Life Processes Class 10 Notes Questions and Answers

Introduction

Life processes are the basic biological activities that occur in organisms to sustain life. These processes are necessary for the growth, development, reproduction, and maintenance of living systems. Life processes understanding is very crucial when it comes to Class 10 Biology as it lays the foundation for more advanced topics in biology. This article gives a general outline of some of the major life processes class 10 notes level such as nutrition, respiration, transportation, excretion, and reproduction.

1. Nutrition

Nutrition is the procedure where organisms obtain food and use it in their vital activities. Two main types of nutrition include autotrophic and heterotrophic ones.

Autotrophic Nutrition

Autotrophic nutrition is shown by plants and some bacteria where they make their food through photosynthesis. The chlorophylls present in the cell chloroplasts of plants trap the sun’s energy which is then used to synthesize water and carbon dioxide into glucose (sugar) and oxygen. Photosynthesis may be represented by this equation:

6 CO2​+6 H2​O+light energy→C6​H12​O6​+6 O2​

Heterotrophic Nutrition- Life Processes Class 10 Notes

Heterotrophic nutrition occurs in animals, fungi, and most bacteria that depend on other organisms for food requirements. There exist several types of heterotrophic nutrition:

• Holozoic Nutrition: This is the type of nutrition that involves ingestion, digestion, absorption, assimilation, and egestion. Holozoic nutrition is found in humans and many animals.

• Saprophytic Nutrition: Acquiring nutrients from dead or decaying matter. Saprophytes include fungi and some bacteria.

• Parasitic Nutrition: The process by which organisms derive their nutrients from a living host, causing harm to it in the process. Some examples of parasites are tapeworms and plasmodium.

2. Respiration – Life Processes Class 10 Notes

Respiration involves the conversion of glucose into energy by organisms through a process called respiration. All living cells undergo respiration which can either be aerobic or anaerobic.

Aerobic Respiration

Anaerobic respiration does not use oxygen and is less effective than aerobic respiration. It partially breaks down glucose into lactic acid (in animals) or ethanol and carbon dioxide (in plants-yet). Here are the general equations:

C6​H12​O6​+6 O2​→6 CO2​+6 H2​O+Energy (ATP)

Anaerobic respiration occurs in the absence of oxygen and is less efficient than aerobic respiration. It results in the partial breakdown of glucose into lactic acid (in animals) or ethanol and carbon dioxide (in plants and yeast). The general equations are:

• In animals : C6​H12​O6​→2 C3​H6​O3​+Energy (ATP)
• In plants and yeast: C6H12O6→2 C2H5OH+2 CO2+Energy (ATP)

3. Transportation- Life Processes Class 10 Notes

Transportation refers to moving substances like water, nutrients, gases, and waste products within an organism. In plants and animals, there are various systems for transportation

Transportation in Plants

Plants have specialized tissues for transportation:

Xylem: By transpiration water as well as minerals can be transported from the root to other body parts of a plant. This movement of water in xylem vessels is explained by cohesion-tension theory.

Phloem: Translocate organic nutrients such as glucose from leaves to other plant parts through phloem transport. Substances move around in phloem because of what the pressure flow hypothesis claims.

Transportation in Animals

Transportation is the main role of the circulatory system in animals, comprising blood vessels, the heart, and blood.

• Heart: Circulates blood throughout the body by behaving like a pump.
• Blood Vessels: These consist of arteries, veins as well as capillaries. Arteries take oxygenated blood away from the heart; veins bring deoxygenated blood towards it while capillaries enable substances to be exchanged between them.
• Blood: The main components of blood are plasma, red and white cells together with platelets. It serves as a medium for carrying around oxygen, nutrients, hormones, and waste products.

4. Excretion – Life Processes Class 10 Notes

Excretion involves removing metabolic waste products from the body. Various organisms have specialized excretory systems.

Excretion in Plants

Plants remove waste in different ways:

• Gaseous Waste:  Oxygen produced during photosynthesis is let out through stomata.
• Water: Transpiration is a way of getting rid of excess water.
• Other Waste: Plants have the ability to accumulate waste in leaves, bark or vacuoles before shedding them off.

Excretion in Animals

Animals have complicated systems for excretion. In humans, the excretory system includes:

• Kidneys: They filter blood and get rid of nitrogenous substances (like urea) while maintaining water-electrolyte balance.
• Ureters: these tubes transport urine that is formed from the kidneys to the bladder
• Bladder: It stores urine until it can be passed out.
• Urethra: This tube conveys urine outside the body.

Removal of waste products and maintenance of homeostasis is achieved through filtration, reabsorption, and secretion processes that constitute excretion

5. Reproduction- Life Processes Class 10 Notes

Reproduction refers to the biological process by which new individuals of a species are formed. It can either be sexual or asexual.

Asexual Reproduction

Asexual reproduction involves one parent only, leading to offspring which are genetically identical to their parents. Common modes include:

• Binary Fission: Occurs in unicellular organisms like bacteria where a cell divides into two identical cells.
• Budding: Occurs in yeast and hydra where a new organism develops from an outgrowth on the parent’s body.
• Fragmentation: Where the body of organisms such as planaria and spirogyra divide into fragments, each of which grows into a new organism.
• Vegetative Propagation: This is seen in plants where new plants grow from parts like roots, stems, or leaves (e.g., runners in strawberries, tubers in potatoes). 

Sexual Reproduction

Sexual reproduction involves two parents and results in offspring with genetic variation. It entails the formation and fusion of gametes (sperm and egg).

• In Plants:  Sexual reproduction happens through pollination (transfer of pollen from anther to stigma) followed by fertilization (fusion of male and female gametes). After fertilization, the ovule will be developed into a seed whereas the ovary becomes fruit.
• In Animals: Sexual reproduction requires the production of gametes in specialized organs (testes in males, ovaries in females). Depending on the species, fertilization can be internal or external. Human beings go through internal fertilization during which sperm come into contact with eggs within the female reproductive system leading to embryo development.

Conclusion: Life Processes Class 10 Notes

Life Processes Class 10 Notes: Understanding life processes is fundamental to comprehending how living organisms function and sustain life. The topics of nutrition, respiration, transportation, excretion, and reproduction are interconnected demonstrating the complexity as well as efficiency that biological systems have.