Metabolism in conformer and regulators

Question 1

What is a conformer?

Answer 1

A conformer’s internal environment is dependent upon its external environment. In other words, their internal conditions are controlled by environmental conditions

Question 2

What do conformers use behavioural responses for?

Answer 2

maintain optimum metabolic rate

Question 3

Advantages of being a conformer?

Answer 3

low metabolic costs, which means that little energy has to be used to drive mechanisms

Question 4

Disadvantage to conformers?

Answer 4

frequently restrict these organisms to narrow ecological niches and lower activity rates

Question 5

What two areas conformers can be seen doing behavioural responses?

Answer 5

responses to changes in osmolarity and temperature

Question 6

Conformer graph looks like?

Answer 6

Increasing upwards

Question 7

What are thermoconformers and give an example and method of control?

Answer 7

Thermoconformers are described as animals that cannot regulate their body temperature internally. This includes most insects and reptiles. The most frequent method of control is that of adapted behaviour.

Question 8

Examples of adapted behaviour in thermoconformers?

Answer 8

vaporisation (getting wet);
convection (losing or gaining heat to an airflow);
conduction (lying next to some colder or warmer surface or material);
radiation (finding shade or lying on hot rocks).

Question 9

Advantage and disadvantage for thermoconformers?

Answer 9

The major advantage of this behaviour is that little energy is required to maintain a steady body temperature. As the food/energy requirement is much lower for thermoconformers, they can survive erratic food supplies and so increase their chances of survival.
However, should the temperature rise, their need for food will also rise as the metabolic rate increases with the surrounding temperature.

Question 10

What are regualtors?

Answer 10

Regulators are organisms which are able to use metabolic means to regulate their internal environments in response to external environmental changes

Question 11

Advantage to regualtors?

Answer 11

organisms to live more independently of their external environment and occupy a wider range of ecological niches

Question 12

Disadvantage to regualtors?

Answer 12

regulators have higher metabolic costs than conformers

Question 13

What is the maintenance of an internal environment in a ‘steady state’ called?

Answer 13

homeostasis

Question 14

What do regulator graphs look like?

Answer 14

straight line

Question 15

What is negative feedback?

Answer 15

when a condition changes, the opposite effect is produced by the body to return itself to normal.

Question 16

Negative feedback path?

Answer 16

• receptor detects change in environment by stimulus which sends a message to the control unit eg the brain
• a decision is made as to how the body is going to respond to the environmental change and a message is sent to the appropriate effector cells
• These cells perform the response and return the body to its normal state

Question 17

Why is it important to keep our bodies at 37 degrees celcius?

Answer 17

temperature increase denatures enzymes and blocks metabolic pathways;
a temperature decrease slows metabolism and affects the functioning of the brain