LIFE PROCESSES

Q. Why is diffusion insufficient to meet the oxygen requirements of multi-

cellular organisms like humans?

Unlike the unicellular organisms, the multi-cellular organisms have complex

body structures with specialized cells and tissues to perform various necessary
functions of the body. Since these cells are not in direct contact with
surrounding environment so, simple diffusion cannot meet the oxygen
requirement of all these cells.

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

Any visible movement such as walking, breathing, or growing is generally used

to decide whether something is alive or not. However, a living organism can

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also have movements, which are not visible to the naked eye. Therefore, the
presence of life processes is a fundamental criterion that can be used to decide
whether something is alive or not.
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Q. What are outside raw materials used for by an organism?

Various outside raw materials used by an organism are as follows:

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→ Food as source of supplying energy and materials.

→ Oxygen for breakdown of food to obtain energy.
→ Water for proper digestion of food and other functions inside the body.
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The raw materials required by an organism will vary depending on the

complexity of the organism and its environment.

Q. What processes would you consider essential for maintaining life?

Life processes such as nutrition, respiration, transportation, excretion, etc. are

essential for maintaining life.

Q. What are the differences between autotrophic nutrition and

heterotrophic nutrition?

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  Autotrophic Nutrition  Heterotrophic Nutrition
  Food is obtained directly or indirectly
Food is synthesized from simple
from autotrophs.This food is broken
inorganic raw materials such as
CO2 and water. down with the help of enzymes.

 Chlorophyll is required.  Chlorophyll is not required.

 Food is generally prepared 
during day time. Food can be obtained at all time.
 All green plants and some 

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bacteria have this type of All animals and fungi have this type of

nutrition. nutrition.

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Q. Where do plants get each of the raw materials required for
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photosynthesis?

The following raw materials are required for photosynthesis:

→ Carbon Dioxide: Plants get CO2 from atmosphere through stomata.
→ Water: Plants absorb water from soil through roots and transport to leaves.
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→ Sunlight: Sunlight, which is absorbed by the chlorophyll and other green

parts of the plant.

Q. What is the role of the acid in our stomach?

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Following are the roles of acid in our stomach:

 The hydrochloric acid present in our stomach creates an acidic medium.

In this acidic medium, enzyme pepsinogen is converted to pepsin, which
is a protein-digesting enzyme.
 It also kills many bacteria and other microorganisms that enter along
with the food.

Q. What is the function of digestive enzymes?

Digestive enzymes such as amylase, lipase, pepsin, trypsin, etc. help in the
breaking down of complex food particles into simple ones. These simple

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particles can be easily absorbed by the blood and thus transported to all the cells
of the body.

Q. How is the small intestine designed to absorb digested food?

The small intestine has millions of tiny finger-like projections called villi. These
villi increase the surface area for more efficient food absorption. Within these
villi, many blood vessels are present that absorb the digested food and carry it to
the blood stream. From the blood stream, the absorbed food is delivered to each
and every cell of the body.

Q. What advantage over an aquatic organism does a terrestrial organism

have with regard to obtaining oxygen for respiration?

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Terrestrial organisms take up oxygen from the atmosphere whereas aquatic
animals obtain oxygen from water. Air contains more O2 as compared to water.
Since the content of O2 in air is high, the terrestrial animals do not have to
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breathe faster to get more oxygen. Therefore, unlike aquatic animals, terrestrial
animals do not need adaptations for gaseous exchange.

Q. What are the different ways in which glucose is oxidized to provide

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energy in various organisms?

At first glucose (6 carbon molecules) is broken in the cytoplasm of cells of all

organisms. This process yields a 3 carbon molecule compound called pyruvate.
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Further break down of pyruvate takes place in different manners in different

organisms.
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→ Anaerobic Respiration: This process takes place in absence of oxygen, e.g.
in yeast during fermentation. In this case pyruvate is converted into ethanol and
carbon dioxide.
→ Aerobic Respiration: In aerobic respiration, breakdown of pyruvate takes
place in presence of oxygen to give rise 3 molecules of carbon dioxide and
water. The release of energy in aerobic respiration is much more than anaerobic
respiration.
→ Lack of Oxygen: Sometimes, when there is lack of oxygen, especially
during vigorous activity, in our muscles, pyruvate is converted into lactic acid
(3 carbon molecule compounds). Formation of lactic acid in muscles causes
cramp.

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Q. How is oxygen and carbon dioxide transported in human beings?

→ Transport of Oxygen: The respiratory pigments (haemoglobin) present in

red blood cells takes up the oxygen from the air to the lungs. They carry the

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oxygen to tissues which are deficient in oxygen.

→ Transport of carbon dioxide: Carbon Dioxide is more soluble in water.

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Hence, it is mostly transported from body tissues in the dissolved form in our
blood plasma to lungs where it diffuses from blood to air in the lungs and then
expelled out through nostrils.
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Q. How are the lungs designed in human beings to maximize the area for
exchange of gases?
Lungs contain millions of alveoli which provide a surface for the exchange of
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gases. An extensive network of blood vessels is present in the wall of the

alveoli. By lifting our ribs and flatten the diaphragm, the chest cavity becomes
spacious. Air is sucked into the lungs and alveoli. The oxygen from the breath,
diffuses into the blood and CO2 from the blood brought from the body, diffuses
out into the air.

Q. What are the components of the transport system in human beings?

What are the functions of these components?

The main components of the transport system in human beings are the heart,
blood, and blood vessels.
→ Heart pumps oxygenated blood throughout the body. It receives

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deoxygenated blood from the various body parts and sends this impure blood to
the lungs for oxygenation.
→ Blood helps in the transport of oxygen, nutrients, CO2, and nitrogenous
wastes.
→ The blood vessels (arteries, veins, and capillaries) carry blood either away
from the heart to various organs or from various organs back to the heart.

Q. Why is it necessary to separate oxygenated and deoxygenated blood in

mammals and birds?

It is necessary to separate oxygenated and deoxygenated blood to maintain

efficient supply of oxygen into the body. This system is essential in animals that
have high energy need. For example, animals like mammals and birds which

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constantly use this energy to maintain their body temperature.

Q. What are the components of the transport system in highly organized

plants?
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In highly organized plants, there are two different types of conducting tissues –
xylem and phloem. Xylem conducts water and minerals obtained from the soil
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(via roots) to the rest of the plant. Phloem transports food materials from the
leaves to different parts of the plant body.

Q. How are water and minerals transported in plants?

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Water and minerals are transported through xylem cells from soil to the leaves.
The xylem cells of roots stem and leaves are interconnected to form a
conducting channel that reaches all parts of the plant.
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The root cells take ions from the soil. This creates a difference between the
concentration of ions of roots and soil. Therefore, there is a steady movement of
water into xylem.
An osmotic pressure is formed and water and minerals are transported from one
cell to the other cell due to osmosis.
The continuous loss of water takes place due to transpiration. Because of
transpiration, a suction pressure is created as a result of which water is forced
into the xylem cells of roots.
The effect of root pressure for transportation in plants is more important in
night while during day time transpiration pull becomes the major driving force.

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Q. How is food transported in plants?

Phloem transports food materials from the leaves to different parts of the plant.
The transportation of food in phloem is achieved by utilizing energy from ATP
which helps in creating osmotic pressure that transport food from the area of
high concentration to low concentration.

Q. Describe the structure and functioning of nephrons.

Nephrons are the basic filtering units of kidneys. Each kidney possesses large
number of nephrons, approximately 1-1.5 million. The main components of the
nephron are glomerulus, Bowman’s capsule, and a long renal tubule.

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Functioning of a nephron:

→ The blood enters the kidney through the renal artery, which branches into
many capillaries associated with glomerulus.
→ The water and solute are transferred to the nephron at Bowman’s capsule.
→ In the proximal tubule, some substances such as amino acids, glucose, and
salts are selectively reabsorbed and unwanted molecules are added in the urine.
→ The filtrate then moves down into the loop of Henle, where more water is
absorbed.

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→ From here, the filtrate moves upwards into the distal tubule and finally to
the collecting duct. Collecting duct collects urine from many nephrons.
→ The urine formed in each kidney enters a long tube called ureter. From
ureter, it gets transported to the urinary bladder and then into the urethra.

Q. What are the methods used by plants to get rid of excretory products?

Plants can get rid of excess of water by transpiration. Waste materials may be
stored in the cell vacuoles or as gum and resin, especially in old xylem. It is also
stored in the leaves that later fall off.

Q. How is the amount of urine produced regulated?

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The amount of urine produced depends on the amount of excess water and
dissolved wastes present in the body. Some other factors such as habitat of an
organism and hormone such as Anti-diuretic hormone (ADH) also regulates the
amount of urine produced.
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Q. The kidneys in human beings are a part of the system for
(a) nutrition. (b) respiration. (c) excretion. (d) transportation.
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► (c) excretion.

Q. The xylem in plants are responsible for

(a) transport of water. (b) transport of food.
(c) transport of amino acids. (d) transport of oxygen.
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► (a) transport of water.

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Q. The autotrophic mode of nutrition requires

(a) carbon dioxide and water. (b) chlorophyll.
(c) sunlight. (d) all of the above.

► (d) all of the above.

Q. The breakdown of pyruvate to give carbon dioxide, water and energy

takes place in
(a) cytoplasm. (b) mitochondria.
(c) chloroplast. (d) nucleus.
► (b) mitochondria.

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Q. How are fats digested in our bodies? Where does this process take
place?

Fats are present in the form of large globules in the small intestine. The small
intestine receives the secretions from the liver and the pancreas. The bile salts
(from the liver) break down the large fat globules into smaller globules so that
the pancreatic enzyme lipase can easily act on them. This is referred to as
emulsification of fats.

This process takes place in the small intestine.

Q. What is the role of saliva in the digestion of food?

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The role of saliva in the digestion of food:
→ It moistens the food for easy swallowing.
→ It contains a digestive enzyme called salivary amylase, which breaks down
starch into sugar.
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Q. What are the necessary conditions for autotrophic nutrition and what
are its by-products?
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Autotrophic nutrition takes place through the process of photosynthesis. Carbon
dioxide, water, chlorophyll pigment, and sunlight are the necessary conditions
required for autotrophic nutrition.

Carbohydrates (food) is the main product and O2 is the by-product of

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photosynthesis.

Q. What are the differences between aerobic and anaerobic respiration?

Name some organisms that use the anaerobic mode of respiration.
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 Aerobic respiration  Anaerobic respiration

 It occurs in the presence of O2.  It occurs in the absence of O2.
 It involves the exchange of gases 
between the organism and the outside
environment. Exchange of gases is absent.
 It occurs in cytoplasm and 
mitochondria. It occurs only in cytoplasm.
 It always releases CO2 and H2O.  End products vary.

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Anaerobic respiration takes place in some worms, water logged plants,
yeast and some bacteria.

Q. How are the alveoli designed to maximize the exchange of gases?

Alveoli provide a surface for the exchange of gases. An extensive network of

blood vessels is present in the wall of the alveoli. By lifting our ribs and flatten
the diaphragm, the chest cavity becomes spacious. Air is sucked into the lungs
and alveoli. The oxygen from the breath, diffuses into the blood and CO2 from
the blood brought from the body, diffuses out into the air.

Q. What would be the consequences of a deficiency of haemoglobin in our

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bodies?

Haemoglobin is the respiratory pigment that transports oxygen to the body cells
for cellular respiration. Therefore, deficiency of haemoglobin in blood can
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affect the oxygen supplying capacity of blood. This can lead to deficiency of
oxygen in the body cells. It can also lead to a disease called anaemia.
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Q. Describe double circulation in human beings. Why is it necessary?

During a single cycle blood goes twice in the heart which is known as double
circulation. It is necessary in human being to separate oxygenated and de-
oxygenated blood because this makes their circulatory system is more efficient
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and helps in maintaining constant body temperature.

Q. What are the differences between the transport of materials in xylem

and phloem?
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Aerobic respiration Anaerobic respiration

1.Phloem tissue helps in the transport of food.

1.Xylem tissue helps in the transport
of water and minerals.

2.Food is transported in both upward and

2.Water is transported upwards from
roots to all other plant parts. down ward directions.

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3. Transport in xylem occurs with the
3.Transport of food in phloem requires energy
help of simple physical forces such as
transpiration pull. in the form of ATP.

Q. Compare the functioning of alveoli in the lungs and nephrons in the

kidneys with respect to their structure and functioning.

Alveoli Nephrons

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Structure Structure

Nephrons are tubular structures

Alveoli are tiny balloon-like structures
present inside the lungs. .B
The walls of the alveoli are one cell thick
present inside the kidneys.

Nephrons are made of glomerulus,

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and it contains an extensive network of
blood capillaries. bowman’s capsule, and a long renal tube.

Function Function
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The blood enters the kidneys through

The exchange of O2 and CO2 takes place the renal artery. The blood is entered here
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between the blood of the capillaries that

and the nitrogenous waste in the form
surround the alveoli and the gases present
in the alveoli. of urine is collected by collecting duct.

Alveoli are the site of gaseous exchange. Nephrons are the basic filtration unit.

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