Life Processes

Chapter – 5
Class – 10th
Science
 Introduction
• There are some sort of movement (either growth-related or not) as common evidence for being
alive. But a plant that is not visibly growing is still alive, and some animals can breathe without
visible movement. So, using visible movement as the defining characteristic of life is not enough.
• Movements over very small scales will be invisible to the naked eye (e.g., movements of
molecules, & this invisible molecular movement is necessary for life).
• In fact, viruses do not show any molecular movement in them (until they infect some cell), and that
is partly why there is a controversy about whether they are truly alive or not.
• The living organisms are well-organized structures; they can have tissues, tissues have cells, cells
have smaller components in them, and so on. Because of the effects of the environment, this
organized, ordered nature of living structures is very likely to keep breaking down over time.
• If order breaks down, the organism will no longer be alive. So, living creatures must keep repairing
and maintaining their structures.
• Since all these structures are made up of molecules, they must move molecules around all the time.
 Life Processes
• The maintenance functions of living organisms must go on even when they are not doing anything
particular. Even when we are just sitting in class, even if we are just asleep, this maintenance job
has to go on. The processes which together perform this maintenance job are life processes.
• Since these maintenance processes are needed to prevent damage and break-down, energy is
needed for them. This energy comes from outside the body of the individual organism. So there
must be a process to transfer a source of energy (food) from outside the body of the organism to the
inside by a process commonly called nutrition.
• If the body size of the organisms is to grow, additional raw material will also be needed from
outside. Since life on earth depends on carbon-based molecules, most of these food sources are
also carbon-based.
• Depending on the complexity of these carbon sources, different organisms can then use different
kinds of nutritional processes.
• The outside sources of energy could be quite varied, since the environment is not under the control
of the individual organism. These sources of energy need to be broken down or built up in the
body, and must be finally converted to a uniform source of energy that can be used for the various
molecular movements needed for maintaining living structures as well as to the kind of molecules
the body needs to grow.
• For this, a series of chemical reactions in the body are necessary. Oxidizing-reducing reactions are
some of the most common chemical means to break-down molecules.
• For this, many organisms use oxygen sourced from outside the body. The process of acquiring
oxygen from outside the body, and to use it in the process of break-down of food sources for
cellular needs is called respiration.
• In the case of a single-celled organism, no specific organs for taking in food, exchange of gases or
removal of wastes may be needed because the entire surface of the organism is in contact with the
environment.
• In multicellular organisms where the body size of the organism increases and the body design
becomes more complex, all the cells may not be in direct contact with the surrounding
environment. Thus, simple diffusion will not meet the requirements of all the cells.
• In multi-cellular organisms, various body parts have specialized in the functions they perform.
• The uptake of food and of oxygen will also be the function of specialized tissues.
• However, this poses a problem, since the food and oxygen are now taken up at one place in the
body of the organisms, while all parts of the body need them. This situation creates a need for a
transportation system for carrying food and oxygen from one place to another in the body.
• When chemical reactions use the carbon source and the oxygen for energy generation, they create
by-products that are not only useless for the cells of the body, but could even be harmful.
• These waste byproducts are therefore needed to be removed from the body and discarded outside
by a process called excretion.
• Again, if the basic rules for body design in multi-cellular organisms are followed, a specialized
tissue for excretion will be developed, which means that the transportation system will need to
transport waste away from cells to this excretory tissue.
• The various processes essential to maintain life are:― (i) Nutrition; (ii) Respiration;
(iii) Transportation; (iv) Excretion.
 Nutrition
• When we walk or ride a bicycle, we are using up energy. Even when we are not doing any apparent
activity, energy is needed to maintain a state of order in our body.
• We also need materials from outside in order to grow, develop, synthesize protein and other
substances needed in the body. This source of energy and materials is the food we eat.
• The general requirement for energy and materials is common in all organisms, but it is fulfilled in
different ways.
• Some organisms use simple food material obtained from inorganic sources in the form of carbon
dioxide and water. These organisms (the autotrophs) include green plants and some bacteria.
• Other organisms utilize complex substances. These complex substances have to be broken down
into simpler ones before they can be used for the upkeep and growth of the body.
• To achieve this, organisms use bio-catalysts called enzymes. Thus, the heterotrophs survival
depends directly or indirectly on autotrophs.
• Heterotrophic organisms include animals and fungi.
❑ Autotrophic Nutrition
• Carbon and energy requirements of the autotrophic organism are fulfilled by photosynthesis. It is
the process by which autotrophs take in substances from the outside and convert them into stored
forms of energy.
• This material is taken in the form of carbon dioxide and water which is converted into
carbohydrates in the presence of sunlight and chlorophyll.
• Carbohydrates are utilized for providing energy to the plant.
• The carbohydrates (glucose) which are not used immediately are stored in the form of starch,
which serves as the internal energy reserve to be used as and when required by the plant.
• A somewhat similar situation is seen in us where some of the energy derived from the food we eat
is stored in our body in the form of glycogen.
• During the process of photosynthesis, the following events occur:―
(a) Absorption of light energy by chlorophyll.
(b) Conversion of light energy to chemical energy and splitting of water molecules into hydrogen
and oxygen.
(c) Reduction of carbon dioxide to carbohydrates.
• These steps need not take place one after the other immediately, e.g., desert plants take up carbon
dioxide at night and prepare an intermediate which is acted upon by the energy absorbed by the
chlorophyll during the day.
• If you carefully observe a cross-section of a leaf under the microscope, you will notice that some
cells contain green dots. These green dots are cell organelles called chloroplasts which contain
chlorophyll.
• The chlorophyll is essential for photosynthesis.
• The plant obtains carbon dioxide through stomata which are tiny pores present on the surface of the
leaves.
• Massive amounts of gaseous exchange takes place in the leaves through these pores for the purpose
of photosynthesis.
Cross-section of a
Leaf
• Exchange of gases occurs across the surface of stems, roots and leaves as well.
• Since large amounts of water can also be lost through these stomata, the plant closes these pores
when it does not need carbon dioxide for photosynthesis.
• The opening and closing of the pore is a function of the guard cells.
• The guard cells swell when water flows into them, causing the stomatal pore to open. Similarly the
pore closes if the guard cells shrink.

• The sunlight is also essential for photosynthesis.

• Plants also need other raw materials for building their body.
• Water used in photosynthesis is taken up from the soil by the roots in terrestrial plants.
• Other materials like nitrogen, phosphorus, iron and magnesium are taken up from the soil.
• Nitrogen is an essential element used in the synthesis of proteins and other compounds. This is
taken up in the form of inorganic nitrates or nitrites, or it is taken up as organic compounds which
have been prepared by bacteria from atmospheric nitrogen.
(a) Open and (b) Closed Stomatal Pore
❑ Heterotrophic Nutrition
• Each organism is adapted to its environment. The form of nutrition differs depending on the type
and availability of food material as well as how it is obtained by the organism, e.g., whether the
food source is stationary (such as grass) or mobile (such as a deer), would allow for differences in
how the food is accessed and what is the nutritive apparatus used by a cow and a lion.
• There is a range of strategies by which the food is taken in and used by the organism. Some
organisms break-down the food material outside the body and then absorb it. Examples are fungi
like bread moulds, yeast and mushrooms.
• Others take in whole material and break it down inside their bodies. What can be taken in and
broken down depends on the body design and functioning.
• Some other organisms derive nutrition from plants or animals without killing them. This parasitic
nutritive strategy is used by a wide variety of organisms like cuscuta (amar-bel), ticks, lice, leeches
and tape-worms.
Nutrition in Amoeba
❑ Different Ways of taking Food
• Since the food and the way it is obtained differ, the digestive system is different in various
organisms.
• In single-celled organisms, the food may be taken in by the entire surface.
• But as the complexity of the organism increases, different parts become specialized to perform
different functions, e.g., Amoeba takes in food using temporary finger-like extensions of the cell
surface which fuse over the food particle forming a food-vacuole.
• Inside the food vacuole, complex substances are broken down into simpler ones which then diffuse
into the cytoplasm. The remaining undigested material is moved to the surface of the cell and
thrown out.
• In Paramoecium which is also a unicellular organism, the cell has a definite shape and food is
taken in at a specific spot. Food is moved to this spot by the movement of cilia which cover the
entire surface of the cell.
 Nutrition in Human Beings
• The alimentary canal is basically a long tube extending from the mouth to the anus.
• The tube has different parts. Various regions are specialized to perform different functions.
• We eat various types of food which has to pass through the same digestive tract. Naturally the food
has to be processed to generate particles which are small and of the same texture. This is achieved
by crushing the food with our teeth.
• Since the lining of the canal is soft, the food is also wetted to make its passage smooth. When we
eat something we like, our mouth ‘waters’. This is actually not only water, but a fluid called saliva
secreted by the salivary glands.
• Another aspect of the food we ingest is its complex nature. If it is to be absorbed from the
alimentary canal, it has to be broken into smaller molecules. This is done with the help of
biological catalysts called enzymes.
• The saliva contains an enzyme called salivary amylase that breaks down starch which is a complex
molecule to give simple sugar.
• The food is mixed thoroughly with saliva and moved around the mouth while chewing by the
muscular tongue.
• It is necessary to move the food in a regulated manner along the digestive tube so that it can be
processed properly in each part.
• The lining of canal has muscles that contract rhythmically in order to push the food forward. These
peristaltic movements occur all along the gut.
• From the mouth, the food is taken to the stomach through the food-pipe or oesophagus.
• The stomach is a large organ which expands when food enters it.
• The muscular walls of the stomach help in mixing the food thoroughly with more digestive juices.
• The digestion in stomach is taken care of by the gastric glands present in the wall of the stomach.
These release hydrochloric acid, a protein digesting enzyme called pepsin, and mucus.
• The hydrochloric acid creates an acidic medium which facilitates the action of the enzyme pepsin.
• The mucus protects the inner lining of the stomach from the action of the acid under normal
conditions.
• We have often heard adults complaining about ‘acidity’.
Human Alimentary Canal
• The exit of food from the stomach is regulated by a sphincter muscle which releases it in small
amounts into the small intestine.
• From the stomach, the food now enters the small intestine. This is the longest part of the alimentary
canal which is fitted into a compact space because of extensive coiling.
• The length of the small intestine differs in various animals depending on the food they eat.
• Herbivores eating grass need a longer small intestine to allow the cellulose to be digested.
• Meat is easier to digest, hence carnivores like tigers have a shorter small intestine.

• The small intestine is the site of the complete digestion of carbohydrates, proteins and fats. It
receives the secretions of the liver and pancreas for this purpose.
• The food coming from the stomach is acidic and has to be made alkaline for the pancreatic
enzymes to act. Bile juice from the liver accomplishes this in addition to acting on fats.
• Fats are present in the intestine in the form of large globules which makes it difficult for enzymes
to act on them.
• Bile salts break them down into smaller globules increasing the efficiency of enzyme action. This
is similar to the emulsifying action of soaps on dirt.
• The pancreas secretes pancreatic juice which contains enzymes like trypsin for digesting proteins
and lipase for breaking down emulsified fats.
• The walls of the small intestine contain glands which secrete intestinal juice. The enzymes present
in it finally convert the proteins to amino acids, complex carbohydrates into glucose and fats into
fatty acids and glycerol.
• Digested food is taken up by the walls of the intestine.
• The inner lining of the small intestine has numerous finger-like projections called villi which
increase the surface area for absorption.
• The villi are richly supplied with blood vessels which take the absorbed food to each and every cell
of the body where it is utilized for obtaining energy, building up new tissues and the repair of old
tissues.
• The unabsorbed food is sent into the large intestine where its wall absorb more water from this
material.
• The rest of the material is removed from the body via the anus. The exit of this waste material is
regulated by the anal sphincter.
❖ Dental Caries
• Dental caries or tooth decay causes gradual softening of enamel and dentine. It begins when
bacteria acting on sugars produce acids that softens or demineralizes the enamel.
• Masses of bacterial cells together with food particles stick to the teeth to form dental plaque.
• Saliva cannot reach the tooth surface to neutralize the acid as plaque covers the teeth.
• Brushing the teeth after eating removes the plaque before the bacteria produce acids.
• If untreated, microorganisms may invade the pulp, causing inflammation and infection.
 Respiration
• The food material taken in during the process of nutrition is used in cells to provide energy for
various life processes.
• Diverse organisms perform respiration in different ways:― some use oxygen to break-down
glucose completely into carbon dioxide and water, while some use other pathways that do not
involve oxygen.
• In all cases, the first step is the break-down of glucose (a six-carbon molecule) into a three-carbon
molecule called pyruvate. This process takes place in the cytoplasm.
• Further, the pyruvate may be converted into ethanol and carbon dioxide. This process takes place
in yeast during fermentation.
• Since this process takes place in the absence of air (oxygen), it is called anaerobic respiration.
• Breakdown of pyruvate using oxygen takes place in the mitochondria. This process breaks up the
three-carbon pyruvate molecule to give three molecules of carbon dioxide. The other product is
water.
• Since this process takes place in the presence of air (oxygen), it is called aerobic respiration.
• The release of energy in this aerobic process is a lot greater than in the anaerobic process.

• Sometimes, when there is a lack of oxygen in our muscle cells, another pathway for the break-
down of pyruvate is taken. Here the pyruvate is converted into lactic acid which is also a three-
carbon molecule. This build-up of lactic acid in our muscles during sudden activity causes cramps.

• The energy released during cellular respiration is immediately used to synthesize a molecule called
ATP which is used to fuel all other activities in the cell.
• In these processes, ATP is broken down giving rise to a fixed amount of energy which can drive the
endothermic reactions taking place in the cell.

• Lime water turns milky when CO₂ is passed through them.

Break-down of glucose by various pathways
 Adenosine Triphosphate (ATP)
• ATP is the energy currency for most cellular processes.
• The energy released during the process of respiration is used to make an ATP molecule from ADP
and inorganic phosphate.

• Endothermic processes in the cell then use this ATP to drive the reactions.
• When the terminal phosphate linkage in ATP is broken using water, the energy equivalent to
30.5kJ/mol is released.
• A battery can provide energy for many different kinds of uses. It can be used to obtain mechanical
energy, light energy, electrical energy and so on.
• Similarly, ATP can be used in the cells for the contraction of muscles, protein synthesis, conduction
of nervous impulses and many other activities.
 Breathing (Exchange of Gases)
• Since the aerobic respiration pathway depends on oxygen, aerobic organisms need to ensure that
there is sufficient intake of oxygen.
• Plants exchange gases through stomata, and the large inter-cellular spaces ensure that all cells are
in contact with air. Carbon dioxide and oxygen are exchanged by diffusion here. They can go into
cells, or away from them and out into the air.
• The direction of diffusion depends upon the environmental conditions and the requirements of the
plant.
• At night, when there is no photosynthesis occurring, CO₂ elimination is the major exchange
activity going on. During the day, CO₂ generated during respiration is used up for photosynthesis,
hence there is no CO₂ release. Instead, oxygen release is the major event at this time.
• Animals have evolved different organs for the uptake of oxygen from the environment and for
getting rid of the carbon dioxide produced.
• Terrestrial animals can breathe the oxygen in the atmosphere, but animals that live in water need to
use the oxygen dissolved in water.
• Since the amount of dissolved oxygen is fairly low compared to the amount of oxygen in the air,
the rate of breathing in aquatic organisms is much faster than that seen in terrestrial organisms.

• Fishes take in water through their mouths and force it past the gills where the dissolved oxygen is
taken up by blood.

• Terrestrial organisms use the oxygen in the atmosphere for respiration. This oxygen is absorbed by
different organs in different animals.
• All these organs have a structure that increases the surface area which is in contact with the
oxygen-rich atmosphere.
• Since the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide has to take place across this surface, this surface
is very fine and delicate.
• In order to protect this surface, it is usually placed within the body, so there have to be passages
that will take air to this area. In addition, there is a mechanism for moving the air in and out of this
area where the oxygen is absorbed.
• In human beings, air is taken into the body through the nostrils. The air passing through the nostrils
is filtered by fine hairs that line the passage.
• The passage is also lined with mucus which helps in this process. From here, the air passes through
the throat and into the lungs.
• Rings of cartilage are present in the throat. These ensure that the air-passage does not collapse.

• Within the lungs, the passage divides into smaller and smaller tubes which finally terminate in
balloon-like structures which are called alveoli.
• The alveoli provide a surface where the exchange of gases can take place. The walls of the alveoli
contain an extensive network of blood-vessels.
Human Respiratory System
• When we breathe in air, we lift our ribs and flatten our diaphragm, and the chest cavity becomes
larger as a result. Because of this, air is sucked into the lungs and fills the expanded alveoli.
• The blood brings carbon dioxide from the rest of the body for release into the alveoli, and the
oxygen in the alveolar air is taken up by blood in the alveolar blood vessels to be transported to all
the cells in the body.
• During the breathing cycle, when air is taken in and let out, the lungs always contain a residual
volume of air so that there is sufficient time for oxygen to be absorbed and for the carbon dioxide
to be released.
• When the body size of animals is large, the diffusion pressure alone cannot take care of oxygen
delivery to all parts of the body.
• Instead, respiratory pigments take up oxygen from the air in the lungs and carry it to tissues which
are deficient in oxygen before releasing it.
• In human beings, the respiratory pigment is haemoglobin which has a very high affinity for
oxygen. This pigment is present in the red blood corpuscles.
• Carbon dioxide is more soluble in water than oxygen and hence is mostly transported in the
dissolved form in our blood.
 Negative Effects on Respiratory System
• Using tobacco directly or any product of tobacco in the form of cigar, cigarettes, bidis, hookah,
gutkha, etc., is harmful.
• Use of tobacco most commonly affects the tongue, lungs, heart and liver.
• Smokeless tobacco is also a major risk factor for heart attacks, strokes, pulmonary diseases and
several forms of cancers.
• There is a high incidence of oral cancer in India due to the chewing of tobacco in the form of
gutkha. Stay healthy; just say NO to tobacco and its products.

• Smoking is injurious to health. Lung cancer is one of common causes of deaths in the world. The
upper part of respiratory tract is provided with small hair-like structures called cilia.
• These cilia help to remove germs, dust and other harmful particles from inhaled air.
• Smoking destroys these hair due to which germs, dust, smoke and other harmful chemicals enter
lungs and cause infection, cough and even lung cancer.
 Transportation in Human Beings
• Blood transports food, oxygen and waste materials in our bodies.
• Blood being a fluid connective tissue.
• Blood consists of a fluid medium called plasma in which the cells are suspended. Plasma transports
food, carbon dioxide and nitrogenous wastes in dissolved form.
• Oxygen is carried by the red blood corpuscles. Many other substances (like salts) are also
transported by the blood.
• There is a need of a pumping organ to push blood around the body, a network of tubes to reach all
the tissues and a system in place to ensure that this network can be repaired if damaged.
• The normal Hb (Haemoglobin) level for males is 14 to 18 g/dl & that for females is 12 to 16 g/dl.
When the hemoglobin level is low, the patient has anemia.
 Heart (Pumping Organ)
• The heart is a muscular organ which is as big as our fist.
• Because both oxygen and carbon dioxide have to be transported by the blood, the heart has
different chambers to prevent the oxygen-rich blood from mixing with the blood containing carbon
dioxide.
• The carbon dioxide-rich blood has to reach the lungs for the carbon dioxide to be removed, and the
oxygenated blood from the lungs has to be brought back to the heart. This oxygen-rich blood is
then pumped to the rest of the body.

• We can follow this process step by step. Oxygen-rich blood from the lungs comes to the thin-
walled upper chamber of the heart on the left (the left atrium).
• The left atrium relaxes when it is collecting this blood, & then it contracts; while the next chamber
(the left ventricle) relaxes so that the blood is transferred to it.
• When the muscular left ventricle contracts in its turn, the blood is pumped out to the body.
Human Heart
• De-oxygenated blood comes from the body to the upper chamber on the right (the right atrium) as
it relaxes. As the right atrium contracts, the corresponding lower chamber (the right ventricle)
dilates. This transfers blood to the right ventricle, which in turn pumps it to the lungs for
oxygenation.
• Since ventricles have to pump blood into various organs, they have thicker muscular walls than the
atria do. Valves ensure that blood does not flow backwards when the atria or ventricles contract.
 Double Circulation (transport and
exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide)
❑ Oxygen enters the blood in the lungs

• The separation of the right side and the left side of the heart is useful to keep oxygenated and
deoxygenated blood from mixing.
• Such separation 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, which constantly use energy to maintain
their body temperature.
• In animals that do not use energy for this purpose, the body temperature depends on the
temperature in the environment. Such animals, like amphibians or many reptiles have three-
chambered hearts, and tolerate some mixing of the oxygenated and de-oxygenated blood streams.
• Fishes have only two chambers to their hearts, and the blood is pumped to the gills, is oxygenated
there, and passes directly to the rest of the body. Thus, blood goes only once through the heart in
the fish during one cycle of passage through the body.
• On the other hand, it goes through the heart twice during each cycle in other vertebrates. This is
known as double circulation.
❑ Tubes (Blood Vessels)

• Arteries are the vessels which carry blood away from the heart to various organs of the body. Since
the blood emerges from the heart under high pressure, the arteries have thick, elastic walls.
• Veins collect the blood from different organs and bring it back to the heart. They do not need thick
walls because the blood is no longer under pressure, instead they have valves that ensure that the
blood flows only in one direction.
• On reaching an organ or tissue, the artery divides into smaller and smaller vessels to bring the
blood in contact with all the individual cells. The smallest vessels have walls which are one-cell
thick and are called capillaries.
• Exchange of material between the blood and surrounding cells takes place across this thin wall.
The capillaries then join together to form veins that convey the blood away from the organ or
tissue.
❑ Maintenance by Platelets

• When we are injured and start bleeding, the blood flows out of the blood vessels.
• Naturally the loss of blood from the system has to be minimised. In addition, leakage would lead to
a loss of pressure which would reduce the efficiency of the pumping system.
• To avoid this, the blood has platelet cells which circulate around the body and plug these leaks by
helping to clot the blood at these points of injury.
❑ Lymph

• There is another type of fluid also involved in transportation. This is called lymph or tissue fluid.
• Through the pores present in the walls of capillaries some amount of plasma, proteins and blood
cells escape into intercellular spaces in the tissues to form the tissue fluid or lymph.
• It is similar to the plasma of blood but colourless and contains less protein.
• Lymph drains into lymphatic capillaries from the intercellular spaces, which join to form large
lymph vessels that finally open into larger veins.
• Lymph carries digested and absorbed fat from intestine and drains excess fluid from extra cellular
space back into the blood.
❑ Blood Pressure

• The force that blood exerts against the wall of a vessel is called blood pressure.
• This pressure is much greater in arteries than in veins.
• The pressure of blood inside the artery during ventricular systole (contraction) is called systolic
pressure and pressure in artery during ventricular diastole (relaxation) is called diastolic pressure.
• The normal systolic pressure is about 120 mm of Hg and diastolic pressure is 80 mm of Hg.

• Blood pressure is measured with an instrument called sphygmomanometer.

• High blood pressure is also called hypertension and is caused by the constriction of arterioles,
which results in increased resistance to blood flow. It can lead to the rupture of an artery and
internal bleeding.
 Transportation in Plants
• Plants take in simple compounds such as CO₂ and photosynthesize energy stored in their
chlorophyll-containing organs (i.e., leaves).
• The other kinds of raw materials needed for building plant bodies will also have to be taken up
separately.
• For plants, the soil is the nearest and richest source of raw materials like nitrogen, phosphorus and
other minerals. The absorption of these substances occurs through the part in contact with the soil
(i.e., roots).
• If the distances between soil-contacting organs and chlorophyll-containing organs are small, energy
and raw materials can easily diffuse to all parts of the plant body.
• But if these distances become large because of changes in plant body design, diffusion processes
will not be sufficient to provide raw material in leaves and energy in roots. A proper system of
transportation is therefore essential in such situations.
• Energy needs differ between different body designs.
• 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.
• The distances over which transport systems have to operate can be very large in plants such as very
tall trees.
• Plant transport systems will move energy stores from leaves and raw materials from roots. These
two pathways are constructed as independently organized conducting tubes.
• The xylem moves water and minerals obtained from the soil.
• The phloem transports products of photosynthesis from the leaves where they are synthesized to
other parts of the plant.
❖ Transport of Water & Minerals
• In xylem tissue, vessels and tracheids of the roots, stems and leaves are interconnected to form a
continuous system of water-conducting channels reaching all parts of the plant.
• At the roots, cells in contact with the soil actively take up ions. This creates a difference in the
concentration of these ions between the root and the soil.
• Water moves into the root from the soil to eliminate this difference. This means that there is steady
movement of water into root xylem, creating a column of water that is steadily pushed upwards.
• However, this pressure by itself is unlikely to be enough to move water over the heights that we
commonly see in plants. Plants use another strategy to move water in the xylem upwards to the
highest points of the plant body.
Movement of water during
transpiration in a tree
• Since the plant has an adequate supply of water, the water which is lost through the stomata is
replaced by water from the xylem vessels in the leaf.
• In fact, evaporation of water molecules from the cells of a leaf creates a suction which pulls water
from the xylem cells of roots.
• The loss of water in the form of vapour from the aerial parts of the plant is known as transpiration.

• Transpiration helps in the absorption and upward movement of water and minerals dissolved in it
from roots to the leaves. It also helps in temperature regulation.
• The effect of root pressure in transport of water is more important at night. During the day when
the stomata are open, the transpiration pull becomes the major driving force in the movement of
water in the xylem.
❖ Transport of Food & Other Substances
• The products of metabolic processes (particularly photosynthesis) are moved from leaves where
they are formed to other parts of the plant.
• This transport of soluble products of photosynthesis is called translocation and it occurs in the part
of the vascular tissue known as phloem.
• Besides the products of photosynthesis, the phloem transports amino acids and other substances.
• These substances are especially delivered to the storage organs of roots, fruits and seeds and to
growing organs.
• The translocation of food and other substances takes place in the sieve tubes with the help of
adjacent companion cells both in upward and downward directions.
• Unlike transport in xylem which can be largely explained by simple physical forces, the
translocation in phloem is achieved by utilizing energy.
• Material like sucrose is transferred into phloem tissue using energy from ATP. This increases the
osmotic pressure of the tissue causing water to move into it.
• This pressure moves the material in the phloem to tissues which have less pressure. This allows the
phloem to move material according to the plant’s needs, e.g., in the spring, sugar stored in root or
stem tissue would be transported to the buds which need energy to grow.
 Excretion
• Organisms get rid of gaseous wastes generated during photosynthesis or respiration through
exchange of gases.
• Other metabolic activities generate nitrogenous materials which need to be removed.
• The biological process involved in the removal of these harmful metabolic wastes from the body is
called excretion.
• Different organisms use varied strategies to do this. Many unicellular organisms remove these
wastes by simple diffusion from the body surface into the surrounding water.
• In other processes, complex multi-cellular organisms use specialized organs to perform the same
function.
 Excretion in Human Beings
• The excretory system of human beings includes a pair of kidneys, a pair of ureters, a urinary
bladder and a urethra. Kidneys are located in the abdomen, one on either side of the backbone.
• Urine produced in the kidneys passes through the ureters into the urinary bladder where it is stored
until it is released through the urethra.
• The purpose of making urine is to filter out waste products from the blood.
• Just as CO₂ is removed from the blood in the lungs, nitrogenous waste such as urea or uric acid are
removed from blood in the kidneys.
• The basic filtration unit in the kidneys (like in the lungs) is a cluster of very thin-walled blood
capillaries.
• Each capillary cluster in the kidney is associated with the cup-shaped end of a coiled tube called
Bowman’s capsule that collects the filtrate.
Structure of a Nephron
• Each kidney has large numbers of these filtration units called nephrons packed close together.
• Some substances in the initial filtrate (such as glucose, amino acids, salts and a major amount of
water) are selectively re-absorbed as the urine flows along the tube.
• The amount of water re-absorbed depends on how much excess water there is in the body, and on
how much of dissolved waste there is to be excreted.
• The urine forming in each kidney eventually enters a long tube (the ureter) which connects the
kidneys with the urinary bladder.
• Urine is stored in the urinary bladder until the pressure of the expanded bladder leads to the urge to
pass it out through the urethra.
• The bladder is muscular, so it is under nervous control. As a result, we can usually control the urge
to urinate.
❑ Artificial Kidney (Hemodialysis)
• Kidneys are vital organs for survival. Several factors like infections, injury or restricted blood flow
to kidneys reduce the activity of kidneys.
• This leads to accumulation of poisonous wastes in the body, which can even lead to death.
• In case of kidney failure, an artificial kidney can be used.
• An artificial kidney is a device to remove nitrogenous waste products from the blood through
dialysis.
• Artificial kidneys contain a number of tubes with a semi-permeable lining, suspended in a tank
filled with dialysing fluid.
• This fluid has the same osmotic pressure as blood, except that it is devoid of nitrogenous wastes.
• The patient’s blood is passed through these tubes. During this passage, the waste products from the
blood pass into dialysing fluid by diffusion.
• The purified blood is pumped back into the patient.
• This is similar to the function of the kidney, but it is different since there is no reabsorption
involved.
• Normally, in a healthy adult, the initial filtrate in the kidneys is about 180 L daily.
• However, the volume actually excreted is only a litre or two a day because the remaining filtrate is
reabsorbed in the kidney tubules.
❑ Organ Donation
• Organ donation is a generous act of donating an organ to a person who suffers from non-function
of organ(s).
• Donation of an organ may be done by the consent of the donor and his/her family.
• Anyone regardless of age or gender can become an organ and tissue donor. Organ transplants can
save or transform the life of a person.
• Transplantation is required because recipient’s organ has been damaged or has failed by disease or
injury.
• In organ transplantation, the organ is surgically removed from one person (organ donor) and
transplanted to another person (the recipient).
• Common transplantations include corneas, kidneys, heart, liver, pancreas, lungs, intestines and
bone marrow.
• Most organ and tissue donations occur just after the donor has died or when the doctor declares a
person brain dead. But some organs such as kidney, part of a liver, lung, etc., and tissues can be
donated while the donor is alive.
 Excretion in Plants
• Plants use completely different strategies for excretion than those of animals. Oxygen itself can be
thought of as a waste product generated during photosynthesis.
• Plants deal with oxygen as well as CO₂ for photosynthesis and respiration.
• Plants can get rid of excess water by transpiration.
• For other wastes, plants use the fact that many of their tissues consist of dead cells, and that they
can even lose some parts such as leaves.
• Many plant waste products are stored in cellular vacuoles. Waste products may be stored in leaves
that fall off.
• Other waste products are stored as resins and gums, especially in old xylem.
• Plants also excrete some waste substances into the soil around them.