KEY WORDS & TERMS

Abscisic acid
Auxin
Control
Cytokinin
Effector
Elongation
Ethylene
Geotropism
Gibberellin
Hormone
Hypothesis
Negative feedback
Phototropism
Photoperiodism
Positive feedback
Qualitative
Quantitative
Receptor
Repitition
Response
Stimulus
Tropism
Variable

5 POINT PLAN: FOR WHEN DESIGNING AN EXPERIMENT

1. Large sample size
2. Define treatment and control groups
3. List three controlled variables
4. Expected results: after a considerable amount of time we would expect the
results to be
5. Repeat many times
Additional 3 points for answering experimental design questions
6. Hypothesis/Null Hypothesis
7. Discussion
a. Errors
b. Improvements
8. Conclusion
PRACTICE QUESTIONS
1. Human and plant hormones are similar in that all are
a. Composed of glycoproteins.
b. Active on a single target tissue.
c. Signalling molecules that act on receptor molecules.
d. Transported around the organism by a circulating fluid.
2. The lyrics of the popular song One Bad Apple performed by the Jackson 5 include
the line:
one bad (over-ripe) apple dont spoil the whole bunch

In fact, this statement is questionable because an over-ripe apple

a. Secretes gibberellin that diffuses into neighbouring cells causing them to
shrivel and die.
b. Produces abscisic acid that penetrates the skin of neighbouring apples
causing rapid decay.
c. Produces ethylene gas that diffuses into neighbouring apples causing
them to ripen more quickly.
d. Produces indoleacetic acid that passes into neighbouring apples and stops
cells from reproducing.
3. Signalling molecules that pass from one cell to another in plants include
a. Gibberellins that inhibit seed germination.
b. Ethylene that gives the instruction for fruits to ripen.
c. Abscisic acid that gives that instruction for leaves to grow.
d. Auxin that gives the instruction for stems to stop growing.
4. A hormone that increases the rate at which mature fruit ripens is
a. Auxin
b. Ethylene
c. Gibberellin
d. Abscisic acid
5. Plant behaviour includes tropisms. Plants may respond to a number of
environmental stimuli sometimes growing towards the stimulus (positive tropism)
and sometimes away from the stimulus (positive tropism) and sometimes away
from the stimulus (negative tropism). One of the following pair of responses is most
likely
a. Positive phototropism in the stem and negative hydrotropism in the root
tips.
b. Negative geotropism in the roots and positive geotropism in the stem.
c. Positive geotropism in the roots and negative geotropism in the stem.
d. Positive hydrotropism in the roots and negative phototropism in the stem.
6. Flowing in many plants is a response to patterns of light and darkness. In nature
plants will flower at particular times of the day depending on day length. Plants can
be described as short day plants or long day plants. One of the following is correct.
a. Short day plants flower when day length drops below a critical minimum.
b. Short day plants flower when day length rises above a critical minimum.
c. Long day plants flower when the day length drops below a certain critical
minimum.
d. In control of flowering the length of light period is more important that the
length of darkness.
7. Negative feedback helps bring about homeostasis. What is negative feedback and
how is it different to positive feedback?
8. How do pheromones differ from hormones?
9. Growth responses of plants to their environment are called tropisms. Name the
major types and state the environmental factor to which the plant is responding.
10.

How do positive and negative tropisms differ?

11.

What, in general terms, is the role of plant growth regulators?

12.

Explain the role of receptors and effectors in plant responses.

13.

Use a flow diagram to show how ethylene communicates with cells.

14. Outline the effects that auxins can have on plant growth and note where they
are produced.
15.

Explain, in terms of the effect on the cell wall, how auxins alter rates of growth.

16.

Does the concentration of auxins alter their effect? Explain.

17.

What is a coleoptile?

18. Describe the experiments carried out by Charles Darwin and others that
demonstrate the role of hormones have in altering a plants response to light. Note
how the experiments were controlled.
19. With reference to photoperiodism, what is the difference between short-day
plants and long-day plants?
20.

Why is important for plants to flower at a particular time?