WHY DO ORGANISMS REPRODUCE?

Why do organisms reproduce?

◼ Organisms reproduce to create individuals of their own kind.

◼ For continuation of species on earth.
◼ For avoiding extinction of species.
Do organisms create exact copies of
themselves?
◼ Reproduction at its most basic level will involve making copies of the blueprints of body
design.
◼ Chromosomes in the nucleus of a cell contain information for inheritance of features
from parents to next generation in the form of DNA (Deoxyribo Nucleic Acid) molecules.

◼ The DNA in the cell nucleus is the information source for making proteins.

◼ If the information is changed, different proteins will be made.

◼ Different proteins will eventually lead to altered body designs.

 Or
How does a cell divide to form new
cells?
◼ Therefore, a basic event in reproduction is the creation of a DNA copy.
◼ Cells use chemical reactions to build copies of their DNA.
◼ This creates two copies of the DNA in a reproducing cell, and they will need to be
separated from each other.
◼ DNA copying is accompanied by the creation of an additional cellular apparatus,
and then the DNA copies separate, each with its own cellular apparatus.
◼ Effectively, a cell divides to give rise to two cells.
DNA copying produce similar cells, are they totally
identical?
◼ It depends on how accurately the copying reactions involved occur.
◼ No bio-chemical reaction is absolutely reliable.
◼ Therefore, it is only to be expected that the process of copying the DNA
will have some variations each time.
◼ As a result, the DNA copies generated will be similar, but may not be
identical to the original.
◼ Some of these variations might be so drastic that the new DNA copy
cannot work with the cellular apparatus it inherits.
◼ Such a newborn cell will simply die.
◼ On the other hand, there could still be many other variations in the DNA
copies that would not lead to such a drastic outcome.
◼ Thus, the surviving cells are similar to, but subtly different from each other.
WHAT
◼
IS THE IMPORTANCE OF VARIATION?
Populations of organisms fill well-defined environment in the ecosystem, using their ability to
reproduce.
◼ The consistency of DNA copying during reproduction is important for the maintenance of body
design features that allow the organism to use that particular environment.
◼ However, environment can change because of reasons beyond the control of the organisms.
◼ Temperatures on earth can go up or down, water levels can vary, or there could be meteorite
hits, to think of a few examples.
◼ If a population of reproducing organisms were suited to a particular environment and if the
niche were drastically altered, the population could be wiped out.
◼ However, if some variations were to be present in a few individuals in these populations, there
would be some chance for them to survive.
◼ For ex: if there were a population of bacteria living in temperate waters, and if the water
temperature were to be increased by global warming, most of these bacteria would die, but the
few variants resistant to heat would survive and grow further.
◼ Variation is thus useful for the survival of species over time.
Why is variation beneficial but not
necessary for the individual?

WHAT DO
YOU THINK?
 MULTIPLE FISSION

◼ In multiple fissions the parent

nucleus undergoes repeated
divisions to form a large number of
daughter nuclei.
◼ This process usually takes place
under unfavourable environmental
conditions.
◼ The multiple fissions occur in most
algae, fungi and some protozoans,
◼ Ex: Plasmodium (Malarial parasite)
 REGENERATION
◼ In this method a part of the body if
the organism if cut or broken
accidently can develop into a new
individual.
◼ Eg:-Hydra, Planaria, Star fish etc.
◼ Regeneration is carried out by
regenerative cells.
 BUDDING
◼ A small part of the body of parent organism grows out as
a bud which then detaches and become a new organism.
For Ex:Hydra,Yeast
◼ These organism use regenerating cells.
◼ HYDRA: First a small outgrowth called bud is formed on
the side of its body by division of its cells.
◼ This bud then grows gradually to form a small hydra.
Finally the tiny new hydra detaches itself from the body
of parent hydra and lives as a separate organism.
 FRAGMENTATION
◼ FRAGMENTATION: In this
method the body of a simple
multi-cellular organism breaks
up into smaller pieces on
maturation and each
fragment develops into new
individuals.
◼ Eg :- Spirogyra.
 SPORE FORMATION
◼ In multicellular organisms like fungus, ferns or
mosses etc. the parent plant produces
hundreds of reproductive units called spores.
These spores are present inside tiny blob on a
stick structures. The blobs are sporangia which
contain spores(cells) which eventually
develops into new individual .the spores are
covered by thick walls that protect them until
they come into contact with another moist
surface and begin to grow.
◼ For Ex: Rhizopus(bread mould), mucor(fungi),
ferns, mosses
 ADVANTAGES OF VEGETATIVE PROPAGATION

◼ The new plant produced by artificial vegetative propagation

will be exactly like parent plant.

◼ The fruit trees grown from cutting or grafting start to bear

fruits much earlier.

◼ Many plants can be grown from just one parent plant.

◼ We can also get seedless plant by artificial propagation.

 DISADVANTAGES OF VEGETATIVE PROPAGATION

◼ Overcrowding: It causes overcrowding and hence severe

competition.

◼ Diseases: Diseases from the parent spread to all off springs.

◼ Absence of variations: Due to absence of variations, asexually

reproduced organisms are unable to adapt themselves to changes in
the environment.

◼ Characters: Undesirable characters cannot be eliminated. Desired

characters cannot be introduced.
 TISSUE CULTURE/MICRO-PROPAGATION
◼ The production of new
plants from a small
piece of plant tissue
removed from a
growing tip of plant in
a suitable growth
medium (culture or
jelly like synthetic
medium) is called
tissue culture.
 TISSUE CULTURE/ MICRO-PROPAGATION
◼ In tissue culture, new plants are
grown by removing tissue or
separating cells from the
growing tip of a plant.
◼ The cells are then placed in an
artificial medium where they
divide rapidly to form a small
group of cells or callus.
◼ The callus is transferred to
another medium containing
hormones for growth and
differentiation.
 TISSUE CULTURE/ MICRO-PROPAGATION
◼ The plantlets are then
placed in the soil so that
they can grow into mature
plants.
◼ Using tissue culture, many
plants can be grown from
one parent in disease-free
conditions.
◼ This technique is
commonly used for
ornamental plants.
 ADVANTAGES OF TISSUE CULTURE
◼ It is a very fast technique.

◼ New plants produced by tissue culture are disease free.

◼ Very little space is needed.

◼ By this method plants can be grown around the year

irrespective of weather or seasons.
 Advantages of Asexual Reproduction
◼ A large number of individuals are produced within a short period from
a single parent.

◼ The offspring’s are genetically identical to the parent.

◼ It occurs only through simple mitotic division.

◼ It helps in dispersal of young ones to far off places.

◼ It also helps the animal to tide over unfavourable environmental

conditions.
 Disadvantages of Asexual Reproduction
◼ Continuous binary fission for several generations makes the daughter
individuals genetically weak and requires rejuvenation.

◼ Animals produced by asexual reproduction are generally less adaptable

to changing environmental conditions.

◼ Since the genetic constitution of the daughter individuals is similar to

the parent there is no genetic variation in the off springs and hence
does not contribute to speciation.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ASEXUAL AND SEXUAL REPRODUCTION
SEXUAL REPRODUCTION IN FLOWERING PLANTS
 PARTS OF A FLOWER
◼ The reproductive parts of
angiosperms are located in the
flower. There are two types of
floral organs:
◼ a) Accessory and non-essential
floral organs: Sepals and petals
are called accessory organs. They
have no direct function in sexual
reproduction.
◼ b) Essential floral organs:
Stamens and carpels are essential
floral organs. Stamen is male
reproductive part and carpel is
female reproductive part of the
plant.
TYPES OF FLOWERS:
UNISEXUAL/ BISEXUAL FLOWERS
 CARPEL (FEMALE PART OF THE PLANT)
◼ The female part of the flower is called
carpel. Each carpel has a swollen base like
structure called ovary, a stalk like structure
style and a terminal receptor part called
stigma.
◼ Stigma is sticky, hairy or feathery to pick up
pollen grains.
◼ Ovary contains one or many ovules.
◼ An ovule consists of an embryo sac.
◼ The embryo sac has actually three celled
egg apparatus (one female gamete and two
synergids), a central cell with two polar
nuclei and three antipodal cells.
 STAMEN: THE MALE PART OF THE PLANT
◼ The male part consists of a stalk like
structure called filament and a
terminal knob like structure called
the anther.
◼ There are four pollen sacs in an
anther.
◼ They produce yellowish coloured
powder of haploid cells called pollen
grains through meiotic (MEIOSIS
)divisions.(Reductional)
◼ Each pollen grain has a tube cell
with tube nucleus and two male
gametes.
 POLLINATION
◼ AGENTS OF POLLINATION
◼ a) Wind: Anemophily b) Water: Hydrophily
◼ c) Insects: Entomophily d) Birds: Ornithophily
◼ e) Bats: Chiropterophily
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN
 DOUBLE FERTILISATION / TRIPLE FUSION

◼ After falling over stigma, the pollen grain absorbs

water and nutrients.
◼ It produces a tube called pollen tube.
◼ Pollen tube reaches through style and reaches the
ovary.
◼ Pollen tube contains a tube nucleus and two male
gametes.
◼ The pollen tube reaches the embryo sac and one male
gamete fertilises with the egg cell to form a zygote.
◼ The other male gamete fertilises with the central cells
( two polar nuclei) to produce endosperm .
◼ This is known as triple fusion.
◼ This type of fertilisation is known as double
fertilisation.
◼ Double fertilisation is fusion of two male gametes
brought by a pollen tube with two different
structures of the same embryo sac , one forming
embryo and the other forming endosperm.
◼ The zygote develops into embryo and endosperm
provides nourishment for the growing embryo.
 POST FERTILISATION EVENTS

◼ After fertilisation, the zygote divides several

times to form an embryo within the ovule.
◼ The ovule develops a tough coat and is gradually
converted into a seed.
◼ The ovary grows rapidly and ripens to form a
fruit.
◼ Meanwhile, the petals, sepals, stamens, style
and stigma may shrivel and fall off.
STRUTURE OF A SEED
Difference between Plumule and Radicle
 COTYLEDONS (SEED LEAVES)

◼ Cotyledons are referred to as seed leaves because

they act as the leaves of the seed during the process
of germination.
◼ Cotyledons provide food for the germinating plant.
◼ Cotyledons store food necessary used during this
process.