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7: Transport and Gas Exchange

  • Page ID
    74990
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    • 7.1: Transport Mechanisms
      The structure of plant roots, stems, and leaves facilitates the transport of water, nutrients, and photosynthates throughout the plant. The phloem and xylem are the main tissues responsible for this movement. Water potential, evapotranspiration, and stomatal regulation influence how water and nutrients are transported in plants. To understand how these processes work, we must first understand the energetics of water potential.
    • 7.2: Water and Mineral Absorption
    • 7.3: Xylem Transport
      Most plants secure the water and minerals they need from their roots. The path taken is: soil→roots→stems→leaves soil→roots→stems→leaves.    The minerals  travel dissolved in the water (often accompanied by various organic molecules supplied by root cells), but less than 1% of the water reaching the leaves is used in photosynthesis and plant growth. Most of it is lost in transpiration, which serve two useful functions: providing the force for lifting the water up the stems and cools the leaves.
    • 7.4: Water-Stress Responses
    • 7.5: Phloem Transport
      Food and other organic substances (e.g., some plant hormones and even messenger RNAs) manufactured in the cells of the plant are transported in the phloem. Sugars (usually sucrose), amino acids and other organic molecules enter the sieve elements through plasmodesmata connecting them to adjacent companion cells. Once within the sieve elements, these molecules can be transported either up or down to any region of the plant moving at rates as high as 110 μm per second.
    • 7.6: Components of Vertebrate Blood
      Blood is the liquid that moves through the vessels and includes plasma (the liquid portion, which contains water, proteins, salts, lipids, and glucose) and the cells (red and white cells) and cell fragments called platelets. Blood plasma is actually the dominant component of blood and contains the water, proteins, electrolytes, lipids, and glucose. The cells are responsible for carrying the gases (red cells) and immune the response (white). The platelets are responsible for blood clotting.
    • 7.7: Vertebrate Circulatory System
      The heart is a complex muscle that pumps blood through the three divisions of the circulatory system: the coronary (vessels that serve the heart), pulmonary (heart and lungs), and systemic (systems of the body). Coronary circulation intrinsic to the heart takes blood directly from the main artery (aorta) coming from the heart.


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