ANIMAL AND PLANT BIOLOGY - Plant Biology
- Overview
- Assessment methods
- Learning objectives
- Contents
- Bibliography
- Delivery method
- Teaching methods
Basic knowledge on the organization of cells, cell division processes and mechanisms of transmission of genetic information is required.
The final exam is oral: the student must show
1) the understanding of the covered topics;
2) the ability to interconnect the acquired knowledge;
3) the completeness of the acquired knowledge;
4) the use of a proper terminology;
In order to verify the knowledge acquired by the students, a test could be planned during the semester.
The laboratory activities will be evaluated during the final exam with an oral question.
The course concerns the fundamental concepts of plant biology, which emerge from the study of the morphology, anatomy and physiology of higher plants. It will focus on the properties of plant cell and on the passage from the cell to the tissue and to the individual as well. The basic concepts of plant physiology (photosynthesis, phytohormones, mineral nutrition) will be also illustrated.
There will be laboratory sessions to explore the morphology and physiology of plants.
At the end of the course, the student will acquire theoretical and practical competences about the vegetal organisms. Thanks to the laboratory sessions the student will also learn the correct practices to work safely in a biological laboratory and to work in groups. The theoretical and practical competences acquired in this course will constitute a solid foundation that will allow the student to undertake higher studies as well as professional activities in the vegetal sector.
Course contents
Lectures (5 ECTS, 40h)
1. Basic Plant Cytology. The cell wall and its modifications, plasmodesma. Apoplast and symplast. The vacuole. Turgor pressure in plant cells. Plastids (4h)
2. Plant anatomy and development. Meristematic, tegumental, parenchymatic and conduction tissues. Development of a herbaceous dicotyledon. Primary and secondary structure of stem and root and their modifications. Structure and modifications of the leaves. Plant reproduction, embryogenesis, seed and fruit (10h)
3. Plant hormones: auxin, gibberellins, cytokinins, ethylene, abscissic acid, brassinosteroids (6h)
4. Phytochromes and their main roles (2h)
5. Oxygenic photosynthesis. Light as a source of energy. Photosynthetic pigments and light absorption. Chloroplasts. Light and metabolic phase. The linear transport of electrons from water to NADP + and the chemiosmotic synthesis of ATP. Calvin-Benson cycle for carbon fixation. Photorespiration and CO2 concentration in C4 and CAM plants. Translocation of organic substances. (10h)
6. Water transport. Water rootuptake, xylem transport and transpiration. (2h)
7. Mineral nutrition: micro and macronutrients, mineral uptake, nitrogen cycle, symbiosis and mycorrhizae. (4h)
8. Responses to abiotic stresses. (2h)
Laboratory (1 ECTS)
1- Measurement of water potential in plant tissues. Plasmolysis and deplasmolysis in epidermal cells.
2- Preparation of protoplasts. Pollen germination. Preparation of microscope slides from fresh plant material. Observation of slides under the optical microscope
3- Response in vitro to plant hormones
4- Measurement of photosynthetic electron transport
Evert R.F., Eichhorn S.E, 2013. La Biologia delle piante di Raven. Ed. Zanichelli
ROST T.L., BARBOUR M.G., STOCKING R.C., MURPHY T.M. - Biologia delle piante. Zanichelli, 2008.
Pancaldi S. et al., 2019- Fondamenti di botanica generale -McGraw Hill
The course is organized in lectures (40h) and laboratory activities (16 h)). Powerpoint presentations will be used during lectures. Laboratory activities will be done at the Biological Experimental and Chemistry Lab of DBSV in via Dunant 3. The attendance at the practical activity performed in the laboratory is mandatory with frequency detection by the teacher (the student absence rate will not exceeds 25% of the planned total hours). For each lab activity protocols and materials will be provided.