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Protists: Characteristics and Types
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Protists: Characteristics and Types

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Questions and Answers

What is a characteristic that is unique to fungi?

  • Presence of chloroplasts
  • Chitin-based cell walls (correct)
  • Cellulose-based cell walls
  • Ability to undergo photosynthesis
  • What is the role of mycorrhiza in fungi?

  • Forming symbiotic relationships with plant roots (correct)
  • Forming lichens with algae
  • Decomposing organic matter
  • Producing antibiotics
  • What is a characteristic that is shared between plants and algae?

  • Presence of chitin-based cell walls
  • Ability to undergo photosynthesis
  • Ability to form symbiotic relationships
  • Multicellular and eukaryotic (correct)
  • What is the main difference between charophytes and plants?

    <p>Alternation of generations</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the role of cuticle in plants?

    <p>To prevent water loss</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the characteristic that distinguishes seed plants from non-seed plants?

    <p>Presence of heterospory</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the function of pollen in plant reproduction?

    <p>To fertilize ovules</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the main difference between spores and seeds?

    <p>Seeds are multicellular, spores are not</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the characteristic that distinguishes angiosperms from gymnosperms?

    <p>Presence of flowers and fruits</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the function of flowers in angiosperms?

    <p>To facilitate pollination</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the main function of the root system?

    <p>To absorb minerals and water from the soil</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is unique about the stamen in angiosperms?

    <p>It consists of an anther and a filament</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the role of the ovary in angiosperms?

    <p>To protect seeds and aid in their dispersal</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the function of the xylem in plants?

    <p>To conduct water and dissolved minerals upward from roots to shoots</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary function of the dermal tissue?

    <p>To serve as a protective outer coating</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the function of the vascular cambium?

    <p>To allow secondary growth in circumference</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the function of the sieve-tube elements in the phloem?

    <p>To transport sugars from where they are made to where they are needed</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the function of the stomata?

    <p>To facilitate gas exchange, allowing diffusion of CO2 into photosynthetic tissues</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the function of mycorrhizal fungi?

    <p>To increase the surface area for absorbing water and minerals</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the role of aquaporins in plant water transport?

    <p>To facilitate water transport by increasing the rate of diffusion</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary characteristic that defines protists?

    <p>They are eukaryotes that are not plants, animals, or fungi</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following is NOT a mode of nutrition found in protists?

    <p>Lithotrophs</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which group of protists includes the organisms Trypanosoma and Euglena?

    <p>Excavata</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the characteristic feature of Diatom cell walls?

    <p>Silicon dioxide</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which protist causes malaria?

    <p>Plasmodium</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary mode of locomotion used by Paramecium?

    <p>Cilia</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the term for the relationship between two species in which one organism lives inside the cell or cells of the other?

    <p>Endosymbiosis</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which group of protists is most closely related to plants?

    <p>Archaeplastida</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary characteristic that distinguishes fungi from protists?

    <p>Absorption of nutrients</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following is an example of a unicellular fungus?

    <p>Yeast</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary function of aquaporins in plant cells?

    <p>To facilitate the passage of water</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which of the following elements is a micronutrient required by plants?

    <p>Manganese</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the role of rhizobacteria in plant nutrition?

    <p>To fix nitrogen in the soil</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary function of mycorrhizae in early land plants?

    <p>To absorb water and minerals from the soil</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary function of petals in a flower?

    <p>To attract pollinators</p> Signup and view all the answers

    During double fertilization, what is the outcome of the fusion of the second sperm with the two polar nuclei?

    <p>Formation of the endosperm</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary benefit of asexual reproduction in plants?

    <p>Production of offspring with identical genetic makeup</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is a potential risk associated with genetically modified plants?

    <p>Creation of superweeds resistant to many herbicides</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary function of nitrifying bacteria in soil?

    <p>To convert ammonia to nitrate</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the primary function of fruits in plants?

    <p>To protect the enclosed seeds and aid in seed dispersal</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the characteristic that distinguishes Euglena from other protists?

    <p>Having a mixotrophic mode of nutrition</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which group of protists is characterized by the presence of cilia?

    <p>Unikonta</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the common characteristic of Brown algae and Dinoflagellates?

    <p>They are both marine and freshwater phytoplankton</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which protist is responsible for causing sleeping sickness in humans?

    <p>Trypanosoma</p> Signup and view all the answers

    What is the characteristic feature of Amoeba?

    <p>Having pseudopodia</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which group of protists includes organisms that have a unique glass-like wall of silicon dioxide?

    <p>SAR</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which protist is characterized by the presence of pseudopodia?

    <p>Amoeba</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which group of protists includes organisms that are mixotrophs?

    <p>Excavata</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which protist is responsible for causing malaria?

    <p>Plasmodium</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Which group of protists is characterized by the presence of slime molds?

    <p>Unikonta</p> Signup and view all the answers

    Study Notes

    Protists

    • An informal term for eukaryotes that are not plants, animals, or fungi
    • Characteristics:
      • Have a nucleus and membrane-enclosed organelles
      • Most are unicellular, but some are multicellular
      • Nutritionally diverse (photoautotrophs, heterotrophs, mixotrophs)
    • Endosymbiosis: a relationship between two species where one organism lives inside the cell or cells of the other
    • 4 groups:
      • Excavata (Trypanosoma, Euglena)
      • SAR (Diatoms, brown algae, water molds, Dinoflagellates, Plasmodium, Paramecium)
      • Archaeplastida (red and green algae, Charophytes, Volvox)
      • Unikonta (Amoeba, slime mold)

    Fungi

    • Heterotrophs that absorb nutrients from outside their bodies
    • Characteristics:
      • Mostly multicellular, but some are unicellular (e.g., yeast)
      • Cell walls made of chitin
      • Sexual and asexual reproduction
    • Body structure:
      • Hyphae: tubular cell walls strengthened with chitin, divided into cells by septa
      • Mycelium: an interwoven mass formed by hyphae, maximizing surface area for absorption
    • Roles:
      • Decomposers
      • Mutualists
      • Pathogens (e.g., ringworm, yeast infection)
      • Medicine (e.g., penicillin)

    Mutualism of Fungi

    • Mycorrhiza: mutually beneficial relationships between fungi and plant roots
    • Lichen: symbiotic associations between photosynthetic microorganisms and fungi
    • Fungus-farming ants: some fungi share digestive services with animals

    Plant Diversity

    • Role of plants: oxygen production, food sources, habitat for land organisms
    • Similarities between plants and green algae:
      • Multicellular, eukaryotic, photosynthetic autotrophs
      • Cellulose cell walls
      • Chloroplasts
    • Differences:
      • Alternation of generations
      • Walled spores produced in sporangia
      • Apical meristems
      • Cuticle and stomata unique to plants

    Evolution of Plants

    • From cyanobacteria to green algae to land plants
    • Four groups of plants:
      • Nonvascular plants (Bryophytes, Mosses)
      • Seedless vascular plants (ferns)
      • Gymnosperms (naked seeds)
      • Angiosperms (flowers, double fertilization, nearly 90% of living plants)

    Seed Plants

    • Sporophyte-dominated life cycle
    • Characteristics:
      • Reduced gametophytes
      • Heterospory
      • Ovules
      • Pollen
    • Pollination: transfer of pollen to ovules
    • Seeds:
      • Consist of embryo and nutrients surrounded by a coat
      • Can remain dormant for years
      • Can be transported long distances by wind or animals
    • Gymnosperms:
      • Naked seeds exposed on sporophylls (e.g., conifers)
    • Angiosperms:
      • Seed plants with reproductive structures called flowers and fruits
      • 90% of all plants

    Plant Structure

    • Hierarchical organization: cell – tissue – organ – organism
    • Plant organs:
      • Roots (root system)
      • Stems and leaves (shoot system)
    • Root functions:
      • Anchoring the plant
      • Absorbing minerals and water
      • Storing carbohydrates
    • Stem functions:
      • Elongating and orienting the shoot
      • Maximizing photosynthesis
    • Leaf functions:
      • Main photosynthetic organ
      • Exchanging gases
      • Defending against herbivores and pathogens

    Plant Tissues

    • Dermal tissue: protective outer coating
    • Vascular tissue: facilitates transport of materials and provides mechanical support
    • Ground tissue: specialized cells for storage, photosynthesis, and support
    • Meristem tissue: for growth and development

    Plant Cells

    • Parenchyma: performs most metabolic functions
    • Collenchyma: provides flexible support
    • Sclerenchyma: rigid cells with secondary cell walls containing lignin
    • Water-conducting cells of the xylem: tracheids, vessel elements
    • Sugar-conducting cells of the phloem: sieve-tube elements, companion cells

    Resource Acquisition and Transport

    • Xylem: transports water and minerals from roots to shoots
    • Phloem: transports photosynthetic products from where they are made to where they are needed
    • Stomata: pores necessary for CO2 diffusion into photosynthetic tissues
    • Mycorrhizae: fungal associations increase surface area for absorbing water and minerals
    • Aquaporins: transport proteins facilitating water passage across cell membranes

    Soil and Plant Nutrition

    • Essential elements: 17 chemical elements required for plant life cycle
    • 9 macronutrients: required in large amounts
    • 8 micronutrients: required in small amounts
    • Plant mutualism with soil bacteria: rhizobacteria and endophyte
    • Nitrogen fixation: required for plants to acquire nitrogen as nitrate

    Angiosperm Reproduction

    • Angiosperm anatomy:
      • Flowers: reproductive shoots of the angiosperm sporophyte
      • Four parts of flowers: carpels, stamens, petals, sepals
    • Angiosperm life cycle:
      • Gametophyte development
      • Sperm delivery by pollen tubes
      • Double fertilization
      • Seed development
    • Pollination: transfer of pollen from anthers to stigma
    • Double fertilization: fusion of gametes
    • Fruits: mature ovary of a flower, protects seeds and aids in seed dispersal

    Eukaryotic Groups

    • Excavata group consists of Trypanosoma and Euglena
    • Trypanosoma infects humans, causing sleeping sickness
    • Euglena has one or two flagella and is mixotrophic

    SAR Group

    • Diatoms are unicellular algae with a unique glass-like wall of silicon dioxide
    • Brown algae are the largest and most complex multicellular algae, with some being edible seaweeds
    • Dinoflagellates are marine and freshwater phytoplankton with two flagella, often causing toxic red tides
    • Plasmodium is a parasite that causes malaria
    • Paramecium uses cilia to move around and feed on bacteria or other protists

    Archaeplastida Group

    • Charophytes are a type of green algae, most closely related to plants

    Unikonta Group

    • Amoeba has pseudopodia
    • Slime mold resembles fungi due to convergent evolution

    Eukaryotic Groups

    • Eukaryotes are divided into four groups: Excavata, SAR, Archaeplastida, and Unikonta.

    Excavata

    • Includes Trypanosoma and Euglena.
    • Trypanosoma infects humans, causing sleeping sickness.
    • Euglena have one or two flagella and are mixotrophs.

    SAR (Stramenopila, Alveolata, and Rhizaria)

    • Includes Diatoms, brown algae, water molds, Dinoflagellates, Plasmodium, and Paramecium.
    • Diatoms are unicellular algae with a unique glass-like wall of silicon dioxide.
    • Brown algae are the largest and most complex multicellular algae, with some species being edible seaweeds.
    • Dinoflagellates are marine and freshwater phytoplankton, characterized by two flagella, and often cause toxic red tides.
    • Plasmodium is a parasite that causes malaria.
    • Paramecium use cilia to move around and feed on bacteria or other protists.

    Archaeplastida

    • Includes red and green algae, as well as Charophytes.
    • Charophytes are a type of green algae, most closely related to plants.

    Unikonta

    • Includes Amoeba and slime mold.
    • Amoeba have pseudopodia.
    • Slime mold resembles fungi due to convergent evolution.

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    Learn about the characteristics and types of protists, including their nutrition, structure, and relationships with other organisms. Covers endosymbiosis and the four groups of protists.

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