CHAPTER 1: LIFE PROCESSES

TOPIC 1: NUTRITION
1. Life Processes: The basic functions performed by an organism to maintain its life and to survive
are called life processes e.g., respiration, excretion.

2. Autotrophic nutrition: Type of nutrition where organisms can prepare their own food by using
inorganic substances. Two types of autotrophic nutrition: a) photosynthesis e.g, shown by green
plants
b) chemosynthesis e.g.,shown by certain bacteria

3. Heterotrophic nutrition: type of nutrition where organisms depend on others for food. Types of
heterotrophic nutrition:
a) Holozoic: The organism engulfs food. Five steps are involved- ingestion, digestion,
absorption, assimilation and egestion. e.g., Amoeba, humans
b) Saprotrophic: The organism releases enzymes onto the substrate/food and digestion is
extracellular. The digested simpler molecules are absorbed. e.g., yeast, bacteria
c) Parasitic: The organism depends on a host for food. e.g., Plasmodium (endoparasite), Lice
(ectoparasite).

4. Photosynthesis: synthesis of organic food/glucose from inorganic substances like CO 2 and H2O
by green plants by using light energy trapped by chlorophyll. Takes place in the green parts of
plant mainly in the leaves.

Diagram of cross section of leaf

Diagram of open and closed stomata

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5. Raw materials for photosynthesis:
a) CO2
b) H2O
c) Sunlight
d) Chlorophyll
e) Minerals like nitrogen, phosphorus, magnesium iron etc.

6. Chloroplastid (site of photosynthesis): Grana and lamellae contain Chlorophyll and other
accessory pigments that trap light energy. Light reaction takes place in the grana and dark
reaction takes place in the stroma.

Diagram of Chloroplastid

7. Two phases of photosynthesis:

a) Light dependent phase/light phase: Involves-
i) production of ATP and NADPH2.
ii) photolysis of water.
iii) Byproduct oxygen is produced.
b) Light independent phase/dark phase: Fixation and reduction of CO2 takes place to produce
glucose and other intermediates. Dark phase utilizes the ATP and NADPH2 produced in the
light phase.

8. Diagram of holozoic nutrition in Amoeba:

9. Major portions of human alimentary canal:

a) Mouth- salivary glands produce saliva. Saliva helps in softening food. Contains ptyalin.
b) Tongue- taste buds present. Mixes saliva with food.
c) Teeth-4 types of teeth: Incisors (cutting), Canines (tearing), Premolars & molars (Crushing
and Grinding). Chewing of food is called mastication.
d) Pharynx- communicates with trachea and oesophagus.
e) Oesophagus- peristalsis observed which pushes bolus towards stomach. Closure of glottis
by epiglottis prevents food from entering into trachea during swallowing.
f) Stomach- produces gastric juice.

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 g) Small intestine- produces intestinal juice, receives bile (produced by liver) from gall bladder
and pancreatic juice from pancreas. Digestion completed here. Inner lining has finger like
villi which increases surface are for absorption. Villi contain blood capillaries and lacteals
(lymph capillaries). Carnivores have shorter small intestine than herbivores since meat
digestion is easier.
h) Large intestine-absorbs water from undigested matter. Forms faeces.
i) Rectum-stores faecal matter temporarily.
j) Anus-egestion of undigested waste takes place from here. Controlled by anal sphincter.

Human Digestive System/Alimentary Canal

10. Digestive glands:

a) Salivary glands: produce saliva that contains salivary amylase/ptyalin which digests starch
into maltose and dextrins.
b) Gastric glands in stomach: Produce HCl, pepsin, rennin and mucus.
• Pepsin and renin are proteases (protein digesting enzymes). These enzymes work
best in acidic medium.
• Mucus protects the inner lining of stomach from the corrosive effect of HCl.
• HCl converts Pepsinogen to Pepsin
• HCl converts Prorennin to Rennin
• HCl provides acidic medium for above enzymes to work
• HCl kills microbes present in food
c) Liver: produces bile which is stored in gall bladder. Bile emulsifies the fat present in the
chyme. Emulsification of fat refers to breaking down large globules of fats into smaller
globules so that lipases can digest them easily. Bile also neutralizes the acidic chyme.
d) Intestinal glands: produces intestinal juice which contains amylases, proteases and lipases.
e) Pancreas: produces pancreatic juice which contains amylase, trypsin and lipase. The
medium is alkaline in the small intestine.

11. Peristalsis: Rhythmic contraction and relaxation of smooth muscles in the wall of the gut, taking
place along the alimentary canal (starting from oesophagus) to push the food forward.

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 Peristalsis

12. Tooth decay/dental caries: Bacteria acting on sugars in food produce sugar acids. This acid
softens the enamel and dentine. Masses of bacterial cells together with food particles stick to
teeth to form dental plaque.

13. Acidity: When cells of stomach (gastric glands) produce large amounts of acid than is actually
needed. Causes burning sensation in the stomach.

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CHAPTER 1: LIFE PROCESSES

TOPIC 2: RESPIRATION

• It is an enzyme mediated biochemical process of oxidative breakdown of organic compounds to

release energy.
• It is a catabolic process.
• C6H12O6 + 6O2 6CO2 +6H2O+38 ATP (Balanced reaction ) There are two
different types of respiration-Aerobic and Anaerobic.
• Aerobic respiration occurs with the help of O2 and is responsible for complete breakdown of
glucose into CO2 and H2O.
• Anaerobic respiration occurs in the absence of O2 and does not involve complete breakdown of
glucose.

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 Respiration in humans

• Steps of Respiration
 Breathing
 External respiration
 Internal respiration
 Cellular respiration

• Breathing
 It is the process of bringing in O2 rich fresh air to the respiratory surface and taking
off CO2 rich air outside.
 It is a physical process.
 The respiratory organs involved are-external nostrils, nasal chambers, pharynx,
larynx, trachea, bronchi and bronchioles.
 Breathing consists of two steps-inspiration and expiration.
 Inspiration or inhalation is bringing in of O2 rich air into the lungs.
 During inhalation the thoracic cavity enlarges and the diaphragm moves down. The
rib cage is pushed outwards and in the upward direction. This increases the girth of
the thorax and the lungs expand. The air pressure decreases in the lungs, as a result,
air from outside rushes into the lungs.
 The incoming air is filtered by the nasal hair, cleansed of dust and microbes by mucus
and cilia, moistened by water vapour and temperature of the inhaled air brought to the
body temperature with the help of the blood capillaries.
 Expiration or exhalation is giving out CO2 rich air out of the lungs after the exchange
of gases.

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  During exhalation, the diaphragm becomes dome shaped and moves into the thorax.
The rib cage moves inwards and downwards reducing the girth of the thorax. The air
pressure increases in the lungs, as a result, air from inside rushes out.

External Respiration
 O2 diffuses into the blood from the alveoli of the lungs while CO2 passes out of the
blood.
 97% of oxygen combines with haemoglobin to form oxyhaemoglobin.
 3% of oxygen dissolves in blood plasma.

Gaseous exchange in the alveolus

• Internal Respiration
 It is the exchange of gases that occurs between blood and tissues.
 Oxygen separates out of the haemoglobin and diffuses into the cells.
 Carbon dioxide produced diffuses out into the blood. 23% combines with
haemoglobin to form carbaminohaemoglobin, 70% travels back as sodium
bicarbonate and 7% as carbonic acid dissolved in plasma.

• Cellular Respiration
 It is the enzymatic breakdown of respiratory substrate inside the cells whereby energy
is liberated.
 Aerobic respiration involves Glycolysis in the cytoplasm and Krebs Cycle in the
mitochondria.
More to Know:

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 Fates of glucose

Respiration in plants

• Plants do not have any transport system for the gases. They exchange gases with the
environment by diffusion through the intercellular spaces.
• Rate of respiration in plants is slow as compared to the animals.
• Respiration is rapid in meristematic regions, slower in mature regions.

Respiration in Roots
The roots of plants are under the ground but root cells also need oxygen to carry out
respiration and release energy for their own use.
The roots of a plant take up air from the spaces between the soil particles. Oxygen from the
air in soil particles diffuse into root hair and epiblema cells and reach all the cells of the root
where it is utilized in respiration. Carbon dioxide produced in the cells of the root during
respiration goes out through the same root hair by the process of diffusion.

• Respiration in Stems
In the case of the stem, the air gets diffused through the stomata and passes through various
parts of the cell for respiration. The carbon dioxide produced during this stage also diffuses
through the stomata. In higher plants or woody plants, the gaseous exchange is carried out by
lenticels.
A lenticel is a porous tissue consisting of loose cells in the bark of woody stems and roots of
dicotyledonous flowering plants.

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Respiration in Leaves
The leaves of plants have tiny pores on their surface which are called stomata. The exchange
of gases in the leaves during respiration takes place through stomata. Oxygen from the air
enters into a leaf through stomata and reaches all the cells by the process of diffusion. This
oxygen is used in respiration in cells of the leaf. The carbon dioxide produced diffuses out
from the leaf into the air through same stomata.

Stomata

Guard cells are cells surrounding each stoma. They help to regulate the rate of transpiration
by opening and closing the stomata. To understand how they function let us study the
following figures.

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 In figure A the guard cells are turgid, or swollen, and the stomatal opening is large. This turgidity is
caused by the accumulation of K+ (potassium ions) in the guard cells. As K+ levels increase in the
guard cells, the water potential of the guard cells drops and water enters the guard cells.

In figure B, K+ ions move out of the cells as a result water also passes out. The guard cells loose water,
which causes the cells to become flaccid and the stomatal opening, closes.
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CHAPTER 1: LIFE PROCESSES

TOPIC 3: TRANSPORTATION
Transportation in human beings

1. In human beings food, oxygen, carbon dioxide, hormones, excretory products etc. are transported by
the fluid connective tissues.
2. Blood and lymph are the two fluid connective tissues.
3. In human beings transportation is carried out by the circulatory system .Circulatory system is
composed of the organs like heart and the blood vessels.
4. Blood is composed of fluid medium called plasma in which the different types of cells remain
suspended. The cells are red blood cells or RBC, white blood cells or WBCs and the platelets.
5. Plasma is a straw coloured fluid which consists of water and salts. Plasma transports digested food,
respiratory gases, nitrogenous wastes in dissolved form.
6. The RBCs are biconcave in shape .They contain the respiratory pigment called haemoglobin and hence
red in colour. They are non- nucleated. They carry oxygen.
7. The WBCs are irregular in shape. They are without any pigment. They protect our body by engulfing
the germs and they produce antibodies against the germs.
8. The platelets help in the clotting of blood.

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Our pump- The Heart
1. The heart is a muscular organ which is as big as our fist.
2. The human heart is a four chambered heart. The upper chambers are auricles or atrium and the two
lower chambers are ventricles.
3. Amphibians or many reptiles have 3 chambered heart and they can tolerate some mixing of oxygenated
and de- oxygenated blood. Fishes on the other hand has two chambered heart, blood is oxygenated in
the gills and passes directly to the rest of the body.
3. The four chambered heart prevent the mixing of oxygenated and deoxygenated blood. The
separation of the right side and the left side of the heart allows a highly efficient supply of oxygen
to the body. This is useful in animals that have high energy needs such as birds and mammals to
maintain a constant body temperature.

Human Heart

The process of circulation of blood through human heart

1. The deoxygenated blood from the different organs of the body is collected by the two vena cava. They
pour the blood to the right atrium, as it expands.
2. As the right atrium contracts, the corresponding lower chamber, right ventricle, dilates. This transfers
the blood to the right ventricle.

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3. From right ventricle, the de- oxygenated blood is carried to the two lungs by the two pulmonary
arteries for oxygenation.
4. From lungs oxygenated blood enters the left atrium by the two pulmonary veins. As the left atrium
contracts blood moves to the left ventricle. From left ventricle the largest artery, aorta carries the blood
to the different body organs.
5. Since ventricles are the distributing chambers, they have thicker muscular walls than the auricles.
6. Valves are the muscular flaps present between the auricle and the ventricle ensure unidirectional flow
of blood and prevent backflow of blood.
7. In case of higher vertebrates blood moves twice through the heart in order to complete one cycle. This
is called double circulation.

Double circulation
Blood vessels
1. In humans there are 3 types of blood vessels, arteries, veins and capillaries.
2. Arteries distribute blood under high pressure so they are thick walled. They have lesser diameter.
They carry oxygenated blood (exception is pulmonary artery) away from the heart.
3. Veins are comparatively thin walled with more diameter. They carry de-oxygenated blood (exception
is pulmonary vein) towards the heart. Blood does not move under pressure. Veins have valves. Valves
prevent backflow of blood.
4. The smallest vessel is the capillary which is one cell thick. Exchange of material between the blood
and the surrounding cells takes place across this thin wall.

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Lymph
1. Lymph is involved in transportation. It is also called tissue fluid.
2. Lymph is composed of plasma, proteins and WBCs. It is colourless and contains less protein than
plasma.
3. Lymph drains into lymphatic capillaries from the intercellular spaces which join to form large lymph
vessels.
4. Lymph carries digested food and absorbed fat from intestine and drains excess fluid from extra cellular
spaces back into blood.

Formation of lymph

Transportation in plants

1. The plants absorb raw materials like nitrogen, phosphorus and other minerals from the soil. The roots
are responsible for the absorption.

2. The distances between the soil- contacting organs and chlorophyll- containing organs are small
therefore energy and raw materials can easily diffuse to all parts of the plant body .But if these
distances become large, diffusion processes will not be sufficient.
3. A proper system of transportation is therefore essential in plants.

4. Plants do not move, and plant bodies have a large proportion of dead cells in many tissues. As a result,
plants have low energy needs, and can use relatively slow transport systems.

5. In plants the complex tissues that help in transportation are xylem and phloem.

6. Xylem conducts water and dissolved minerals from roots to leaves through stems.

7. Phloem conducts the prepared food from leaves to other parts of the plant.

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Transport of water
1. The xylem tissue is composed of tracheid, vessel, fibre and xylem parenchyma. They form a
continuous system of water conducting channels.

2. At the roots, cells in contact with the soil actively take up ions. This creates a difference in the
concentration of these ions between root and the soil which helps the water to move into the root.

3. Plants absorb adequate amount of water from soil, but maximum of it is lost in the form of water
vapour through stomata by the process called transpiration.

4. This creates a transpiration pull which is responsible for more absorption of water by the roots during
the day.

5. Transpiration also helps in temperature regulation.

How water from soil moves into xylem

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 Transpiration and uptake of water by roots

Transport of food and other substances

1. The phloem tissue is composed of phloem parenchyma, companion cell, sieve tube and phloem fibre.

2. The phloem tissue is responsible for the transportation of soluble products of photosynthesis. This is
called translocation.

3. Phloem also transports amino acids and other substances. These substances are delivered to the storage
organs and to the growing organs.

4. Translocation in phloem is achieved by utilising energy from ATP.

5. Material like sucrose is transferred into phloem which increases the osmotic pressure of the tissue
causing water to move into it. This pressure moves the material in the phloem to the tissues which have
less pressure.

CHAPTER 1: LIFE PROCESSES

TOPIC 4: EXCRETION
Definition: Excretion is a biological process by which toxic metabolic wastes are eliminated from the
body.

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Importance:
i) Removal of unwanted waste metabolic chemical products.
ii) Osmoregulation or regulating the osmotic pressure of body fluids by keeping the amount of
salt and water in balance iii) Regulation of pH of body fluids.

Excretion in Human Beings

Excretory system in humans

Human excretory system consists of the following organs: a pair of kidneys, a pair of ureters, a urinary
bladder and a urethra.

Kidneys are reddish brown bean-shaped organs in the abdominal cavity attached to dorsal body wall
one on either side of the vertebral column. Left kidney lies slightly higher than the right one. Renal
artery brings blood with waste products into the kidneys and renal vein carries blood out of kidneys
from which waste products are removed.

The structural and functional units of kidneys are nephrons. A nephron is diagrammatically represented
as below:

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 Structure of nephron

Each nephron has a cup-shaped Bowman’s capsule at one end enclosing a tuft of capillaries called
glomerulus, together they are called Malpighian body or Renal corpuscle.

The thin and selectively permeable membranes of glomerulus and Bowman’s capsule allow the
small molecules( likeurea, uric acid, amino acids, glucose, ions, vitamins, hormones) and water in
blood plasma to get filtered out from blood and enter into the next tubular part of nephron. This
process is called ultrafiltration. The volume of glomerular filtrate is 125 ml/min (180 lts/day).

The useful components of the glomerular filtrate are selectively reabsorbed. Water reabsorption depends
on amount of excess water and amount of dissolved wastes.

The surrounding blood capillaries secrete waste products along with K+ and H+ ions into the urine
while it passes through the tubule of nephron. This helps to maintain the proper concentration and
pH of urine.

The urine produced in the kidneys move out through ureters and get stored in the urinary bladder.
When the bladder wall feels pressure due to expansion, it creates an urge for urination (micturition).

Urine is expelled out through urethra. The bladder muscles are under nervous control which in turn leads
to control of the urge for urination.

Artificial Kidney (Haemodialysis):

It is a device to remove nitrogenous wastes from blood through dialysis in case both kidneys fail to work
properly.
Infections, injury or restricted blood flow to kidneys can cause reduced activities of kidneys. The
artificial kidney or dialysis machine consists of a number of semipermeable cellophane tubes

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embedded in a tank of dialysing fluid. This fluid has the same osmotic pressure and concentration as
blood but is devoid of nitrogenous wastes.
Blood from the patient’s body is mixed with heparin, cooled at 0 C ̊ and is pumped into the cellophane
tubes.
While the blood passes through the tubes, the nitrogenous wastes get separated by diffusion into the
dialysing fluid.
Purified blood is mixed with antiheparin, warmed upto body temperature and passed back to the body.

Excretion in plants:
Plants do not produce nitrogenous wastes.
Oxygen, carbon dioxide and water are considered as waste substances in plants. Oxygen and carbon
dioxide passes out of plant body through diffusion. Excess water passes out through transpiration.
Dead permanent tissues may store some toxic wastes and get removed periodically.
Waste products may get stored in cellular vacuoles or in older leaves that eventually fall off.
Other waste products called secondary metabolites like latex, gums and resins are stored in older xylem.
Some wastes are excreted by the roots of plants into the soil around them.

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REVISION QUESTIONS
1. Define photosynthesis. Write down the balanced chemical equation of the process. State the
major events of the process.
2. State the functions of the following enzymes-salivary amylase, pepsin, rennin, trypsin, and
lipase.
3. Why is pancreas known as a heterocrine gland-explain.
4. Explain the statement-Bile juice has no enzyme but is essential for digestion.
5. With neat labeled diagrams explain the process of holozoic nutrition in Amoeba.

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6. State the role of ribcage and diaphragm in respiration.
7. Why should we breathe through our nose and not through our mouth?
8. Differentiate between- inhalation and exhalation, external and internal respiration, egestion and
excretion, aerobic and anaerobic respiration, arteries and veins, pulmonary and systemic
circulation.
9. Name the different organs of the respiratory system of human beings.
10. What do you mean by CO poisoning?
11. How are lungs designed in human beings to maximize the area for the exchange of gases?
12. How is the structure of the malpighian body appropriate for urine formation? Explain.
13. Explain the functioning of a dialysis machine.
14. With a neat labeled flowchart explain double circulation in humans.
15. Name the different components of blood and state the functions.
16. Enumerate the functions of kidneys.
17. Draw a neat labeled diagram of a nephron state the functions of its different main parts.
18. Name the different constituents of xylem and phloem.
19. Differentiate between auricles and ventricles of the human heart.
20. Diagrams-T.S. of a leaf, open and closed stomata, structure of a chloroplast, holozoic nutrition
amoeba ,digestive system in humans, respiratory system, diffusion of gases through alveoli,
structure of heart, blood clotting, types of blood cells, excretory system.
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