in a doubly compound leaf. Remember, there is only one axillary
bud per leaf.

TISSUE SYSTEMS

The dermal tissue,

tissue or epidermis,
epidermis is generally a single layer of tightly packed cells that covers and
protects all young parts of the plant. The epidermis has more specialized characteristics depending on
where it located on the plant. For example, the epidermis of leaves and most stems secrete a waxy
coating called a cuticle to help the plant retain water.

Vascular tissue is continuous throughout the plant and involved in the transport of materials between
roots and shoots. Xylem moves water and dissolved minerals from the roots to the shoots, while
phloem moves sugar from leaves and tubers to “sugar sinks” such as roots and fruits. The water-
conducting elements of xylem, the tracheids and vessel elements are elongated cells that are dead at
functional maturity. When the living interior of a tracheid or vessel element disintegrates, the cell’s
thickened walls remain behind, forming a nonliving conduit for water flow. Tracheids and vessel
elements form in parts of the plant that are no longer elongating. Their secondary walls are interrupted
by pits,
pits thinner regions where only primary walls are present. Tracheids are long, thin cells with
tapered ends that function in support as well as water transport. Vessel elements are generally wider,
shorter, thinner walled, and less tapered than tracheids. Vessel elements are aligned end to end,
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forming xylem vessels – the end walls are perforated, allowing for the free movement of water
through them.

In phloem, sucrose and other compounds are transported through tubes formed by chains of sieve-sieve-
tube members,
members cells lacking organelles such as the nucleus, ribosomes, and a distinct vacuole. In
angiosperms, the end walls between sieve-tube members, called sieve plates,plates have pores that
presumably facilitate the flow of fluid from cell to cell along the sieve tube. A companion cell is
located next to each sieve-tube member and the two are connected by the plasmodesmata. The
nucleus and ribosomes of the companion cell serve the adjacent sieve-tube member as well as the
companion cell itself. In some plants, the companion cells in leaves help move sugar produced in the
leaf to the sieve-tube members.

Ground tissue is tissue that is neither dermal nor vascular and makes up most of the plant. In dicot
stems, ground tissue is divided into pith,
pith internal to the vascular tissue, and cortex,
cortex external to the
vascular tissue.

THREE BASIC CELL TYPES

Parenchyma Cells

Mature parenchyma cells have primary walls that are relatively thin and flexible, and most lack
secondary walls. The protoplast generally has a large central vacuole. They are generally the least
specialized cell, but there are exceptions, such as the sieve-tube members. Parenchyma cells perform
most metabolic functions in a plant, such as photosynthesis. Developing plant cells of all types are
parenchyma cells before specializing further in structure and function. Cells that continue to stay less
specialized and become mature parenchyma cells generally do not undergo cell division. Most,
however, retain the ability to divide and differentiate into other types of plant cells under special
conditions.

Collenchyma Cells

Collenchyma cells have unevenly thickened primary walls and are used to help support the young
parts of the plant shoot. Young stems and petioles often have a cylinder of collenchymas just below
their surface. They lack secondary walls and do not have lignin, thus allowing for support with
unrestrained growth. Functioning collenchymas cells are living and flexible, elongating with the stems
and leaves they support.

Sclerenchyma Cells

Sclerenchyma cells are much more rigid than collenchyma cells, cannot elongate, and are found in
regions of the plant that have stopped growing. There are two types of sclerenchyma cells called
fibers and sclereids that specialize entirely in support. Fibers usually occur in groups, while sclereids
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are shorter than fibers and irregular in shape. Sclereids are responsible for the hardness in nutshells
and seed coats.

PRIMARY GROWTH

Primary Growth of Roots

The root tip is covered by the root cap,

cap which physically protects the delicate meristems as the root
pushes through the soil in primary growth. From the root tip upward, the successive stages of primary
growth are the zone of cell division, the zone of elongation, and the zone of maturation. The zone of
cell division includes the apical meristems and primary meristems. Near the center of the apical
meristems is the quiescent center,
center a population of cells that divide much more slowly than the other
meristematic cells and are relatively resistant to damage from radiation and toxic chemicals.

Above the apical meristem are three concentric cylinders of cells that continue to divide for some
time. The protoderm,
protoderm procambium
procambium,
ambium and ground meristem will produce the dermal, vascular, and
ground tissue of the root. The zone of cell division blends into the zone of elongation,
elongation where cells
elongate sometimes to more than ten times their original length. This zone is responsible for pushing
the root tip ahead. Cells of the root begin specializing in structure and function in the zone of
maturation.
maturation

Primary Growth of Shoots

The apical meristem of a shoot is a dome-shaped mass of dividing cells at the tip of the terminal bud
that will alter result in the primary meristems. Leaves arise as leaf primordial while axillary buds
develop from islands of meristematic cells. Axillary buds can later form branches of the shoot system
at a later time.

In stems, vascular tissue runs the length of the stem in strands called vascular bundles.
bundles This
arrangement contrasts with that of the root, where the vascular tissue forms a vascular cylinder in the
center of the root. Each vascular bundle is surrounded by ground tissue.

Leaf epidermis consists of cells tightly locked together like pieces of a puzzle. The epidermal barrier is
interrupted only by the stomata,
stomata tiny pores flanked by specialized epidermal cells called guard cells.
cells
The stomata allow gas exchange between the surrounding air and the photosynthetic cells inside the
leaf. Ground tissue of a leaf is sandwiched between the upper and lower epidermis in the region called
mesophyll,
mesophyll which consists of parenchyma cells specialized for photosynthesis.

SECONDARY GROWTH

The secondary plant body consists of the tissues produced during this secondary growth in diameter.
Two lateral meristems function in secondary growth: the vascular cambium,
cambium which produces
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secondary xylem (wood) and secondary phloem, and the cork cambium,
cambium which produces a tough, thick
covering for stems and roots that replaces the epidermis.

Secondary Growth of Stems

The vascular cambium is a cylinder of meristematic cells that forms secondary vascular tissue. It
produces secondary xylem to its interior and secondary phloem to its exterior. There are alternating
regions of cambium cells called ray initials and fusiform initials. The ray initials are cambium cells that
produce radial files of parenchyma cells known as xylem rays and phloem rays. The cambium cells
within the vascular bundles are the fusiform initials
initial s, which produce new vascular tissue. Secondary
xylem accumulates to produce the tissue commonly referred to as wood, which consists mostly of
tracheids, vessel elements, and fibers. These cells, dead at functional maturity, have thick, lignified
walls that give wood its hardness and strength.

During the early stages of secondary growth, epidermis falls off the stem and is replaced with cork
cambium, a cylinder of meristematic cells that first form in the outer cortex and then later in the
secondary phloem. Cork cambium produces cork cells, which accumulate to create cork tissue. This
tissue results in a barrier that helps protect the stem from physical damage and pathogens. Together,
the layers of cork and the cork cambium make up the periderm.
periderm Lenticels
Lenticel s are regions where the
periderm splits open, allowing gas exchange for cellular respiration. Bark refers to all tissues external
to the vascular cambium - secondary phloem, cork cambium, and cork.

Secondary Growth of Roots

The two lateral meristems also develop and produce secondary growth in roots. The vascular cambium
forms within the stele and produces secondary xylem to its inside and secondary phloem to its outside.
Periderm is impermeable to water – thus, the older parts of the roots function mainly to anchor the
plant and to transport water and solutes, with only the younger roots absorbing water and minerals
from the soil.

AN OVERVIEW OF TRANSPORT MECHANISMS IN PLANTS

The most important active transporter in the plasma membrane of plant cells is the proton pump,
pump
which hydrolyzes ATP and uses the released energy to pump hydrogen ions out of the cell. This results
in a protein gradient with a higher proton concentration outside the cell than inside. Since the proton
pump moves positive charge, in the form of protons, out of the cell, the pump also generations a
membrane potential, making the inside of the plant cell negative in charge relative to the outside. This
stored energy can be used to transport many different solutes. The membrane potential can contribute
to the uptake of potassium ions by root cells (K+). In cotransport,
cotransport a transport protein couples the
downhill passage of one solute to the uphill passage of another, which works for both anions and
neutral solutes.
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Differences in water potential also drive water transport in plant cells. Water potential is affected by
solute concentration and pressure. Water will move across a membrane from the solution with the
higher water potential to the solution with the lower water potential. Addition of solutes lowers the
water potential because water molecules that form shells around a solute have less freedom to move
than they do in pure water. Increasing pressure raises water potential. Physical pressure will cause
water to escape via any available exit. It is also possible to create a negative pressure, or tension,
tension on
water or solutions.

Aquaporins are specific channels for passive traffic of water in the form of transport proteins. They
affect the rate at which water diffuses down its water potential gradient. Aquaporins may form gated
channels that open and close in response to variables such as turgor pressure of the cell.

Plasmodesmata connect the cytosolic compartments of neighboring cells, forming a continuous

pathway for transport of certain molecules between cells. This cytoplasmic continuum is called the
symplast.
symplast The walls of adjacent plant cells are also in contact, forming a continuum of cell walls
called the apoplast
apo plast.
plast

The transmembrane route moves substances out of one cell, across the cell wall, and into the
neighboring cell and requires repeated crossings of plasma membranes. The symplastic route requires
only one crossing of a plasma membrane via plasmodesmata. The apoplastic route uses the
extracellular pathway of cell walls and extracellular spaces.

Water and solutes move through xylem vessels and sieve tubes by bulk flow,
flow the movement of a fluid
driven by pressure. In phloem, for example, hydrostatic pressure is generated at one end of a sieve
tube, forcing sap to the opposite end of the tube.

ABSORPTION OF WATER AND MINERALS BY ROOTS

Most absorption of water and minerals occurs near root tips, where the root hairs are located. Soil
particles adhere tightly to the hairs and the soil solution passes along the apoplast into the root cortex.
As the soil solution moves into the roots, cells of the epidermis and cortex take up water and certain
solutes into the symplast. Symbiotic fungi infect roots, forming mycorrhizae,
mycorrhizae which are symbiotic
structures consisting of the plant’s root sand the hyphae of the fungi. The hyphae absorb water and
selected minerals, transferring much of these resources to the host plant.

The endodermis surrounds the stele and functions as a last checkpoint for the selective passage of
minerals from the cortex into the vascular tissue. Minerals already in the symplast when they reach
the endodermis continue through the plasmodesmata of the endodermal cells and pass into the stele,
having already been screened by the selective membranes. In the wall of each endodermal cell is the
Casparian strip,
strip a belt made of suberin. Water and minerals cannot cross the endodermis and enter
vascular tissue via the apoplast – they must cross the plasma membrane of an endodermal cell and
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enter the stele via the symplast. Thus, no minerals can reach the vascular tissue without passing
through a selectively permeable plasma membrane.

Water and minerals can now enter the tracheids and vessel elements of xylem to be transported.

TRANSPORT OF XYLEM SAP

Root Pressure: Pushing Xylem Sap

At night, when transpiration is very low or zero, the root cells are still expending energy to pump
mineral ions into the xylem. Accumulation of minerals in the stele lowers water potential there,
causing water to flow in from the root cortex and generate a positive pressure. This upward push of
xylem sap is called root pressure,
pressure which causes guttation,
guttation the exudation of water droplets on leaf
margins. In most plants, root pressure is not the major mechanism driving the ascent of xylem sap.

The Transpiration-Cohesion-Tension Mechanism: Pulling Xylem Sap

On most days, the air outside the leaf is drier than the air inside the leaf that is saturated with water
vapor. Thus, gaseous water, diffusing down its concentration gradient, exits the leaf via the stomata.
As the water evaporates, the remaining film of liquid water retreats into the pores of the cell walls,
attracted by adhesion to the hydrophilic walls. At the same time, cohesive forces in the water resist an
increase in the surface area of the film. This results in the water forming a meniscus. Since the water
film at the surface of the leaf cells has a negative pressure, it draws water out of the leaf xylem. Thus,
mesophyll cells will lose water to the surface film lining air spaces, which in turn loses water by
transpiration. Transpirational pull-cohesion tension theory states that for each molecule of water that
evaporates from a leaf by transpiration, another molecule of water is drawn in at the root to replace it.

Cohesion and adhesion of water due to hydrogen bonding allow water molecules to be pulled against
the downward force of gravity. The small diameter of tracheids and vessel elements allow a majority of
the water to be exposed to the hydrophilic walls, thus enhancing adhesion.

TRANSLOCATION OF PHLOEM SAP

The transport of food in the plant is called translocation.

translocation Phloem sap is an aqueous solution that
differs markedly in composition from xylem sap. Phloem sap is mostly sugar and can also contain
minerals, amino acids, and hormones.

A sugar source is a plant organ in which sugar is being produced by either photosynthesis or the
breakdown of starch, with mature leaves being the major sugar sources. A sugar sink is an organ that
is a net consumer or storer of sugar, such as growing roots, shoot tips, stems, and fruit. A storage
organ can be either a source or sink, depending on whether the organism is currently using the supply
or building it up. A sugar sink usually receives its sugar from the sources nearest to it.
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In some species, sucrose travels from mesophyll cells to sieve-tube members via the symplast, while in
other species, it can reach sieve-tube members in a combination of symplastic and apoplastic
pathways. Companion cells pass the sugar they receive to the sieve-tube members through
plasmodesmata. In some plants, the companion cells have numerous ingrowths in their walls that
increases the cells’ surface area, enhancing the transfer of solutes between apoplast and symplast –
they are called transfer cells.
cells Once the sugar reaches a sugar sink, the sugar molecules will diffuse
from the phloem into the sink tissues and water will follow by osmosis.

Phloem sap moves by bulk flow, which is driven by pressure. Phloem loading results in a high solute
concentration a the source end of a sieve tube, which lowers the water potential and causes water to
flow into the tube. Hydrostatic pressure will develop within the sieve tube, with the greatest pressure
at the source end. At the sink end, the pressure is relieved by the loss of water. Thus, water will flow
from source to sink and carry the sugar along with it. Water is recycled by xylem vessels.

MACRONUTRIENTS AND MICRONUTRIENTS

Mineral nutrients are essential chemical elements absorbed from the soil in the form of inorganic ions.
Water is also considered a nutrient because it supplies most of the hydrogen atoms and some of the
oxygen atoms incorporated into organic compounds during photosynthesis. A particular chemical
element is considered an essential nutrient if it is needed for a plant to grow from a seed and
complete the life cycle, producing another generation of seeds. Elements required by plants in
relatively large amounts are called macronutrients - carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, sulfur,
phosphorus, potassium, calcium, and magnesium. Elements needed in small amounts are called
micronutrients – iron, chlorine, copper, manganese, zinc, molybdenum, boron, and nickel. They
generally function as cofactors of enzymatic reactions.

SEXUAL REPRODUCTION

The life cycles of angiosperms and other plants are characterized by an alternation of generations,
generations in
which haploid and diploid generations take turns producing each other. The diploid plant, called the
sporophyte,
sporophyte produces haploid spores by meiosis. These spores divide by mitosis, giving rise to
multicellular male and female haploid plants – the gametophytes.
gametophytes These gametophytes develop and
produce gametes – sperm and eggs.

Flowers are the reproductive shoots of the angiosperm sporophyte. The four kinds of floral organs are
the sepals,
sepals, petals, stamens,
stamens and carpels.
carpels Stamens and carpels are the male and female reproductive
organs, respectively, while sepals and petals are nonreproductive organs. Sepals enclose and protect
the floral bud before it opens, while the petals are brightly colored to advertise the flower to
pollinators.

A stamen consists of a stalk called the filament and a terminal structure called the anther;
anther within
which the pollen is produced (in pollen sacs). A carpel has an ovary at its base and a slender neck
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AP Biology

Plant Highlights

called the style, which is topped by a sticky structure called the stigma. Inside the ovary are one or
more ovules.
ovules

The stamen and carpels of flowers contain the sporangia, the structures where first the spores and
then the gametophytes develop. The male gametophytes are sperm-producing structures called pollen
grains,
grains which form within the pollen sacs of anthers. The female gametophytes are egg-producing
structures called embryo sacs,
sacs which form within the ovules in ovaries.

Pollination results when a pollen grain lands on a stigma. Each pollen grain produces a structure called
a pollen tube, which grows down into the ovary via the style and discharges sperm into the embryo
sac, resulting in fertilization of the egg. The zygote gives rise to an embryo, and the ovule containing it
will develop into a seed. The entire ovary will then develop into a fruit containing one or more seeds.

A pollen grain consists of a generative cell (sperm) and a tube cell (pollen tube) – this is an immature
male gametophyte. When the generative cell divides by mitosis to form two sperm cells, it becomes a
mature male gametophyte. Ovules, each containing a single sporangium, form within the chambers of
the ovary. One cell in the sporangium of each ovule, the megasporocyte, will grow and go through
meiosis to produce four haploid megaspores.
megaspores Generally, only one survives. This megaspore continues
to grow and its nucleus divides by mitosis three times, resulting in one large cell with eight haploid
nuclei. Membranes partition the mass into a multicellular female gametophyte – the embryo sac,
which has the egg cell, two synergids, three antipodal cells, and two polar nuclei.

Self-fertilization is prevented in order to create genetic variety. In some plants, the stamens and
carpels mature at different times or are structurally arranged in such a way that it is unlikely an animal
pollinator could transfer pollen from the anthers to the stigma of the same flower. The most common
way of preventing “selfing” is self-
self -incompatibility,
incompatibility which is the ability of a plant to reject its own
pollen and the pollen of closely related individuals.

Double fertilization gives rise to the zygote and endosperm; this is a distinctive feature of the
angiosperm life cycle. One sperm fertilizes the egg to form a diploid zygote. The other sperm combines
with two polar nuclei to form a triploid nucleus that will give rise to the endosperm,
endosperm a food-storing
tissue of the seed.

OVARY TO FRUIT

As the seeds develop from ovules, the ovary of the flower develops into a f ruit,
ruit which protects the
enclosed seeds and aids in their dispersal by wind or animals. Pollination triggers hormonal changes
that cause the ovary to begin its transformation into a fruit. The wall of the ovary becomes the
pericarp,
pericarp the thickened wall of the fruit. Other floral parts can contribute to a fruit depending on the
specific plant.
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AP Biology

Plant Highlights

FROM SEED TO SEEDLING

Germination of seeds depends on imbitition, the uptake of water due to the low water potential of the
dry seed. Seeds, in order to germinate, need water, oxygen, and the correct temperature. Imbibing
water causes the seed to expand, rupturing its coat. Enzymes will be triggered that will break down
starch into sugar, allowing growth of organs such as the radicle, which will become the embryonic root.
In monocots, the cotyledons protect the foliage leaves. In dicots, the cotyledons stay below ground.

PLANT RESPONSES TO HORMONES

Hor
Ho rmones are chemical signals that coordinate all parts of the organism. Any growth response that
results in curvatures of whole plant organs toward or away from stimuli is called a tropism
tropism . The
growth of a shoot toward light is called positive phototropism.
phototropism It is important to remember that plant
hormones work cooperatively in affecting the development of a plant – response to a hormone is not
as dependent on absolute amount of that hormone as on its relative concentration compared to other
hormones.

Auxin:
Auxin any chemical substance that promotes the elongation and growth. It is found in the
embryos of seeds, meristems of apical buds, and young leaves. Auxin functions in fruit
development, cell differentiation, apical dominance, and functions in phototropism and
gravitropism.
Cytokinins:
Cytokinins stimulate cell division and differentiation. They are produced in actively growing
tissues and work with auxin to stimulate cell division and influence the pathway of
differentiation. Both cytokinins and auxin are factors in the control of apical dominance. They
have anti-aging effects.
Gibberellins:
Gibberellins promote seed and bud germination, stem elongation, and leaf growth, stimulate
flowering and development of fruit; affect root growth and differentiation. They are found in
meristems of apical buds and roots, young leaves, and embryos.
Abscisic acid:
acid generally slows down growth, keeps seeds dormant, closes stomata during
stress conditions
E t hylene:
hylene promotes fruit ripening, results in aging

REMEMBER TO STUDY PLANT RESPONSES TO LIGHT AND TROPISMS!

Additionally, review the differences between C3, C4, and CAM plants.