GENERAL BIOLOGY 2

NAME: GRADE LEVEL:

SECTION: DATE:

LEARNING ACTIVITY SHEET:

Plants and Animal Organ System: Chemical and Nervous Control,
Sensory and Motor Mechanisms

BACKGROUND INFORMATION FOR LEARNERS

Plant Responses to Environmental Stimuli

Environmental signals play a significant role in plant growth and development.
Plant Tropism
• Tropisms are growth responses toward or away from unidirectional stimuli.
• Growth in the direction of a stimulus is known as positive tropism, while growth away
from a stimulus is known as a negative tropism. Common tropic responses in plants
include phototropism, gravitropism, thigmotropism, hydrotropism, thermotropism, and
chemotropism.
• Auxin is responsible for the negative gravitropism exhibited by stems. Stems
grow upward opposite the direction of gravity.
• Phototropism is the directional growth of an organism in response to light.
• Heliotropism is a type of phototropism in which certain plant structures,
typically stems and flowers, follow the path of the sun from east to west as it
moves across the sky. Some heliotropic plants are also able to turn their flowers
back toward the east during the night to ensure that they are facing the direction
of the sun when it rises.
• Thigmotropism describes plant growth in response to touch or contact with a
solid object. Positive thigmotropism is demonstrated by climbing plants or
vines, which have specialized structures called tendrils.
• Gravitropism or geotropism is growth in response to gravity. Gravitropism is
very important in plants as it directs root growth toward the pull of gravity
(positive gravitropism) and stem growth in the opposite direction (negative
gravitropism).

Photoperiodism
• Flowering is a response to seasonal changes, namely length of the night.
• Short-day plants flower when nights are longer than a critical length.
• Long-day plants flower when nights are shorter than a critical length.
• Some plants are day/night neutral.

Phytochrome and Plant Flowering

• Phytochrome is a plant pigment that responds to daylight.
Functions of phytochrome in plant cells include:
• Brings about flowering • Influences leaf expansion
• Encourages germination • Affects stem branching

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 Plants usually respond to environmental stimuli such as light, gravity, and seasonal
changes by altering their pattern of growth in some way. Hormones help control these
responses.
Plant hormones are small organic molecules produced by the plant that serve as
chemical signals between cells and tissues. Currently, the five commonly recognized groups of
plant hormones are auxins, gibberellins, cytokinin, abscisic acid, and ethylene.

Plant Hormones Function

• Promote primary growth (lengthening) by promoting cell
elongation and increasing the rate of cell division
• Promote apical dominance – whereby the apex / tip of a plant
Auxin
grows while the lateral buds remain undeveloped
• Auxin concentrations may change in response to directional
stimuli (i.e., play a key role in tropisms
• Trigger germination in dormant seeds (initiates plant growth)
Gibberellins • Gibberellin also causes stem elongation by promoting cell
elongation and cell division
• Promote cell division (cytokinesis) and ensure roots and shoots
grow at equal rates
Cytokinin • Promotes secondary growth (thickening) and help to control the
rate of branching by a plant
• Cytokinin are also involved in stimulating the growth of fruit
• Abscisic acid (ABA) principally functions to inhibit plant growth
and development
• It promotes the death of leaves (abscission) and is responsible for
seed dormancy
Abscisic acid
• It generally initiates stress responses in plants (like winter
dormancy in deciduous plants)
• Abscisic acid controls the closing of stomata and hence regulates
water loss in plants
• A gas which acts as a plant hormone and stimulates maturation and
ageing (senescence)
• It is responsible for the ripening of certain fruit (auxins and
Ethylene
gibberellins promote fruit growth but inhibit ripening)
• It also contributes to the loss of leaves (abscission) and the death
of flowers

Animal Chemical and Nervous Control

Many body functions are controlled by the nervous system and the endocrine system.
These two regulatory systems use chemical messengers to affect the function of the other organ
systems and to coordinate activity at different locations in the body.

How do the endocrine and nervous systems differ?

• In the endocrine system, the chemical messengers are hormones released into the blood.
• In the nervous system, the chemical messengers are neurotransmitters sent straight from
one cell to another across a tiny gap.

Since hormones have to travel through the bloodstream to their targets, the endocrine
system usually coordinates processes on a slower time scale than the nervous system in which
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messages are delivered directly to the target cell. In some cases, such as the fight-or-flight
response to an acute threat, the nervous and endocrine systems work together to produce a
response.

Animal Nervous System

Most animals have some type of nervous system with distinct organization of neurons.
In hydras, nerve nets are diffused all over the body to control the contraction and expansion of
gastrovascular cavity. The onset of cephalization marks a more complex nervous system.
Simple cephalized animals, is a simple central nervous system with a small brain and a
longitudinal nerve cord. In more complex invertebrates, the CNS is composed of the brain and
a ventral nerve cords with clusters of neurons called the ganglia. All other nerves on the rest of
the animal are called peripheral nervous system.

The nervous system has three types of neurons specific to its three functions (Fig. 27.3):
1. The nervous system -receives sensory input. Sensory neurons perform this function.
They take nerve impulses from sensory receptors to the CNS. The sensory receptor,
which is the distal end of the axon of a sensory neuron, may be as simple as a naked
nerve ending (a pain receptor), or may be built into a highly complex organ, such as the
eye or ear. In any case, the axon of a sensory neuron can be quite long if the sensory
receptor is far from the CNS.
2. The nervous system performs integration—in other words, the CNS sums up the -input
it receives from all over the body. Interneurons occur entirely within the CNS and take
nerve impulses between various parts of the CNS. Some interneurons lie between
sensory neurons and motor neurons, and some take messages from one side of the spinal
cord to the other or from the brain to the spinal cord, and vice versa. They also form
complex pathways in the brain where processes that account for thinking, memory, and
language occur.
3. The nervous system generates motor output. Motor neurons take nerve impulses from
the CNS to muscles or glands. Motor neurons cause muscle fibers to contract or glands
to secrete, and therefore they are said to innervate these -structures.

The Brain
• The cerebrum functions in sensation, reasoning, learning and memory, language, and
speech. The cerebral cortex has a primary sensory area in the parietal lobe that receives
sensory information from each part of the body and a primary motor area in the frontal
lobe that sends out motor commands to skeletal muscles. Association areas carry on
integration.
• In the diencephalon, the hypothalamus helps control homeostasis; the thalamus
specializes in sending sensory input on to the cerebrum.
• The cerebellum primarily coordinates skeletal muscle contractions.
• In the brain stem, the medulla oblongata has centers for vital functions, such as
breathing and the heartbeat, and helps control the internal organs.

The Endocrine System

The endocrine system is the collection of glands that produce hormones that regulate
metabolism, growth and development, tissue function, sexual function, reproduction, sleep,
and mood, among other things. Hormones are recognized by their target receptors in a “lock
and key” system. Each hormone (key) fits exactly into its receptor (lock). Only those parts of
the body that have the receptor (lock) can respond to the hormone (key). This is why hormones

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affect some parts of the body, but have no effect on others. (The Endocrine Society of Australia,
2018)

Figure 2. Hormones are recognized by

their target receptors in a “lock and
key” system. Each hormone (key) fits
exactly into its receptor (lock). Only
those parts of the body that have the
receptor (lock) can respond to the
hormone (key). This is why hormones
affect some parts of the body, but have
no effect on others. (The Endocrine
Society of Australia, 2018)

Endocrine System Function

Hypothalamus This organ connects the endocrine system with the nervous system.
Its main job is to tell your pituitary gland to start or stop making
hormones.
Pituitary Gland This is your endocrine system’s master gland. It uses information
it gets from the brain to tell other glands in the body what to do. It
makes many important hormones, including growth hormone;
prolactin, which helps breastfeeding moms make milk; and
luteinizing hormone, which manages estrogen in women and
testosterone in men.
Pineal Gland It makes a chemical called melatonin that helps the body get ready
to go to sleep.
Thyroid Gland This gland makes thyroid hormone, which controls metabolism.
Parathyroid This is a set of four small glands behind your thyroid. They play a
role in bone health. The glands control the levels of calcium and
phosphorus.
Thymus This gland makes white blood cells called T-lymphocytes that fight
infection and are crucial as a child's immune system develops. The
thymus starts to shrink after puberty.
Adrenals Best known for making the "fight or flight" hormone adrenaline
(also called epinephrine), these two glands also make hormones
called corticosteroids. They affect metabolism and sexual function,
among other things.
Pancreas This organ is part of both the digestive and endocrine systems. It
makes digestive enzymes that break down food. It also makes the
hormones insulin and glucagon. These ensure the right amount of
sugar in the bloodstream and your cells.

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Ovaries In women, these organs make estrogen and progesterone. These
hormones help develop breasts at puberty, regulate the menstrual
cycle, and support a pregnancy.

Testes In men, the testes make testosterone. It helps them grow facial and
body hair at puberty. It also tells the penis to grow larger and plays
a role in making sperm.

The Senses
Information processing starts with input from the sensory organs, which transform
physical stimuli such as touch, heat, sound waves, or photons of light into electrochemical
signals.

Chemical Senses- Chemoreception is found universally in animals and is therefore believed to

be the most primitive sense. Human taste buds and olfactory cells are chemoreceptors.
• Taste buds have microvilli with receptors that bind to chemicals in food.
• Olfactory cells have cilia with receptors that bind to odor molecules.
The Senses of Hearing and Balance- Mammals have an ear that may have evolved from the
lateral line of fishes. The sensory receptors for hearing are hair cells with stereocilia that
respond to pressure waves.
• Hair cells respond to stimuli that have been received by the outer ear and amplified
by the ossicles in the middle ear.
• Hair cells are found in the spiral organ and are located in the cochlear canal of the
cochlea. The spiral organ generates nerve impulses that travel to the brain.
The sensory receptors for balance (equilibrium) are also hair cells with stereo-cilia.
• Hair cells in the base of the semicircular canals provide rotational equilibrium.
• Hair cells in the utricle and saccule provide gravitational equilibrium.
The Sense of Vision- Arthropods have a compound eye; squids and humans have a camera-type
eye. In humans, the photoreceptors:
• Respond to light that has been focused by the cornea and lens.
• Consist of two types, rods and cones. In rods, rhodopsin splits into opsin and
retinal.
• Communicate with the next layer of cells in the retina. Integration occurs in the
three layers of the retina before nerve impulses go to the brain.

The Motor Systems

Together, the muscles and bones support the body and allow parts to move; help
protect internal organs; and assist the functioning of other systems.
In addition:
• Skeletal muscle contraction assists movement of blood in cardiovascular veins
and lymphatic vessels.
• Skeletal muscles provide heat that warms the body.
• Bones are storage areas for calcium and phosphorous salts, as well as sites for
blood cell formation.

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 LEARNING COMPETENCY

The learner compares and contrasts the following processes in plants and animals:
reproduction, development, nutrition, gas exchange, transport and circulation, regulation of
body fluids, chemical and nervous control, immune systems, and sensory and motor
mechanisms. (STEM_BIO11/12-IVi-j-2)

DIRECTIONS/INSTRUCTIONS

Perform the following activities. If you are at home, you can have the activity together
with your family. Take note of each step. If you have questions, you can contact your teacher
for clarifications and assistance. Enjoy learning!

ACTIVITY 1: Plant Hormones and Responses to Environment

A. Put a check (✓) on the plant hormone/s that is/are responsible for the given plant
development and/or responses. You may check more than one plant hormone.

Plant Growth Fruit Seed

Germination Flowering Abscission
Hormones Maturity Development Dormancy

Gibberellin

Auxin

Cytokinin

Ethylene

Abscisic
Acid

B. Complete the table below. And answer the succeeding guide question.

Plants Tropism Stimulus Response

1. Sunflower
2. Morning glory twining
3. Sensitive Plant (Makahiya)
4. Venus flytrap
5. Corn roots

Guide Questions
1. What is a tropism?

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2. Why do plants respond to different stimuli in their environments?

3. Do all parts of a plant respond the same way to stimuli? Elaborate.

ACTIVITY 2: VENN DIAGRAMING

Compare and contrast the way plants and animals respond to stimuli by completing
the Venn diagram below.

PLANTS ANIMALS

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ACTIVITY 3: Health Connect
Some drugs/medications are known to act as neurotransmitter. Search for five of these
compounds and identify what responses each imitates in some other neurotransmitters.

Effect on Neuron/ Body’s

Drugs/Compounds Similar Neurotransmitter
Response

Guide Questions

1. How do drugs or compounds enhance or interfere with the activity of neurotransmitters and
receptors within the synapses of the brain?

2. How does drug dependence result to chemical imbalance to brain?

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