Transport in Animals and Plants

• Analyzing blood flow patterns can help diagnose cardiovascular issues
• Understanding drug delivery mechanisms within the body assists in designing better medications
• Bio-inspired drug delivery systems use nanoparticles to mimic red blood cells for selective drug delivery
• Understanding animal movement inspires the development of robots and prosthetics with efficient movement mechanisms
• Biomimetics or biomimicry is the simulation of nature's models, systems, and elements to solve human problems
• Self-healing coatings protect surfaces from scratches and cracks
• Self-healing composites are used in aerospace and automotive applications for increased durability
• Knowledge of blood circulation and oxygen transport principles helped develop artificial hearts and pacemakers
• In 1628, William Harvey, an English physician, made significant contributions to understanding blood circulation
• In 1720, botanists discovered how water travels in plants and how gases, nutrients, and minerals are distributed
• Transport is a vital physiological process that nourishes every cell and supplies oxygen
• Structural adaptations in animals and plants are evident to support transport functions
• Animals and plants have differences in transport parts but share the common function of nourishing cells and supplying their needs
• Transport functions include waste collection, immune system movement, and hormone transport
• Transport in simple animals involves gas exchange through diffusion
• In simple animals like sponges and cnidarians, gas exchange occurs between the environment and circulating body fluid
• Cnidarians have a gastrovascular cavity for transport and digestion
• Roundworms use body fluid for circulation due to their simple body structure
• Main types of circulation in animals:

  • Open Circulatory System: Hemolymph pumped by the heart to cavities
  • Closed Circulatory System: Blood circulates within vessels
• The human circulatory system includes the heart, which pumps blood to all body parts
• The heart is a muscular organ composed of cardiac muscle and has chambers and valves for blood flow
• Blood is the internal circulating medium of the body, consisting of plasma and blood cells
• Red blood cells transport oxygen and carbon dioxide using hemoglobin
• White blood cells function for defense and immunity
• Blood platelets are essential for blood clotting
• Plasma is composed of water and substances like proteins and electrolytes
• Blood is composed of water (about 90%) and other substances like:

  • Proteins: albumin (regulates fluid balance), globulins (fight infection), clotting factors (for wound healing)
  • Electrolytes: sodium, potassium, calcium, chloride (maintain electrical balance and cell function)
  • Hormones: chemical messengers for various bodily functions
  • Nutrients: sugars, amino acids, lipids (transported to cells)
  • Waste products: urea, uric acid, carbon dioxide (carried to organs for removal)
• Blood vessels serve as highways through which blood is circulated in the body
• There are three types of blood vessels: arteries, veins, and capillaries
• Arteries are thick-walled vessels that carry oxygenated blood except the...?
• Veins are thinner vessels compared to arteries and they carry deoxygenated blood toward the heart, except for the...?
• Capillaries are abundant microscopic blood vessels that carry blood throughout the tissues and organs, connecting the small arteries and veins
• Valves, such as tricuspid, pulmonary, mitral or bicuspid, and aortic, prevent the backward flow or regurgitation of blood
• The two main circulations are pulmonary circulation and systemic circulation
• Pulmonary circulation is the movement of blood from the heart to the lungs, and back to the heart
• Systemic circulation is responsible for distributing oxygenated blood from the heart to all the tissues and organs of the body, delivering oxygen and nutrients, and collecting deoxygenated blood for return to the heart
• Xylem tissues help transport water and minerals in plants
• Phloem tissues help transport the products of photosynthesis in plants
• Transpiration, osmosis, and diffusion are passive forces that help molecules move in plants
• Water potential represents free energy or the potential to do work in plants