B6 Flashcards
(117 cards)
what affects the amount of each material that needs to be exchanged in an organism
size and metabolic rate
e.g. high metabolic rate –> exchanges more materials so requires larger sa/v
things that need to be interchanged between an organism and its environment
respiratory gases; O2, CO2
nutrients; glucose, fatty acids, amino acids, vitamins, minerals
excretory products; urea, CO2
heat
except for heat, how does exchange of substances take place
passively; diffusion + osmosis
actively; active transport
explain the advantage for larger animals of having a specialised system that facilitates oxygen uptake
larger organisms have smaller sa:v
the specialised system overcomes the long diffusion pathway
so faster diffusion
sa:v
how does it change as organisms get larger
small organisms have a large sa:v
- as organisms become larger, their volume increases at a faster rate than their surface area
how have organisms evolved to maximise sa:v (2 features)
flattened shape
- no cell = ever far from surface
specialised exchange surface with large areas
- to increase sa:v
features of a specialised exchanged surface
- problem with thin membranes
large surface area:volume
–> increase rate of exchange
thin
–> diffusion distance is short
selectively permeable
–> allow selected materials to cross
movement of the environmental medium
–> maintain concentration gradient e.g. airflow
movement of the internal medium
–> transport system to maintain concentration gradient e.g. blood flow
*
being thin, specialised exchange surfaces are easily damaged and dehydrated
- they are often located an organisms
- when an exchange surface is located inside the body, the organism needs to have a means of moving the external medium over the surface
e.g. ventilating the lungs in a mammal
gas exchange in single-celled organisms
- single celled organisms are small and therefore have a large surfacearea : volume
- oxygen is absorbed by diffusion across their body surface, which is covered only by a cell-surface membrane
- in the same way, CO2 from respiration diffuses out across their body surface
- where a living cell is surrounded by a cell wall, this is no additional barrier to the diffusion of gases
gas exchange in insects
- water conservation vs efficient gas exchange
- trachea
-tracheoles
- as with all terrestrial organisms, insects have evolved mechanisms to conserve water:
- thick waterproof surface
- small surface area
- the increase in surface area required for gas exchange conflicts with conserving water, because it will evaporate more easily:
- thin, permeable surface
- small surface area
- for gas exchange, insects have evolved a network of tubes called tracheae
- the tracheae are strengthened with rings of chitin to prevent them from collapsing
- the trachea divide into smaller dead-end tubes- tracheoles
- these extend throughout all the body tissues of the insect
- in this way atmospheric air, with the O2 it contains, is brought directly to the respiring tissues, as there is a short diffusion pathway from a tracheole to any body cell
the 3 ways in which respiratory gases move in/out of the tracheal system
*ALONG A DIFFUSION GRADIENT
- when cells = respiring, O2 is used up, so its concentration to the end of the tracheole falls
- this creates a diffusion gradient that causes O2 to diffuse from the atmosphere, along tracheae + tracheoles, to cells
-CO2 is produced by cells during respiration
- this creates a diffusion gradient in the opposite direction
- causes CO2 to diffuse along the tracheoles and trachea from cells to the atmospheree
- as diffusion in air is much more rapid than in water, respiratory gases are exchanged quickly by this method
*MASS TRANSPORT
- the contraction of muscles in insects can squeeze the trachea enabling mass movements of air in/out
[–> body moved by muscles to move air–> maintains conc. gradients for O2/ CO2]
*THE ENDS OF THE TRACHEOLES = FILLED WITH WATER
- during anaerobic respiration, lactate is produced
- this is soluble and lowers the water potential of the muscle cell
-water therefore moves into the cells from the tracheoles by osmosis
- the water in the ends of the tracheoles decreases in volume and, in doing so, draws air into them
- this means that the final diffusion pathway is in gas phase so is more rapid
- this increases the rate at which air is moved into the tracheoles but leads to greater water evaporation
[–> fluid in ends of tracheoles moves out during exercise, so faster diffusion through in air to gas exchange surface]
how to gases enter/ leave tracheae in insects
- tiny pores called spiracles on the body surface
- opened/ closed by a valve
- when spiracles = open, water vapour can evaporate from insect
- for much of the time, insects keep their spiracles closed to prevent this water loss
- periodically they open the spiracles to allow gas exchange
—-> SO H2O DOES NOT CONTINUOUSLY DIFFUSE OUT
limitations of tracheal system
- relies on diffusion to exchange gases between cells
- for diffusion to be effective, the diffusion pathway needs to be short which is why insects are small
- so the length of the diffusion pathway limits the size that insects can attain
adaptations in insect tracheal systems
- tracheoles have thin walls so short diffusion distance to cells
- highly branched/ large number of tracheoles so short diffusion distance to cells
- highly branched so large surface area for gas exchange
- trachea provide tubes of air so fast diffusion into insect tissues
- fluid in the ends of tracheoles move out during exercise, so faster diffusion through the air to the gas exchange surface
- body can be moved by muscles to move air so maintains diffusion gradient for O2/ CO2
structure of the gills
- located within the fish body, behind the head
- made of gill filaments
—> filaments = stacked up in a pile - at right angles to filaments = gill lamellae, which increases the surface area of the gills
- water is taken in through the mouth and forced over the gills and out through the operculum on each side of the body
adaptations of gills for efficient gas exchange
many lamellae
–> large surface area
thin surface
–> short diffusion pathway
countercurrent flow
- blood flow and water flow are in opposite directions
- blood always passing water with a higher O2 concentration
- makes diffusion more efficient- ensures equilibrium is not reached
- maintains a diffusion gradient across the entire length of the lamellae
why is the flow of H2O over gills in 1 direction more efficient than in 2 ways, like in human lungs?
- less energy = required
- the flow does not have to be reversed
important as water is less dense than air + difficult to move
outline how the countercurrent flow of blood and water results in efficient gas exchange in fish
- blood flows in opposite direction to water across the gills
- so highly oxygenated water comes into contact with poorly oxygenated blood
- this maintains an oxygen concentration gradient across the whole of the gill plate
- this maximises diffusion
describe and explain how the countercurrent system leads to efficient gas exchange across the gill of a fish
- blood and water travel in opposite directions
- this maintains a steep O2 concentration gradient
- across the whole gill
- so blood always comes into contact with water with a higher O2 concentration
amoetic gill disease is caused by a parasite that lives on the gills of some species of fish, the disease causes the lamellae to become thicker and to fuse together
why does AGD reduce the efficiency of gas exchange in fish
longer diffusion distance
lower surface area
why does the highly folded structure of the gills increase the efficiency of gas exchange
- increases surface area
over which diffusion takes place
suggest why gill lamellae would not provide an efficient gas exchange surface on land
- the gill may dry out
- preventing oxygen dissolving on the surface of the gills
- they are no longer supported by water/ folds may stick together with surface tension
list similarities and differences between the gas exchange of an insect and an animal
similarities
- large surface area
- moist gas exchange surface
- thin gas exchange surface
- concentration gradient achieved by ventillation
differences
- transport (circulatory) system in mammals but not insects
- the respiratory surface in mammals is alveoli, but in insects it is the junction between tracheoles and respiring tissues
advantages of rolled leaves in decreasing water loss
- water evaporating from the leaf =trapped
- the region within the rolled up leaf = saturated with water vapour
- there is no water potential gradient between the inside and outside of leaf
so water loss decreases