Chapter 6 - Life Processes

What are life processes?

Biology is the study of living things. All living things are called organisms, both plants
and animals are living organisms. But how we decide whether something is living or
non-living depends on 7 life processes. If something is living it will carry out the 7 life
processes below.

1. Movement
Both animals and plants have the ability to move. Plants are rooted and move
slowly as they grow. Their roots move down into the soil and their stems move up
towards the light. Animals on the other hand move quickly and can move their entire
bodies. They can move in search of food, shelter or to avoid danger.

2. Respiration
Respiration is the process of extracting energy out of the food we eat. All living
things respire because they need energy to grow, to replace worn out parts and to
move. Respiration takes place in the mitochondria of the cell.

3. Sensitivity
All living organisms are sensitive; this means that they have an awareness of
changes in their environment. Animals respond quickly to stimuli such as heat,
light, sound, touch and chemicals which have taste and smell. On the other hand,
plants generally appear less sensitive and their response is slower.

4. Growth
All living organisms grow. Plants continue growing throughout their lives. Animals
stop growing once they reach adulthood. Even when growth stops, materials within
an animal’s body are still being replaced from its food.

5. Excretion
All living things make waste products these can be useless or harmful to it and
therefore need to be got rid of. Excretion is the process of getting rid of metabolic
waste. Plants store waste substances in their leaves, the waste is removed when
their leaves fall off. Animals breathe out waste carbon dioxide, other waste
substances leave the body in urine and sweat.
Note: Getting rid of faeces or undigested food is not excretion but egestion.

6. Reproduction
All living things must produce offspring like themselves in order for their species
to survive. This is the process known as reproduction. Plants produce seeds that

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 give rise to new plants of the same species. Animals lay eggs or have babies.
Reproduction can be of two types.

Sexual which involves two parents and the union of two gametes and
Asexual where one parent can reproduce itself.

7. Nutrition
Nutrition is needed for energy and growth, both plants and animals need food.
Plants are able to make their own food by photosynthesis. They use sunlight to turn
simple molecules like carbon dioxide and water into more complex carbohydrate
molecules. Animals are unable to make their own food so rely on other plants and
other animals for their nutrition. Animals take in complex substances and break
them down into small, simple, soluble molecules which can be used for energy and
growth
Energy required to carry out different life processes is obtained through the
process of nutrition. Depending on the mode of obtaining nutrition, organisms are
classified as autotrophs or heterotrophs.

i. Autotrophs can prepare their own food from simple inorganic sources such as
carbon dioxide and water. Examples: Green plants and some bacteria.

ii. Heterotrophs cannot synthesise their own food and are dependent on other
organisms for obtaining complex organic substances for nutrition. Example:
Animals and fungi

Autotrophic Nutrition:
A type of nutrition in which organisms synthesize the organic materials they require
from inorganic sources. Chief sources of carbon and nitrogen are carbon dioxide and
nitrates, respectively. All green plants are autotrophic and use light as a source of
energy for the synthesis of food through photosynthesis.

The following events occur during this process.

(i) Absorption of light energy by chlorophyll
(ii) Conversion of light energy to chemical energy and splitting of water molecules into
hydrogen and oxygen.
(iii) Reduction of carbon dioxide to carbohydrates.

These green plants absorbs water from the soil by roots. Co2 enters from the
atmosphere through stomata, Sunlight is absorbed by chlorophyll and other green parts
of the plants.

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Heterotrophic Nutrition:
All heterotrophs depend on autotrophs for their
nutrition. The three main types of heterotrophic
nutrition are:
1. Holozoic nutrition: Complex food is taken into a specialist digestive system and
broken down into small pieces to be absorbed. Eg: Ameoba, Humans

2. Saprophytic nutrition: Organisms feed on dead organic remains of other organisms.

Eg: Fungi like bread moulds yeast and mushrooms.
3. Parasitic nutrition: Organisms obtain food from other living organisms (the host),
with the host receiving no benefit from the parasite. Eg: cascuta, ticks, lice, leeches
and tape worms.

How do Organisms Obtain Their Utrition?

In single celled organisms, the food may be taken in by the entire surface.
Eg: 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.

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Nutrition in Human Beings:
In humans, digestion of food takes place in the alimentary canal, made up of various
organs and glands.

In the mouth, food is crushed into small particles through chewing and mixed with
saliva, which contains amylase for digesting starch.

On swallowing, food passes through the pharynx and oesophagus to reach the
stomach. Gastric juice contains pepsin (for digesting proteins), HCl 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.

From the stomach, the food now enters the small intestine. The small intestine is the
site of the complete digestion of carbohydrates, proteins and fats.
The liver secretes bile which emulsifies fat.
The pancreas secretes pancreatic juice which contains the enzymes amylase, trypsin
and lipase for digesting starch, proteins and fats, respectively.

In the small intestine, carbohydrates, proteins and fats are completely digested into
glucose, aminoacids, fatty acids and glycerol.

The villi of the small intestine absorb the digested food and supply it to every cell of the
body.

The unabsorbed food is sent into the large intestine where more villi absorb water
from this material. The rest of the material is removed from the body via the anus.

CH_6_NOTE_1_by NIYANTA PATEL