Cycle Four
Objective 2.1: Distinguish among heterotrophic, autotrophic and saprophytic nutrition
Types of nutrition
Nutrition is a characteristic of living organisms. Nutrition, or feeding, provides organisms with the substances
they need to grow. Nutrition also provides the energy the organism needs for survival.
Autotrophic and heterotrophic nutrition
Organisms can generally be placed into two main groups depending on how they obtain their nutrients.
- Autotrophs
- Heterotrophs
Autotrophs are organisms that make their own food. All green plants are autotrophs. Plants use energy from
sunlight for photosynthesis to make their own food.
Heterotrophs are organisms that cannot make their own food. Animals are heterotrophs which feed on plants
and/or other animals. For example: horses, rabbits, humans.
Saprotrophs and saprophytic nutrition
Many bacteria and fungi feed on dead and decaying matter rather than on living organisms. These organisms are
decomposers because they break down the dead remains of plants and animals and help to recycle elements
such as carbon and nitrogen. Many decomposers, such as fungi that grow on dead wood, can digest cellulose.
Activity One
1. Define the following terms: nutrition, autotrophs, heterotrophs, saprotrophs.
2. Create a food web including the following:
a. Two (2) autotrophs
b. Two (2) heterotrophs
c. 1 saprotroph
Objective 2.2: Describe the process of photosynthesis in green plants
Photosynthesis is the process by which plants use energy from sunlight to change the simple inorganic
substances (water and carbon dioxide) into food.
- Plants take in water through their roots
- Plants take in carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air.
Photosynthesis is a complicated process, but it can be summarized using the following equation:
The arrow in the equation means ‘changes to’. Light energy and chlorophyll are written above the arrow
because they are necessary for the process to take place.
If we use the chemical formulae for the substances, the equation looks like this
The main stages in photosynthesis
Photosynthesis takes place continuously in plants, but we can think of it as a process that happens in two stages.
The products of the first stage become the raw materials for the second stage. Sunlight is necessary for the first
stage, so this is the light stage. The second stage uses carbon dioxide and it can take place in the dark, so it is
called the dark stage.
The Light Stage
In this stage, the chlorophyll in the leaves converts sunlight (light energy) into chemical energy. Some of the
light energy is used to split water molecules (H2O) into hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O2). This process is called
the evolution of oxygen.
The Dark Stage
The hydrogen released (from water molecules) in the light stage combines with carbon dioxide to form glucose
(a sugar). This process is called the reduction of carbon dioxide. The process requires some of the energy that
was absorbed during the light stage but it does not require sunlight.
What happens to the products of photosynthesis?
Most photosynthesis takes place in the leaves of plants. However, all parts of the plant need food, so the glucose
needs to be transported to other parts. This is done through the phloem tubes. Glucose can also be converted to
starch and stored in different parts of the plant.
Oxygen is also produced during photosynthesis. This is released into the atmosphere through the stomata of the
leaves.
Activity Two
The figure below shows a leaf from a green plant where photosynthesis takes place.
a. Identify the products of photosynthesis represented by C and D.
b. Name the inorganic substances needed for photosynthesis.
c. Where does the plant get substance B?
d. What happens to substance A during photosynthesis? Show this using an equation.
2. State two ways in which plants use the glucose produced during photosynthesis.
3. Explain why photosynthesis is important for animals as well as plants.
