Intro to Ecology, ATP,
Botany, Photosynthesis, and Cellular Respiration
By: Mrs. Stahl
Used and adapted with her permission for Whiting’s Honors Biology

Unit Layout
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Background knowledge
Energy- where does it all come from?
Review of Ecological Terms
Food webs, food chains, and the transfer of energy in ecosystems. All starts with sunlight and plants.
ATP and ADP processes
Photosynthesis
 Anatomy and functions of a plant.
 Process of photosynthesis and the importance of the chloroplast.
Cellular Respiration and Fermentation
Bringing Photosynthesis and Cellular Respiration and the relationship they have together.

How do we get our energy?
 Chemical energy- starts with the sun!

Two Main Sources of
Energy:
 Lipids
 Carbohydrates

Energy…………
•Energy for living things comes from food.
•Originally, the energy in food comes from the sun and travels up the food web or food chain.

Let’s review some terminology!!
 Ecology- The study of living things and their surroundings.
 Organism- individual living thing.
 Species- a group of organisms that can reproduce together and produce fertile offspring. Ex- humans are the same species.
 Population- group of the same species.
Ex- A group of bottlenose dolphins.

 Community- group of different species living together. Exampledeer, rabbits, and birds.
 Ecosystem- Made up of both biotic and abiotic factors. Example- rocks, water, deer, rabbits
 Biome- A region or area that is defined by the climate and plants that grow there. Example- Tropical
Rain Forest.
 Biosphere- layer of Earth where all life exists; the hydrosphere!

 Biodiversity- Variety of life
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Abiotic- Non-living things. Ex- water, sunlight, rocks
Biotic-Living things. Ex- Plants and animals
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Keystone Species- species that keeps an ecosystem in check / holds it together.
Example- Sea otters keep the sea urchin population in check so that they don’t eat all the kelp (algae); wolves keep deer population down so they don’t eat all the new tree shoots.
Producers / Autotrophs- make their own food via sunlight. Example- Plants
Consumers / Heterotrophs- rely on others for food. Example- Animals

Autotrophs

Heterotrophs

Types of Consumers
 Herbivores- Eat only plants
 Carnivores- Meat eaters
 Omnivores- Eat plants and animals
 Detritivores- Eat detritus or dead organic matter.
 Decomposers- Breakdown dead organic matter into simpler compounds.

Herbivores

Carnivores

Omnivores

Detritivores &
Decomposers

Energy Flow
 In ecosystems, energy has to flow from one organism to another, and it does this through food chains and food webs, starting with the sun and plants!

Food Web
 Network of feeding relationships between trophic levels in an ecosystem.
Arrows point in the direction which the energy is flowing.

Food Chains
 Shows the feeding relationships for a single chain of producers and consumers.
Rabbit eats the grass and the hawk eats the rabbit.

How does the energy from the sun flow through an ecosystem?
 Trophic levels
 Trophic levels are nourishment levels in a food chain.
 Example: Producer-> Herbivore (Primary
Consumer)->Carnivore (Secondary
Consumer) = 3 Trophic levels
 Producers are the first, herbivores are second, and carnivores are the top consumers.

Break it down further…
– Primary consumers are herbivores that eat producers.
– Secondary consumers are carnivores that eat herbivores.
– Tertiary consumers are carnivores that eat secondary consumers.
– Omnivores, such as humans that eat both plants and animals, may be listed at different trophic levels in different food chains.

Trophic Levels
Shark
Triggerfish
Shrimp
Plants, algae, phytoplankton

How does the energy get distributed from trophic level to trophic level?
 We know that ecosystems get their energy from sunlight, which then provides the energy for photosynthesis to occur. That energy then flows up the food chain.
 The amount of energy that gets transferred from trophic level to trophic level is 10% = Biomass

tertiary consumers secondary consumers primary consumers
5
5000 Carnivores eat herbivores and more energy is lost
500,000
Energy given off as heat
Herbivores eat plants but burn some energy in the process
5,000,000
Producers use 100% of energy from the sun

How does life continue?
 The sun pumps more energy into the plants, allowing life to carry on.

How do organisms lose energy?
 Metabolism
 Maintaining homeostasis- keeping your body at normal temperature
 Mating, finding food, resting, movement, growth,
 The same way we use energy so do other organisms. That’s why we have to continuously eat.
 Unused material = excreted as waste

Some fun review!
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v
=WLk-9ib0OVA
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v
=GUY_-LK_lOc

phosphate removed

 Molecule that transfers energy from the breakdown of food molecules to cell processes.
Starch molecule
Glucose molecule

 1. Carry energy
 2. Build molecules
 3. Move materials by active transport

 Sugar ribose
 Adenine
 Three Phosphates

ATP has 3 phosphate groups:
 Third bond is unstable, so it is easily broken
 When the 3rd is removed, energy is released and ADP is formed.

How is ATP made?
 Breakdown of sugars
Starch molecule
Glucose molecule

How are sugars made?
 By capturing energy from sunlight and changing it into chemical energy stored in sugars.

How does ATP work ?
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Step 1- The energy carried by ATP is released when a phosphate group is removed from the molecule. The third bond is unstable and is easily broken.
Step 2- Reaction takes place and the energy is released for cell functions, meaning the third phosphate fell off.
Step 3- ATP (high energy) then becomes ADP
(lower energy molecule) because it just lost a phosphate.
Step 4-The molecules get broken down and energy gets added.
Step 5- Phosphate is added and it’s back to
ATP!

phosphate removed

What is needed to change
ADP into ATP?
 Large group of complex proteins and a phosphate group (PO
4
)

Why is this important?
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The foods that you eat do not contain
ATP directly
The food needs to be digested and broken down chemically
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Everything that you eat has a different calorie amount (measures of energy), therefore different foods produce different amounts of ATP.
The number of ATP produced depends on what you eat- Carbohydrates, proteins, or lipids.

Swallow your food and then digestion takes place (NOT
THAT FAST, OF COURSE!).
Does each type of food have the same amount of calories?
NO!!!
Different foods have a different amount of calories, therefore provide different amounts of ATP.

 Carbohydrates are not stored in large amounts in your body because they are the most commonly broken down molecule.
 The breakdown of glucose yields
36 ATP.
 Carbohydrates DO NOT provide the body with the most ATP.
***** Lipids do! (more C-H bonds)

 Store the most energy, about 80% of the energy in your body.
 When they are broken down they yield the most ATP, 146 ATP

 Store about the same amount of energy as carbohydrates, but they are less likely to be broken down to make ATP.
 The amino acids that cells can break down to make ATP are needed and used to build new proteins.

 The number of ATP molecules depends on the number of carbohydrates, lipids, or proteins broken down.
 The organic compound most commonly broken down to make
ATP = carbohydrates.

Fun Video
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=V_xZuCPIHvk
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v
=xUpuuL24NiQ
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v
=XI8m6o0gXDY

We know that plants use photosynthesis, but what about organisms that live in the deep sea, where there isn’t any sunlight?

 Some animals don’t need sunlight & photosynthesis as a source of energy.
 Chemosynthesisprocess by which organisms use chemical energy to make their food.
 Example- Deep
Ocean Hydrothermal
Vents. https://www.youtube.com/watch
?v=XotF9fzo4Vo

Do plants need ATP?
 YES!!!!!!
 Plants make their own food through photosynthesis where they breakdown sugars -> ATP

 Defined as the process that captures energy from sunlight to make sugars that store chemical energy.
 LocationChloroplast of plant cells.

Photosynthesis
 Chloro= Green
 Phyll= Leaf
 Plast = Molded chloroplast leaf cell leaf

Chloroplast
Leaf
Cell
Leaf

Anatomy of a Flower

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Female Parts
Female parts ->Pistil, which is made up of the stigma, style, ovule, and ovary.
 Stigma- Sticky portion that catches the pollen.
 Style- tube that allows sperm / pollen to be transported.
 Ovary- becomes the fruit
 Ovule- where the seed develops

Male parts
 Male Parts: Stamen- male parts are made up of the anther and the filament.
 Anther- Produces the pollen
 Filament- Support tube for the anther

 Sepals- green, tough region that protects the flower before it opens.
 Receptacle- hard, base of the flower, bears the organs of the flower
 Stem- support, transports water and nutrients
 Petals- scented and colored to attract pollinators

Two Types of Seed Plants
Angiosperms Gymnosperms
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Reproduce with structures called flowers and fruits.
Brightly colored / highly scented
Attract animals-> transported from place to place via pollination, feces, water, and wind
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Conifers- cone bearers like pine trees.
Naked seeds that aren’t enclosed in a fruit.
Needle shaped leaves with a protective cuticle.
Rely on wind for pollination.

Angiosperms

Gymnosperms

Leaves
 Major site of photosynthesis / food production.
 Minimize water loss by collecting water and transpiration.
 Take in carbon dioxide and produce oxygen through the stomata.
 Stomatas are tiny pores in the leaf.
 Protects stems and roots with shade and shelter.

Basic Structure
 Blade- collects the sunlight
 Petiole- stem that holds the leaf blade up.

Upper portion / Top of the leaf
 The tissue mesophyll, contains most of the chloroplast and is where the majority of photosynthesis takes place.

Bottom portion of the leaf
/ underside
 Has the stomata and is the site of transpiration and gas exchange.
 Guard cells surround each stomata and open and close by changing shape.
 Day- stomata is open, allowing the carbon dioxide to enter and water to evaporate.
 Night- closed

 Modified epidermal cells that are photosynthetic and they open and close the stomata.
 Potassium ions accumulate in the guard cells and when there is a high concentration of K+ it causes water to flow into the cells. When the plant is full of water, the guard cells plump up and open the stomata.

Factors that affect the stomata and guard cells
 Temperature, humidity, hormones, and the amount of carbon dioxide in the leaves tells the guard cells to open and close

4 Types of Plant Tissues
 1. Ground Tissue
 2. Dermal Tissue
 3. Vascular Tissue
 4. Meristematic Tissue

Ground Tissue: most common and they differ based on their cell walls- 3 Types
 1. Parenchymal
 2. Collenchymal
 3. Sclerenchymal

 The most common plant cell typemesophyll
 Cell walls store and secrete starch, oils and water
 Help heal wounds to the plant
 Have thin, flexible walls

 Provide support to a growing plant
 They are strong and flexible.
 Celery strings are strands of collenchyma.
 They have unevenly thick cell walls.

 Strongest, support, very thick cell walls
 Second cell wall hardened by lignin
 Die when they reach maturity
 Used by humans to make linen and rope

 Covers and protects the outside
 Secretes cuticle of leaves
 Forms outer bark of trees= dead dermal cells
 Epidermis= covers the surface, made up of parenchymal cells
 Guard cells= surround the stomata and has a cuticle that secretes a waxy substance for protection.

Vascular Tissue-
Xylem & Phloem
 Transports water, minerals, nutrients, and organic compounds to all areas of the plant.
 Made up of two networks of tubes- xylem and phloem.

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Carries the products of photosynthesis through the plant via active transport (products = oxygen and glucose).
 Remember- PHLOEM IS FOR FOOD
 Part of the bark (at or near)
 Have little sieve tubes and plates that help the fluid flow from one cell to another.

 Carries water and nutrients from the roots to the rest of the plant.
 Found within the wood of the tree.
 Tracheids- long, thin, overlapping cells with tapered ends.
 Vessel Members- wider, shorter, thinner cell walls.

Meristematic Tissue
 Growth tissue
 Where cell division occurs
 Turns into ground, dermal, or vascular
 Apical Meristems- tips of roots and stems-> primary growth occurs here.
 Lateral Meristems- secondary growth.
Increase the thickness of roots and stems.

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Seeds
Monocots= one seed
Dicots= two seeds
 Seed coat= protection
 Embryo
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Epicotyl- top, shoot tip
Hypocotyl- attached to the cotyledon, young shoot
 Radicle- first organ from the germinating seed-> becomes the root.
 Cotyledon or Endospermstores food for the embryo

Environmental cues that are required by the seed:
 Water, light, and temperature
 The seed is mature -> goes into a dormant stage until all environmental needs are met.

Germination allows the seed to turn into a plant:
 1 st - Water is absorbed
 2 nd - Enzymes get triggered
 3 rd - Chemical process= respiration
 4 th - Water gets absorbed, causes the seed to swell and the seed coat cracks.
 5 th - Roots grow from the radicle and anchor the seedling into the soil.
Hypocotyl grows to produce a young shoot.

Roots and Stems
 Absorb nutrients
 Anchor the plant (hold it down)
 Store food
 They have specialized organs to carry these out.

 1. Epidermis- covers the outside surface of the root
 Has root hairs= increases surface area and allows for more water to be absorbed. They are constantly being replaced.
 2. Cortex- makes up most of the root-> stores starch (sugars) in the parenchymal cells.

 3. Endodermis- tightly packed ring of cells.
 Has suberin, a waxy band that surrounds each endodermis cell in a barrier where water can’t pass through called the
Casparian Strip-> controls the movement of water and minerals.

Root Growth
 Root Cap- tip, protects the apical meristem where primary growth occurs.

Stems
 Support leaves and flowers
 Move water and food

Fun Tree Rings
 Type of secondary growth
 Form due to uneven growth over the seasons.
 Age of the tree is done by counting the rings
 Lighter cell bands =spring growth
 Darker bands = later season growth
 During good growing seasons the rings are thicker

Transpiration
 Evaporation of water from leaves
 Water is pushed up through the xylem by root pressure created from water moving up the soil to the plants root system and into the xylem-> results in small droplets of sap-> called guttation.
 Water is also pulled up through cohesion through the xylem tissue-> creates a negative pressure or tension from roots to leaves.

Rate of Transpiration
 Slows in high humidity
 Accelerates or speeds up in low humidity
 Increases with wind
 Increases with intense light= increased photosynthesis and water vapor

Used with personal permission by Ms.Stahl