Asexual reproduction Flashcards
what is asexual reproduction
reproduction involving one individual, it does not require the fusion of gametes and the offspring are identical to the parent
what is budding
small groups of cells formed by mitosis bud or break away from the main organism, they are carried to areas away where mitosis continues and the organism grows into a new main organism
where does budding most occur
marine habitats, maining sponges
what is plant cutting in vegetative reproduction
when a section of a plant (leaf, stem or root) are cut away from the original plant and independently grow into a new plant that is a clone of the original
what is grafting
when the stem of one plant is taken and attached to the rootstock of another plant
what is micropropagation
the cloning of plants through plant cell from a leaf, shot or stem under a controlled environment (a nutrient culture medium)
what is controlled in microprogagation
lighting, temperature and hormone avaliability
main applications of micropropagation
allow for rapid growth and to produce plants that are cold and disease resistant and create virus free strains of crops that are ina disease free environment all year round
what are the main types of asexual reproduction
binary fission, budding, fragmentation, vegetative propagation, sporogenesis and parthenogenesis
what is sporogenesis
formation of spores (small haploid units) which are dispersed into the environment where they can grow into an organism
what is parthenogenesis
formation of an embryo from a female gamete alone without the need for a male gamete to fertilise it
what are the advantages of asexual reproduction
populations are reproduced faster, offspring are identical to parent, no need for a mate, no parental investment
disadvantages of asexual reproduction
genetic diversity is low, vulnerable to disease and in the event of a rapid environmental change the whole population will suffer
