Blogpost #6: How Does Your Garden Grow? - Sydney Stitt
It's been about five months since my group began our Story of the Seed project. Our little cabbage baby, which I have nicknamed 'green boi', has grown so much over the past few months. From a tiny seedling to an actual cabbage, our journey has taught me a lot about the process of growing plants, and how plants add more biomass at the molecular level.
How does photosynthesis, cellular respiration and mitosis aid in helping our plant grow?
Like all plants, my plant grows with the aid of photosynthesis, subsequently with mitosis as well. Photosynthesis provides this plant with it's own food source, with using carbon dioxide, water, nitrogen and sunlight. The chloroplast is responsible for both the green coloring of the plant and the photosynthesis process as well. Water and light energy combines to create oxygen, which provides us as humans the air to breathe. The plant then takes in carbon dioxide, and through the Calvin Cycle, creates glucose (sugar). This sugar is responsible for the plant's energy. This process is very similar to animal's cellular respiration, though in a reversed cycle. In cellular respiration, animals take in sugar and oxygen to produce carbon dioxide and energy.
Cell division helps the plant gain more mass. As the cells divide, the organism slowly gets larger, and larger, due to the addition of newly synthesized cells. For instance, mitosis has five separate steps to achieve two duplicated cells from one parent cell. The primary phase is interphase, where the DNA condense into chromosomes in order to create a perfect duplicate of one another The secondary phase, prophase, the nucleus (where the DNA is stored) disslves in order for the chromosomes to be able to be separated from eachother. Spindle fibers additionally elongate to stretch and sort of 'reach out' and grab the chromosomes. In metaphase, these chromosomes line up at the center of the cells. In anaphase, the fourth stage, the spindle fibers pull these chromosomes apart to opposite ends. Anaphase is also where outer contour of the shape begins to pinch itself in the middle. In telephase, the outer contour pinches even more to show an obvious shape. During this stage, the spindle fibers dissolve. Cytokinesis whichisn't really a 'stage' during mitosis, is when the cell pinches itself even more, and finally separates into two distinct cells. A nucleus in each cell reforms, enveloping the chromosomes into their own little 'bubble' once more.
How are helpful enzymes created (through DNA translation and transcription)?
Enzymes additionally speed up the mitosis and DNA replication process. Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPC) and ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) are important enzymes for photosynthesis. For these enzymes to form, a message has to be sent to the nucleus. Since enzymes are forms of proteins, they are synthesized with the aid of a ribosome in each cell. DNA is transcripted in the nucleus to form messenger RNA (mRNA), or a copy of a piece of DNA. The mRNA moves outside the nucleus and into the cytoplasm, and then is split into groups of three (of each nitrogen base; thymine {uracil for RNA}, adenine, guanine and cytosine), which creates codons. mRNA is complimentary to tRNA, which forms an anticodon to compliment mRNA's codons, to help connect to the ribosome in order to transcript properly. Each combination of codons form a specific amino acid. Since amino acids are the building blocks for the macro-molecule protein, the RNA needs start and stop signals to show when and where the amino acids will stop forming. Methionine is the start signal, and once they reach the stop codon, the polypeptide chain is complete. This chain becomes a protein, and in many cases, then an enzyme.
Update on our plant!
There is a distinct cabbage-shaped ball, hidden beneath yards of grass grass, and more grass!
I'm so impressed on how much our little seedling has grown over the past few months. Unfortunately, I found a little slug hiding in the leaves of our plant. I'm guessing the holes in the leaves are from him. Ugh. Have I mentioned how much I hate slugs?
How does photosynthesis, cellular respiration and mitosis aid in helping our plant grow?
Like all plants, my plant grows with the aid of photosynthesis, subsequently with mitosis as well. Photosynthesis provides this plant with it's own food source, with using carbon dioxide, water, nitrogen and sunlight. The chloroplast is responsible for both the green coloring of the plant and the photosynthesis process as well. Water and light energy combines to create oxygen, which provides us as humans the air to breathe. The plant then takes in carbon dioxide, and through the Calvin Cycle, creates glucose (sugar). This sugar is responsible for the plant's energy. This process is very similar to animal's cellular respiration, though in a reversed cycle. In cellular respiration, animals take in sugar and oxygen to produce carbon dioxide and energy.
Cell division helps the plant gain more mass. As the cells divide, the organism slowly gets larger, and larger, due to the addition of newly synthesized cells. For instance, mitosis has five separate steps to achieve two duplicated cells from one parent cell. The primary phase is interphase, where the DNA condense into chromosomes in order to create a perfect duplicate of one another The secondary phase, prophase, the nucleus (where the DNA is stored) disslves in order for the chromosomes to be able to be separated from eachother. Spindle fibers additionally elongate to stretch and sort of 'reach out' and grab the chromosomes. In metaphase, these chromosomes line up at the center of the cells. In anaphase, the fourth stage, the spindle fibers pull these chromosomes apart to opposite ends. Anaphase is also where outer contour of the shape begins to pinch itself in the middle. In telephase, the outer contour pinches even more to show an obvious shape. During this stage, the spindle fibers dissolve. Cytokinesis whichisn't really a 'stage' during mitosis, is when the cell pinches itself even more, and finally separates into two distinct cells. A nucleus in each cell reforms, enveloping the chromosomes into their own little 'bubble' once more.
How are helpful enzymes created (through DNA translation and transcription)?
Enzymes additionally speed up the mitosis and DNA replication process. Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase (PEPC) and ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (Rubisco) are important enzymes for photosynthesis. For these enzymes to form, a message has to be sent to the nucleus. Since enzymes are forms of proteins, they are synthesized with the aid of a ribosome in each cell. DNA is transcripted in the nucleus to form messenger RNA (mRNA), or a copy of a piece of DNA. The mRNA moves outside the nucleus and into the cytoplasm, and then is split into groups of three (of each nitrogen base; thymine {uracil for RNA}, adenine, guanine and cytosine), which creates codons. mRNA is complimentary to tRNA, which forms an anticodon to compliment mRNA's codons, to help connect to the ribosome in order to transcript properly. Each combination of codons form a specific amino acid. Since amino acids are the building blocks for the macro-molecule protein, the RNA needs start and stop signals to show when and where the amino acids will stop forming. Methionine is the start signal, and once they reach the stop codon, the polypeptide chain is complete. This chain becomes a protein, and in many cases, then an enzyme.
Update on our plant!
There is a distinct cabbage-shaped ball, hidden beneath yards of grass grass, and more grass!
I'm so impressed on how much our little seedling has grown over the past few months. Unfortunately, I found a little slug hiding in the leaves of our plant. I'm guessing the holes in the leaves are from him. Ugh. Have I mentioned how much I hate slugs?
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