Plant and animals nutrition

• Autotrophic organism are known as producers because they are able to make their own food from raw materials and energy. Examples include plants, algae, and some types of bacteria.
• Heterotrophic organisms cannot produce their own food and must obtain it by consuming other living things or organic matter. They can be classified into two categories based on the type of food they consume:
• Transpiration, the loss of water from leaves (mostly through stomata), creates a force within leaves that pulls xylem sap upward.
• Water and minerals in the soil are absorbed by the roots
• aquaporins that allow only water to move across the membrane. Water movement through aquaporins is quicker since no lipids are involved.
• Plants need minerals to synthesize organic compounds such as amino acids, proteins and lipids. Plants obtain these minerals from the soil and are transported by various transport proteins
• Macronutrients are required by plants in relatively large amounts and compose much of the plant’s structure. (C, N, O, P, S, H, K, Ca, Mg, Si, etc. )
• Macronutrient includes:

  • C ( commonly found in the living things)
  • H ( it is water)
  • O (Most needed)
  • N (abundant gas in the atmosphere)
• Gas exchange occurs through the stomata.
• CO 2 is required for photosynthesis and O 2 is released into the atmosphere.
• Roots exchange gases with the air spaces in the soil, taking in O 2 and releasing CO 2 .
• Sugars are produced by

  photosynthesis in the leaves.
• Phloem sap(green arrows) can flow both ways.
• Xylem sap(blue arrows) transport water and minerals upward from roots to shoots.
• Root pressure is caused by active distribution of mineral nutrient ions into the root xylem.
• Without transpiration to carry the ions up the stem, they accumulate in the root xylem and lower the water potential.
• At night in some plants, root pressure causes guttation or exudation of drops of xylem sap from the tips or edges of leaves as pictured here.
• Water then diffuses from the soil into the root xylem due to osmosis.
• Root pressure is caused by this accumulation of water in the xylem pushing on the rigid cells.
• Root pressure provides a force, which pushes water up the stem, but it is not enough to account for the movement of water to leaves at the top of the tallest trees.
• Transpiration: Water is constantly lost by transpiration in the leaf. • When one water molecule is lost another is pulled along by the processes of cohesion and adhesion. • Transpiration pull, utilizing capillary action and the inherent surface tension of water, is the primary mechanism of water movement in plants.
• Wilting: turgor loss in plants causes wilting which can be reverse when the plant are watered.
• When water moves into guard cells from neighboring cells by osmosis, they become more turgid.
• The structure of the guard cells’ wall causes them to bow outward in response to the incoming water.
• This bowing increases the size of the pore (stomata) between the guard cells allowing for an increase in gas exchange.
• By contrast, when the guard cells lose water and become flaccid, they become less bowed , and the pore (stomata) closes. This limits gas exchange.
• Epiphytes- grow on other plants, but do not harm their host.
• Parasitic Plants- absorb water, minerals, and sugars from their host
• Carnivorous Plants- photosynthetic but supplement their mineral diet with insects and small animals; found in nitrogen poor soils.
• A halophyte is a salt-tolerant plant that grows in soil or waters of high salinity, coming into contact with saline water through its roots or by salt spray.
• THE NUTRITIONAL REQUIREMENTS OF ANIMALS:

  •Carbohydrates( every needs in body) •Lipids( in tail and head) •Nucleic acids( smallest matter) •Proteins( used for amino acids) •Minerals ( synonymous to nutrient) •Vitamins ( to make the body healthy)
• Carbohydrates are the basic source of energy for all animals. About one-half to two-thirds of the total calories every animal consumes daily are from carbohydrates.
• Glucose is the carbohydrate most often used as an energy source. This monosaccharide is metabolized during cellular respiration and part of the energy is used to synthesize adenosine triphosphate (ATP).
• Lipids Used to form cellular and organelle membranes, the sheaths surrounding nerve fibers, and certain hormones.
• One type of lipid, fats, are extremely useful energy sources.
• Nucleic Acids used for the construction of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), ribonucleic acid (RNA), and ATP.
• Animals obtain their nucleic acids from plant and animal tissues, especially from cells that contain nuclei.
• During digestion, the nucleic acids are broken down into nucleotides, which are absorbed into the cells.
• Proteins Form the framework of the animal body.
• During digestion, proteins are broken down into their constituent amino acids, which are absorbed into the body.