• Once the water and solutes have passed through the plasma membrane of the

endodermis (entering the symplastic space) then they can continue onwards into the core
of the root, ________________
• Some plants have a ring of Pericycle cells just inside of the endodermis
• These cells are reserve cells used to initiate the growth of side roots and are not involved as
vasculature but may participate in xylem loading
• Once the water and solute enters the xylem it is once again in the apoplastic space
(__________________ ______________________________)
• Water and solutes will now be transferred towards the __________________through the
xylem vasculature by long distance transport
• Water potential dictates the movement of water by osmosis
• Water and nutrients can be taken up in the roots through the apoplastic or symplastic routes through passive and active transport
mechanisms
• At the Endodermal layer, the Casparian strip forces all apoplastic transport into the symplastic route to control what solutes are taken
up and transported by the xylem
• The properties of water play a key role in its transport
• Evaporation of water through transpiration results in tension in the water column
• Leaf anatomy (stomata and air spaces) contributes to cohesion-tension forces
• Root pressure contributes to upward water movement in some plants
• Stomatal movements regulate the loss of water by transpiration and gas exchange for photosynthesis
• Extreme control over water loss takes place in arid environments where excess transpiration will quickly result in death by dehydration
• Xylem cells have very thick secondary cell walls loaded with lignin
• The pits that develop along the xylem cells are not blocked by secondary cell walls
• Pits in vessel elements are not even blocked by primary cell walls
• Xylem cells are dead at maturity and act as straws to draw water and solutes upwards
• Water can transit through xylem cells from bottom to top and into the next or exit the
xylem into the surrounding tissue through the pits
• Movement of water from the xylem cells is regulated by osmosis and can occur at
any point throughout the plant
• Plant cells acquire or lose water through osmosis
• The primary cell wall provides tensile strength and prevents the
cell from bursting under hypotonic conditions and from completely collapsing under hypertonic conditions
*The rigidity comes from hydraulic turgor pressure from the vacuole* 
Vacuoles have higher solute concentration and the osmotic flow of water occurs from outside the cell (lower solute
concentrations) to into the vacuoles
 _____________________________________________
• The turgidity of the vacuole pushes the plasma membrane outwards and this pushes against the cell wall
• Turgid state is the ideal state for plant cells, helps maintain the structure of the plant and maintains osmotic balance
 Turgid state is maintained, system is at equilibrium
• ____________ are protein channels on the plasma membrane that passively allows water to move rapidly ______________
• The channels can be opened or closed but are
• Driven by transpiration which generates an incredible amount of negative pressure
• ~2-10MPa (atmospheric pressure ~0.1MPa, tire pressure ~0.2MPa)
• Tension generated is sufficient to draw water from the roots all the way to the leaf surface
• The water column acts as a continuous chain due to the __________ attraction between the water molecules
(H-bonds)
• Evaporation and release of one molecule applies the tension to pull out the next and so forth
• _________ of water molecules to the walls of the xylem cells helps to defy gravity and partially resists the
tension to _______________ ___________
• Water molecules are attracted to the cellulose/hemicellulose of the secondary cell wall but ___________________
not very strong attraction
• If the adhesive attraction was greater this would apply much of the tension to the walls of the xylem and
_____________________
• Physical limit of the cohesion-tension mechanism is gravity dependent
• Keeping the water column suspended at a height greater than ~120-130m requires stronger tension force but would
be strong enough to break the
H-bonds holding the column of water together
 • Chloroplasts utilize the energy from light to break H2O molecules into O2 and H+ ions
• H+ ions are used to generate ATP through by pumping through an ATP synthase on the thylakoid
membrane into the stroma
• An electron transport chain caused by the splitting of the water molecules allows for the
reduction of NADP to NADPH (along with H+ from the stroma)
• The high energy compounds ATP and NADPH aid in the fixation of CO2 into sugars through the
Calvin Cycle starting with Rubisco in the stroma
• _____________________ can be harmful to the photosynthetic machinery and drastically
reduce productivity  gas exchange is critical for photosynthesis and plant health
• Gas exchange through open stomata is carried out by ____________
• CO2 enters the air spaces of the mesophyll and is quickly utilized (i.e. fixed) to maintain the gradient
• Excess O2 gas (i.e. not required for cell respiration) is released as waste
• Water vapour is released, creating transpirational tension and helps to cool down the leaf surface
• Leaves maximize the rate of diffusion by:
• Providing a short distance between the mesophyll cells and the external environment (thin surfaces,
~20-50 cells thick)
• Having large gas-filled spaces within the leaves near the vascular bundles and stomata
• Having a very large SA:V for rapid exchange through thousands of stomata