Biology

Chapter 6, life process

● All living organisms. (Unicellular or multicellular shows some unique activities which
distinguish them from non-living and dead.

● Some of these activities are

○ Growth
○ Metabolism
○ Reproduction
○ Movement
○ Consciousness etc.,

● Some of these activities are very essential for:

1. Survival of life
2. Maintenance of life

● Hence, are called life processes

A: NUTRITION: Process of obtaining and consuming nutrients

B: RESPIRATION: Process of obtaining energy as ATP
C: TRANSPORTATION: Process of transfer of metabolites
D: EXCRETION: Process of removal of metabolic waste

Q1. What criteria do we use to decide whether something is alive?

Q2. What process would you consider essential for maintaining life?
Q3. Does maintenance job go while someone is sleeping?

A) Nutrition:
Definition: The process of taking food and utilisation of food is considered as nutrition.
It is the process of breakdown of nutrients into much smaller molecules and their absorption
Nutrients: Organic or inorganic chemical substances required by the body to fulfil all needs of
life.
Types of nutrients: carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, and minerals
Food: source, which provide on a more nutrients
Modes of nutrition/types of nutrition:
Methods of obtaining food by the organism is called modes of nutrition
Two types of nutrition:
1. Autotrophic nutrition
2. Heterotrophic nutrition
 1. AUTOTROPHIC NUTRITION:
● It is a type of nutrition mode in which organisms make their own food from simple inorganic
matter
● Organisms which synthesize their own food is called autotrophs E.g., Green plants, Algae
● Depending upon the source of energy used in the synthesis of food, auto tropic nutrition is
further classified as, photosynthesis and chemosynthesis

Photosynthesis:
● Sunlight is utilized to synthesize food
● Inorganic molecule is converted into organic molecule
● Chlorophyll is present
● Organisms are called Photo autotrophs
● Example green plants and algae

Chemosynthesis:
● Chemical energies used to synthesize food
● Use chemical compounds for energy and CO2 for carbon
● Chlorophyll is absent
● Organisms are chemoautotrophs
● Example, example, Sulphur bacteria, Nitrosomonas bacteria

Photosynthesis:
● Photosynthesis is the method of preparing food (carbohydrate) by involving carbon dioxide and
water, with the help of chlorophyll pigments and light energy.
● In plants, the sugar produced during photosynthesis is stored as starch which
serve as a source of reserved internal
energy.
The overall photosynthesis reaction is:

Raw materials required in photosynthesis

● Carbon dioxide: obtained from atmospheric air through stomata (tiny pores on leaves surface)
● Photosynthetic pigment: Chlorophyll present in chloroplast
● Sunlight: Natural source of light
● Water: absorbed from the soil by the roots of the plants.

CROSS SECTION OF LEAF:

Three main parts: 1. Epidermis, 2. Stomata, and 3. Guard cells
I) Epidermis
● Outermost layer
● In leaf, it has got two parts, upper epidermis (do not contain chlorophyll) and lower epidermis
(contains stomata)
II) Stomata
● Tiny pores present on surface of leaf
● More in number in lower epidermis (reason to control the rate of
transpiration)
Functions:
● Exchange of gases (O2⇒ CO2)
● Transpiration (loss of water)
In certain plants (desert plants)
● Stomata are closed during the day.
● They take up CO2 at night and prepare an intermediate organic
acid.
● This is acted upon by the energy absorbed by chlorophyll during
the day and breaks up to release CO2 during the day.
● Which is used for photosynthesis during the day, even when the stomata is closed.
In aquatic plants, CO2 is absorbed from water (dissolved CO2) through diffusion.

III) Guard cells:

● Been shaped cells that frame stomatal openings.
● Opening and closing of stomatal pores.
● Controlled by turgidity of guard cells.
Guard cells—> uptake of water --->swells (turgid) --->stomatal pores open
Guard cells —> release water---> flaccid --->stomatal pores close
Site of photosynthesis:
● Occurs in chloroplast or kitchen of the cell (green tissue of leaf and
stem).
Main events of photosynthesis.
● Absorption of light energy by chlorophyll.
● Conversion of light energy into chemical energy and splitting of water molecules into hydrogen
and oxygen.
● Reduction of Co2 into carbohydrates. (H2 reduces Co2 —>carbohydrate)
● All these events are categorized into two main reactions
i) Light reactions ii) Dark reactions
 Light reaction Dark reaction

Location Thylakoids membrane Stroma of chloroplast

of grana

Reaction Light energy is converted into With the help of light

chemical energy. In the generated ATP and NADPH2
presence of light, H2O splits Co2, is reduced to
into hydrogen and O2. ATP carbohydrate
and NADPH2 are formed

Light Required Not required

requirement

Light and dark reactions:

ACTIVITY TO DEMONSTRATE CHLOROPHYLL IS ESSENTIAL FOR PHOTOSYNTHESIS.

Objective:
To prove that chlorophyll is necessary for photosynthesis using a variegated leaf (A leaf which has both
green and non-green parts)
Procedure:
● Take a potted plant with variegated leaf.
● Keep the plant in a dark room for three days (De-starching the plant)
● Place the plant in sunlight for six hours (photosynthesis occurs)
● Pluck a leaf, and mark the green areas. Trace them on a sheet of paper.
● Dip the leaf in boiling water bath for two minutes (to kill the cells).
● Immerse the leaf in a beaker containing alcohol (removing chlorophyll)
● Dip the leaf in iodine solution. Take off the leaf rinse excess iodine and observe the
color change.
Observation:
● The green areas turn bluish black color.
● Non-green areas will not turn bluish black color.
Explanation:
● Photosynthesis produces starch.
● Iodine solution reacts with starch to produce a blue-black color.
● Only the parts of the leaf that contained chlorophyll were able to perform photosynthesis and
produce starch.
● Therefore, chlorophyll is essential for photosynthesis
ACTIVITY TO DEMONSTRATE THAT CO2 IS ESSENTIAL FOR PHOTOSYNTHESIS.
Objective:
To prove that Co2 is essential for photosynthesis.
Procedure:
● Take two potted plants of the same size.
● De-starch them by placing them in dark room for three days.
● After three days, place on a glass slab.
● Place a watch glass containing potassium hydroxide on one glass slab.
● Cover both plants with a separate bell jar.
● Seal the bottom of both the jars to ensure that the set up is airtight.
● Keep the plant under sunlight for about two hours.
● Pluck a leaf from each plant and check for the presence of starch.
Observation:
The leaf of a plant without potassium hydroxide turns blue black after the addition of iodine solution.

Explanation:
● Potassium hydroxide reacts with carbon di oxide
and forms its oxides. As a result no CO2 is
available for plants.
● No starch production (Photosynthesis)
● No bluish black colour is formed.
● The plant without potassium hydroxide can
perform photosynthesis.
● Hence it is proved that Co2 is essential for
photosynthesis

HETEROTROPHIC NUTRITION: (Hetero- Different, Trophic- Feeding)

→It is a type of nutrition, in which organisms get their food from some other plants or
animals.
Еg: Humans, animals
Digestion is required to change complex organic compounds into simple soluble forms
Heterotrophic Nutrition is categorized into three:
 HOLOZOIC NUTRITION SAPROPHYTIC PARASITIC
NUTRITION NUTRITION

Animals take in solid food and Organisms feed on dead —>organisms which live
breaks down food inside the body. and decaying matter inside or outside of other
Eg: Amoeba, Нumans organism (host)
→ Derive nutrition from
host

Depending upon the source of food Eg Bacteria and fungi Eg., Cuscutta, lice, ticks
different types ascaris
● Herbivores
● Carnivores
● Omnivores
● Detritivores

STEPS INVOLVED IN HOLOZOIC NUTRITION:

INGESTION INTAKE OF FOOD

DIGESTION. BREAKDOWN OF COMPLEX FOOD INTO SIMPLE FORM

ABSORPTION MOVEMENT OF DIGESTED FOOS

ASSIMILATION UTILIZATION OF FOOD

EGESTION REMOVAL OF WASTE

MODE OF NUTRITION IN AMOEBA:

⮚ Unicellular, Holozoic, Omnivorous
⮚ Amoeba ingests food particles through a temporary
fingerlike
structure called pseudopodia.
⮚ Pseudopodia engulf food particles to form food
vacuole and
break complex food into simple molecules.
⮚ The simple forms are absorbed by the cytoplasm.
⮚ Absorbed food is used by the cell.
⮚ Undigested food is removed out of the cell
Paramecium:
In Paramecium, food is taken in at a specific spot and is moved to the spot by the moment of Cilia,
which covers the entire surface of the cell.
NUTRITION IN HUMAN BEINGS:
-Holozoic nutrition
- performed in five stages (Ingestion, Digestion, Absorption, Assimilation,
Egestion)

HUMAN DIGESTIVE SYSTEM

Digestive glands or Associated glands

Alimentary canal
*Around 9 m long *Release digestive enzymes
muscular tube. *Salivary gland (3 pairs)
*It includes, -parotids (cheek)
Mouth -submandibular(below jaw)
↓ -sublingual (below tongue)
Buccal cavity
↓ *Gastric glands
Pharynx. *Pancreas
↓ *liver and gallbladder
Oesophagus. *Intestinal glands
↓
Stomach
↓ I—duodenum
Small intestine — I—jejunum
↓ I—ileum
I—Caecum. I—Ascending colon
Large intestine—I—Colon —- I—Transverse colon
I—Rectum I— Descending colon
I— Sigmoid colon
↓
Anus
(Guarded by anal
Sphincter muscle)

Mouth:
● Guarded by upper and lower lip.
● Intake of food takes place (ingestion)
Buccal cavity: (oral cavity)
● Large space inside the mouth,
● Process food via tongue and teeth,
● Tongue-muscular sensory organ
-bears taste buds,
-Mixes food with saliva,
● Teeth- hard structures,
- Helps in chewing and grinding
- Breakdown hard food into soft food.
- In human, two sets of teeth (Milk
teeth and permanent
Dental caries:
● Gradual softening of enamel.
● Bacteria along with food particles on teeth produce an acid.
● It causes demineralization leading to dental caries.
● Can be prevented by mouth washing after every meal.

Salivary gland:
● Secretes saliva (Amylase or ptyalin)
Saliva —> maltose (or) sucrose
Activity 6.3
Experiment:
Objective: To see the effect of saliva on starch.
Procedure:
● Take 1 ml starch solution (1%) into test tubes, A and B.
● Add 1 ml saliva to test tube A and leave both test tubes undisturbed for 20-30 minutes.
● Now add a few drops of dilute iodine solution to the test tubes.
● Record the observations.
Observation.
Starch solution does not turn blue black colour.
Starch solution without saliva turned into blue black colour
Explanation.
● Saliva contains Salivary Amylase enzymes.
● It degrades starch into simple sugar.
● Iodine does not react with simple sugar.
● Hence the solution treated with saliva does not turn blue.
Inference: Saliva degrades the starch.
Pharynx:
⮚ Funnel shaped canal next to buccal cavity.
⮚ Pushes food to the esophagus.
⮚ Epiglottis prevent the entry of food into the windpipe.
Oesophagus (or food pipe):
⮚ Chewed food in the mouth is called Bolus.
 ⮚ Oesophagus a long muscular tube, which pushes bolus to the stomach by Peristaltic movement.
⮚ Peristaltic movement is the rhythmic contraction and expansion of oesophagus.
⮚ In fact, this moment, occurs throughout the elementary canal.

Stomach:
⮚ Large muscular organ.
⮚ Expands when food enters to it.
⮚ Muscular walls help in mixing the food thoroughly with more digestive juices
(churning of food chyme)
⮚ The digestion in stomach is taken care of by the gastric glands.
⮚ Gastric glands are present on the walls of the stomach which secrete gastric juice.

Gastric juice

HCl (*Kills germs in food,

Pepsin (Enzymes that breaks *Makes the medium acidic, Mucus (Protects inner lining of
Proteins) the stomach)
*Facilitates the action of pepsin
*Inactive pepsin-->active pepsin)

Acidity:
Excess production of HCl in the stomach can damage the
protective lining of the stomach.
Sometimes, the valve between the oesophagus and stomach
becomes weak.
The acid from the stomach reaches the lower part of the
oesophagus.
Small intestine:
⮚ Site of complete digestion of carbohydrate, proteins and fats.
⮚ The food from the stomach is released into small intestine in small amount regulated by sphincter
muscle
⮚ Longest part of elementary
⮚ Consist of three parts (Duodenum, Jejunum, and Ileum).
⮚ Fitted into a compact space because of extensive coiling
⮚ Length of alimentary canal.
⮚ In herbivores (Grass) longer (to digest cellulose)
⮚ In carnivores (Meat) shorter (easy digestion of meat)
 ⮚ Receives secretion from liver and pancreas.

Liver:
⮚ Largest organ inside body
⮚ It secretes bile (greenish yellow liquid) _stored in gallbladder.
⮚ Released from gallbladder when required.

Functions:
❖ Makes acidic food alkaline
❖ So that pancreatic juice can act on it.
❖ Bile contains bile salts (helps in digestion of fats)
❖ Emulsification: Large fat globules smaller globules

Pancreas:
⮚ Elongated organ beneath the stomach.
⮚ Secretes pancreatic juice contains enzymes like
* Trypsin _ digests protein,
* Lipase _ breakdown of emulsified fats, and
* Pancreatic amylase _ acts on starch

Intestinal glands:
⮚ Walls of the stomach have intestinal gland which secretes intestinal juice.
⮚ Enzymes present in it convert,
* Complex carbohydrate to glucose.
* Proteins to amino acids
* Fats to Fatty acids and glycerol.

Villi:
⮚ Digested food is taken up by the walls of small intestine.
⮚ It has numerous finger projections called Villi.
⮚ Villi increases the surface area for absorption.
⮚ Villa is richly supplied with blood vessels.
⮚ Absorbed food is taken up by the blood vessels and carry to each cell with the help of blood.
⮚ In the cell, it is utilized for
*Obtaining energy,
*Building up of new tissues and
*Repair of old tissues.
⮚ This process is called as assimilation.

Large intestine.
⮚ Consist of three parts: Caecum, colon and rectum
⮚ The unabsorbed food is sent to large intestine.
 ⮚ Its wall absorbs more water from the unabsorbed food and make it solid.

Anus:
The rest of the material is removed from the body via anus.
The exit waste material is regulated by the anal sphincter.

Points to remember:
Saliva Gastric juice Bile juice

H2O, Mucus (mixes food) Mucus (protects stomach wall) Bile salts (makes food alkaline,
Amylase (starch to maltose) HCl (kills germs, makes medium Emulsification)
Lysozyme (kills germs) acidic, activates pepsin)
Pepsin (breakdown of proteins)

Pancreatic juice Intestinal juice

Trypsin(digests protein)
Lipase (digest fat) Several enzymes for digestion of
Pancreatic amylase (digest food.
starch)

Carbohydrate Simple sugar Mouth Bolus

glucose Stomach Chyme
Proteins Amino acids Small intestine Chyle
Fats/Lipids Fatty acids and Large intestine Faeces
Glycerol

Important questions
Very short answers
1. Define photosynthesis
2. Mention how organisms like bread moulds, and mushroom, obtain their food
3. What is common for Cuscutta, ticks and Leech?
4. What is the role of Saliva in digestion of food?
5. State the location and function of gastric glands
6. Define enzymes. Name one enzyme in humans, which digest fat.
7. What is Emulsification?
8. Write the overall equation for photosynthesis.
Short answers
1. Is nutrition a necessity for an organism? Discuss.
2. i) A gas is released during photosynthesis. Name the gas and also the way in which gas is evolved
ii) In certain groups of plants, stomata remain closed during the day. How is food synthesised
by such plants? Also name them?
3. What functions is served by the following: i) gastric sphincter and ii) anal sphincter?
 4. Small finger-like projections are present in the inner layer of the small intestine. Write their
names. Why are they important?
5. Explain the significance of peristaltic movement
6. What are the final products of carbohydrate, proteins and fats after their digestion?
7. Name the glands associated with the digestive system in humans. Also name their secretions.
8. Explain parasitic mode of nutrition with two examples.
9. Differentiate between autotrophs and heterotrophs
10. Draw the diagram of the alimentary canal and label the parts.
11. Mention the major events during photosynthesis
12. Length of the small intestine differs in various animals depending on the food they eat. Justify.
Long answer:
1. Explain the nutrition process in amoeba with the help of a diagram.
2. Explain an experiment to prove that sunlight is necessary for photosynthesis.

Respiration
 The process by which living organism utilise the food to get energy is called respiration
 The energy released is stored in the form of ATP
 It was two processes
i)Breathing (gaseous exchange): intake of oxygen from the atmosphere and release of carbon
dioxide
ii)Cellular respiration: breakdown of a simple food in order to release energy inside the cell
Activity 5.4
Aim: To demonstrate we exhale CO2
Procedure:
 Take some freshly prepared lime water in a test.
 Blow air through this lime water.
 Note how long it takes for the lime water to turn milky.
 Use a syringe or Pichkari to pass through some fresh lime water taken in another test tube.
 Note how long it takes for this lime water to turn milky.
 Record your observations.
Observation:
Blow air through mouth —->lime water turns milky
instantly
Blow air through syringe ——> It takes a lot of time and
effort to change lime water
milky.
 Lime water reacts with CO2 to form an insoluble precipitate.
 This turns lime water milky
Inference. This experiment demonstrates that our lungs exhale CO2.

Activity 5.5
Objective: To prove that carbon dioxide is released after fermentation
Procedure
 Take some fruit juice or sugar solution and add some yeast to this.
  Take this mixture in a test tube fitted with one hole cork.
 Fit the cork with a bent glass tube.
 Dip the free end of the glass tube into a test tube containing
freshly prepared lime water.
Observation:
 Air taken out through the tube makes lime water milky
Inference:
 Products of fermentation by Yeast are CO2 and alcohol

Types of respiration:
1. Aerobic respiration
2. Anaerobic respiration

Aerobic respiration Anaerobic respiration

Takes place in the presence of oxygen Takes place in the absence of oxygen

Occurs in mitochondria Occurs in cytoplasm

End products are CO2 and H2O End products are ethanol and CO2 or lactic acid

More amount of energy is released Less amount of energy is released

One glucose = 38 ATP One glucose = 2 ATP

Mainly occurs in the higher organisms like plants It takes place in yeast, bacteria, parasites and in
and animals. human muscles.
Breakdown of glucose by various pathways:
Respiration in plants:
Respiration in leaves ------ Through stomata
Respiration in green stems ------ Through stomata
Respiration in Woody stems------ Through Lenticel (Tiny pores on barks of trees)

i) During the day Co2 generated during respiration is used up for photosynthesis,
hence there is no Co2 release. Instead oxygen releaed is the major event at that
time.
ii) At night, when there is no photosynthesis occurring, Co2 elimination is the major
exchange activity going on.

Respiration in animals:
Human respiratory system
TRANSPORTATION
• Transportation is the process of movement of water and other molecules to the concerned parts of the
organism.
Human circulatory system includes
► Blood
► Heart
► Blood vessels
Transportation in Human Beings
BLOOD:
• Blood is a fluid connective tissue.
• It consists of a fluid medium called plasma in which blood cells (RBC, WBC & platelets) are
suspended.
• Plasma transports food, O2, CO2 and nitrogenous wastes in dissolved form.
• Oxygen is mainly transported by Haemoglobin.
• Normal level of haemoglobin in human beings:
In men: 14 to 17 g/ 100 ml.
In women: 12 to 15 g/ 100 ml.
In children: 11 to 16 g/ 100 ml.
• The normal level of haemoglobin in animals like buffalo or cow is 10.4 to 16.4 g/ 100 ml. Haemoglobin
content in calves is higher than male and female animals.
• Adult men do more work than women and children. So, they need more oxygen to get energy. That's
why adult men have more haemoglobin.
• Haemoglobin level in human is comparatively more than that of animals like cattle because human body
needs more oxygen to do various biological works.
OUR PUMP - THE HEART
• Heart pumps the blood all over the body.
• It is a muscular organ which is as big as our fist.
• It has 4 chambers: 2 upper right and left atria and 2 lower right and left ventricles.
• Right chambers carry CO2-rich (deoxygenated) blood.
• Left chambers carry O2-rich (oxygenated) blood.
• Deoxygenated blood reaches the lungs to remove CO2
• Oxygenated blood from the lungs is brought back to the heart
and then pumped to the rest of the body.
PUMPING PROCESS OF HEART
• Oxygenated blood from the lungs ➔ left atrium relaxes ➔
blood enters left atrium ➔ left atrium
contracts & left ventricle relaxes ➔ blood enters left ventricle
➔ left ventricle contracts ➔ blood is
pumped out to the body.
• Deoxygenated blood from the body ➔ right atrium relaxes ➔ blood enters right atrium ➔ right atrium
contracts & right ventricle dilates ➔ blood transfers to right ventricle ➔ right ventricle contracts ➔ blood
is pumped into lungs for oxygenation.

Since ventricles have to pump blood into various organs, they have thicker muscular
walls than that of atria.
• Heart has valves to prevent the backflow of blood when the atria or ventricles
contract.
Oxygen enters the blood in the lungs
• The separation of right side and left side of the heart prevents mixing of oxygenated
and deoxygenated blood. This allows a highly efficient supply of oxygen to the body. It
is useful in animals that need high energy (birds & mammals) to maintain body
temperature.
• Animals like amphibians & many reptiles do not use energy to maintain temperature. They depend on
the temperature in the environment. Such animals have 3-chambered heart, and tolerate some mixing
of the oxygenated and deoxygenated blood.
Blood pressure (BP)
• It is the force that blood exerts against the wall of a vessel. This is greater in arteries than in veins.
• Sphygmomanometer: An instrument to measure BP.
• Systolic pressure: Blood pressure in the artery during ventricular systole (contraction).
It is about 120 mm Hg.
• Diastolic pressure: Blood pressure in the artery during ventricular diastole (relaxation).
It is about 80 mm Hg.
• High BP (hypertension) is caused by the constriction of arterioles, which increases resistance to blood
flow. It leads to the rupture of an artery and internal bleeding.
BLOOD VSSELES: (Blood pipes)

Lymph:
Maintenance by platelets
• Leakage or loss of blood due to injury leads to reduction in pressure and efficiency of circulatory
system.
• To avoid this, the platelet cells plug these leaks to clot the blood at the points of injury.
Transportation in plants:
Plants have two transport systems:
1) Xylem (Xylem vessels & Xylem tracheids): Transport of water & minerals
2) Phloem (Sieve tubes and companion Cells): Transport of food
Transport of water and Minerals
1. Root Pressure
2. Transpiration
3.
1. Root Pressure:
- At the roots, cells in contact with the soil actively take up ions.
- This creates a difference in concentration of ions between the root and the soil.
- Water moves into the root from the soil to eliminate this difference which
results in steady movement of water.
- Root pressure occurs mostly at night and can transport water over short
distances only.
2. Transpiration:
- The loss of water in the form of water vapour from aerial parts of the plant
is known as transpiration.
- Evaporation of water molecules from stomata creates a suction which pulls
water from the Xylem cells of roots.
- It also helps in temperature regulation.
- Transpiration occurs mostly during the day and can transport water over
highest points of the plant body.
Transport of food:
Translocation
- 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.
- Eg: In the spring, sugar stored in root or stem tissue would be transported to the
buds which need energy to grow.
Activity 5.8
Aim: To demonstrate transpiration in plants
Procedure:
 Take two small pots of approximately the same size and having the same amount of soil.
 One should have a plant in it.
 Place a stick of the same height as the plant in the other pot.
 Cover the soil in both pots with a plastic sheet so that moisture cannot escape by evaporation.
 Cover both pots with plastic sheets and place in bright sunlight for half an hour.
Observation:
Pot covered with plant —> water droplets observed
Pot covered with stick—>no water droplets observed
Explanation:
 Pot with plant showed transpiration, and the water droplets were seen on the plastic sheet
 Pot without plant cannot do transpiration and so no water droplets were seen

Excretion
- The process of removal of toxic wastes from the body of an organism is called Excretion.
- Metabolic wastes-mainly CO2, H2O and nitrogen is waste (ammonia urea, and uric acid)

Human Excretory System:

1) Kidney - Kidneys are bean shaped organ. STRUCTURE OF HUMAN KIDNEY
- Pair of kidneys is present on either side of abdomen.
- Function: Excretion of nitrogenous waste, formation of urine, pH
balance, water and salt balance
2) Ureter - The Ureter is a long tube which collects urine from the kidneys.
(By peristalsis)
3) Urinary Bladder - Pear shaped bag, muscular and elastic. Function:
*Receives urine from kidney.
*Stores urine temporarily.
4) Urethra - The collected urine is passed out from the body through the
urethra.
Nephron: STRUCTURE OF NEPHRON
- Nephron is the structural and functional unit of kidney.
- Each kidney has about one million nephrons.
Structure: Microscopic tubules with coiled and looped regions.
Parts: a) Glomerulus-bunch of capillaries.
Functions: filters blood and forms primary urine (initial filtrate)
b) Bowman’s capsule- cap shaped tube around glomerulus.
Function: collects primary urine.
c) Renal Tubule- long tubule with coiled and looped region.
Function: processes the primary urine and forms the final urine.
Steps of urine formation:
It includes three stages:
A) Filtration-filtration of blood.
Site: Glomerulus and Bowman’s capsule
B) Selective reabsorption-Amino acids, glucose, salt and water are reabsorbed back in surrounding
blood by diffusion.
C) Tubular secretion: Renal tubules extract, nitrogenous wastes from blood and forms final urine
(about 1 to 2 L per day)
Artificial kidney: (Hemodialysis)
Artificial instrument that filters blood via dialyzing fluid
Excretion in plants:
Plants do not possess special excretory system, but also eliminates waste or store them permanently in
their body roots, stem, leaf, fruit and seed
Waste products:
1. H2O and O2-byproducts of Released mainly through leaf stomata - diffusion
photosynthesis. Loss of H2O – transpiration
2. CO2 released mainly during night.
3. Other Waste:
o Stored in dead tissues or leaf and lost by leaf fall.
o Converted into gum, resin or latex and stored in old xylem.
o Some are released in soil via roots