Plant : Gibberellins a. produced in many parts of the plant • Gibberellins illustrate how plant hormones b. have many functions have multiple roles related to different aspects of plant life. Illustrated with 4 plant hormones: • And are produced in at multiple parts of • Gibberellins the body. • • •Ethylene

Gibberellins – Function 1: Nutrient Release Gibberellins – Function 1: Nutrient Release • Mobilize enzymes that release nutrient reserves in grass seeds. • Barley malt is sugar and incompletely • GibberellinsÆprotein digestionÆdigestive enzymes digested produced during the of barley. • Enhance barley germination and malt production (Malting) in the liquor industry.

Gibberellins – Function 2: Gibberellins – Function 3: Stem elongation Bolting • Stem elongation requires gibberellins. • Rosette growth until an environmental • Mutants that don’t produce gibberellins are cue cause them to bolt (elongate their dwarfs. shoots). • When gibberellins are added they grow • The cue results in gibberellin normally. production.

1 Gibberellins – Function 4: Fruit growth Auxin • Developing seeds produce gibberellins Æ stimulate their growth Auxin illustrates: • Seedless grapes are smaller than seeded • how plant hormones have multiple ones. roles related to different aspects of plant • Farmers spray them with gibberellins to get life. normal large grapes. • And are produced in at multiple parts of the body.

Auxin and Darwin’s Experiments Auxin on Plant Movement Tutorial 38.2: • Auxin can move thru permeable membranes • Auxin signal can remain on the gelatin from the tip Tutorial 38.1 • Covered Tip: Don’t bend • Bending happens below the sensory site on the tip. • Darwin reasoned that a message must travel from the tip to the growing region. • ‘Message’ later shown to be auxin

Auxin Auxin does many other things Auxin stimulates growth. • on the shaded side • Gravity response of shoots (in the dark): • Auxin causes the cellulose ‹ Auxin moves to the lower side of the shoot. wall to loosen, so turgor pressure can expand the cell, ‹ Causes more rapid growth there. resulting in growth. ‹ The tip curves upward. • If the cell loosens more on one side, it bends.

2 Auxin does many other Auxin does many other things: Apical Dominance – growth of main stem, little things: branching Abscission zone • Remove apex and lateral buds grow out. • Replace apex with an auxin solution and lateral • Keeps leaves from branches do not form. falling until the right time:

‹ Auxin produced in the leaf blade keeps the leaf stem from falling off.

Cytokinins Ethylene Promotes Senescence

• A simple gas. • Produced in plant . • Promotes leaf abscission • Shoot vs growth (counters auxin). ‹ High ratio of to auxin: buds and shoots are formed. • Hastens ripening of fruit:

‹ Low ratio of cytokinin to auxin: roots form. ‹ “One bad apple spoils the whole bunch”

• In stems, the ratio of cytokinin to auxin ‹ Positive feedback determines the bushiness of a plant (apical dominance?) • Delay senescence of leaves.

Hormones • A particular aspect of plant life is often regulated in complex ways by multiple hormones, e.g.,: ‹ Ethylene vs auxin in leaf abscission. Table 37.1 ‹ Cytokinin vs auxin in apical dominance and shoot vs. root formation. See Table 38.1, for a summary of hormones.

3 Plant Reproduction Many Ways to Reproduce •The diversity of possibilities results from the modular repeated “tinker toy” construction of plants. • They produce many leaves and branches with potentially independent physiology. • Reproduce asexually by falling apart.

The Big Disadvantage of Sex: Sexual Reproduction Cost of Meiosis • What are the advantages of sexual vs asexual reproduction in nature? 1:1

2:1

4:1 Asexual transmission Sexual transmission 50% dilution of genetic information each generation from letting male genes participate. BIG selective cost.

Some Potential Advantages of Sex: Other disadvantages of Genetically diverse offspring sex: may be favored…

‹ Small scale variability in the • Failure to mate. environment. ‹ Strong and constant need for evolutionary change… • Outstanding genotypes ‹ due to coevolution with diseases or other parasites. lost by recombination. DNA repair: if you have a mutation, sex brings a good copy to you which can repair the defect through recombination.

4 Sex or not? Sex or not? • In plants, sex or not usually means •Some plants can reproduce seed or vegetative reproduction. asexually by seed: e.g., dandelions. Seeds: • Most do it by vegetative • Good at dispersal reproduction. • Good at

Vegetative spread: • Well-supplied, big offspring • Connection may mean parent is a source of resources. • Shorter distances. • More accurate placement.

Vegetative reproduction Sexual Reproduction • Usually involves stems. The is an angiosperm’s device for sex. • Sometimes leaves are involved.

Fertilization Is pollination the same thing •2 sperm cells are released as fertilization?? Because pollen is not sperm. •One fertilizes the egg •The other fuses with the 2 polar nuclei. • Double Fertilization?

‹ Embryo

‹ Fig 39.5

5 Ecology of Plant Gender • Much of the rich diversity of angiosperms is reflected in floral variation.

• Being modular means the sky is the limit on • Most floral variation relates to pollination. gender variation. • Hermaphroditic flowers. – BUT – • Some specialized male and female flowers on the same plant.

• In either case, individuals are both male and female and can pollinate themselves.

Selfing vs Outcrossing Selfing vs Outcrossing

?!! • Much of the structure and function of flowers can be explained as adaptations for • Not an issue for most animals! avoiding selfing and involving pollen and • Selfing can be good or bad. seeds in outcrossing. • Good:

‹ Recovers the cost of meiosis.

‹ Solves the problem of finding a mate.

‹ Don’t have to spend a lot on dating and make up. •Bad:

‹ Inbreeding Depression

‹ Less and less variable offspring

Pollination Pollination ecology ecology • Some plants are generalized and attract many different pollinators. • Separation ensures outcrossed pollination. Milkweed • Spatial separation of • In one study, over 30 species of sex organs. insects visited the flowers.

•Temporal separation of sex organs.

6 Pollination ecology - Specialized modes Specialized animal pollination often involves involve many different pollinating agents corresponding traits of flowers and animals Wind Pollination • Copious pollen produced in “salt shaker” flowers. • Usually big feathery stigmas to catch pollen. Fly Pollination • No need for attractive odors or visual display “Carrion flowers” • Mimic carrion or feces in odor and color. • (Flies are tricked - no benefit.)

Bee Pollination • predominant form of animal pollination. Butterfly Pollination • flower depth Æ landing platforms. • intricate, semi-closed flowers common. • flowers - vividly colored • coiled straw-like proboscis to sip nectar from deep tubes. • they need a place to land - blossoms often flat.

Bird Pollination Mammal Pollination

Bats -

• Over 1,000 species are pollinators. •Nocturnal flowers. • Flowers often smell “like bats”. •America: hummingbirds. • Drab colors. •Long tubular red flowers with no landing • Exposed away from the plant because bats are platform. somewhat clumsy fliers.

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