BIOS Instant Notes in Plant Biology

Section A - INTRODUCTION. Section B - STRUCTURE. The plant cell. The cell wall. Plastids and mitochondria. Membranes. Nucleus and genome. Cell Division. Section C - VEGETATIVE ANATOMY. Meristems and primary tissues. Roots. Herbaceous stems and primary growth. Woody stems and secondary growth. Leaves. Section D - REPRODUCTIVE ANATOMY. The flower. Pollen and ovlules. The seed. Fruits. Section E - PHYSIOLOGY AND REGULATION. Arabidopsis and other model plants. Methods in experimental plant science. Section F - GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT. Features of growth and development. Biochemistry of growth regulation. Molecular action of hormones and intracellular messengers. Section G - SENSING AND RESPONDING TO THE ENVIRONMENT. Phytochrome, photoperiodism and photomorphogenesis. Tropisms. Nastic responses. Abscission. Stress avoidance and adaptation. Section H - FLORAL DEVELOPMENT AND REPRODUCTIVE PHYSIOLOGY. Physiology of floral initiation and development. Breeding systems. Self incompatibility. Seed development, dormancy and germination. Section I - PLANTS, WATER AND MINERAL NUTRITION. Plants and water. Water retention and stomata. Movement of nutrient ions across membranes. Uptake of mineral nutrients in the plant. Functions of mineral nutrients. Section J - METABOLISM. Photosynthetic pigments and the nature of light. Major reactions of photosynthesis. C3 and C4 plants and CAM. Respiration and carbohydrate metabolism. Amino acid, lipid, polysaccharide and secondary product metabolism. Section K - PLANT COMMUNITIES AND POPULATIONS. Physical factors and plant distribution. Plant communities. Ecology of different growth forms. Populations. Contributions to carbon balance and atmosphere. Section L - REPRODUCTIVE ECOLOGY. Ecology of flowering and pollination. Seed ecology. Regeneration and establishment. Polymorphisms and population genetics. Section M - INTERACTIONS BETWEEN PLANTS AND OTHER ORGANISMS. Mycorrhiza. Nitrogen fixation. Interactions between plants and animals. Fungal pathogens and endophytes. Bacteria, mycoplasma, viruses and heterokonts. Parasites and saprophytes. Carnivorous plants. Section N - HUMAN USES OF PLANTS. Plants as food. Plants for construction. Plants in medicine. Plants for other uses. Bioremediation. Section O - PLANT GENETIC ENGINEERING AND BIOTECHNOLOGY. Plant breeding. Plant cell and tissue culture. Plant genetic engineering. Section P - PLANT DIVERSITY. Diversity and life cycles. The algae. The bryophytes. Reproduction in bryophytes. Section Q - SPORE-BEARING VASCULAR PLANTS. Early evolution of vascular plants. Clubmosses and horsetails. The ferns. Evolution of the seed. Section R - SEED PLANTS. Early seed plants. Conifers. Cycads, Gingko and Gnetales. Evolution of flowering plants. Mechanisms of evolution. Further reading. Index