Syllabus
1. Plant physiology as part of experimental botany. Special features of plants among living organisms. Characteristics of basic plant structure. Hierarchical structure of plants. History of plant physiology.
2. Plant growth regulators and phytohormones. Differences between plant and animal hormones. Auxins, cytokinins, gibberellins, ethylene, abscissic acid. Synthesis, translocation and effects of individual phytohormones, their role in the interaction between plants and their environment. Use of phytohormones and groth regulators in conventional agriculture and plant biotechnologies.
3. Photosynthesis 1: its role on the planet. Radiation energy, Stefan-Boltzmann law and Wienś displacement law. Physiological effects of individual plant spectral regions. Photoautotrophy and heterotrophy. Energy balance of a leaf. Photosynthetic structures. Radiation energy and carbon dioxide fixation. Photorespiration. C3, C4 and CAM plants.
4. Photosynthesis 2:The effects of both external and internal factors on the rate of photosynthesis. Growth analysis. Crop productivity. CO2 concentration and global climate change. Translocation and allocation of photosynthate. Source and sink.
5. Respiration: Mitochondria, Krebs cycle, oxidative phosphorylation, cyanide resistant respiration. Growth and maintenance respiration. Growth efficiency. Respiration and photosynthesis.
6. Water relations: Water content in plants, water saturation deficiency. Physical properties of water. Adhesion and cohesion. Water potential and its components (osmotic, pressure, gravimetric, matric). Soil-plant-atmosphere continuum. Transpiration as diffusion of water vapour. Stomata and the effects on their opening and closing.
7. Mineral nutrition. Elemental composition of plant dry matter. Uptake, transport and utilization of the most important mineral elements.. Atmospheric nitrogen fixation. Leaf analysis and nutrient deficiency symptoms. Fertilizers and their importance in crop production.
8. Growth and development. Life cycle of plant cells. Growth phases: division, differentiation, elongation, senescence, death. Cell, tissue and organ differentiation. Developmental phases. Bud, seed and fruit dormancy. Receptors of red, blue and ultraviolet light. Phytochrom. Vegetative and reproductive development. Photoperiodism. Vernalization. Floral initiation.. Molecular biological aspects of flowering.
9. Plant movements. Molecular-cellular basis of unicellular and multicellular movement of organisms. Physical and vital plant organ movements. Tropism, nastie.
10. Stress physiology. Abiotic and biotic stress.. Interaction between host plant and pathogen. Mykorhiza. The effects of temperature extremes, oxygen deficiency, salination. Heavy metals and aluminium toxicity. Resistance and tolerance. Stress proteins. Bioremediation. Allelopathy. Phytoalexines, phytoanticipines. Programmed cell death and its role in plant life.
11. Vegetative and generative plant propagation in vivo and in vitro. Plant regeneration x cell theory (Schleiden, Schwann). Methodology of tissue and cell culture, plant biotechnologies. Practical use of in vitro cultures in breeding. Genetically modified organisms : prospects, profits and risk assessment.
12. Practical courses: Principles and interpretation of methodical processes trained in practical course.
Annotation
The lecture offers general survey of processes in plants at the cellular, organ, organism and canopy level. It deals with plant growth and development emphasizing the role of phytohormones.
It presents basic knowledge on basis of photosynthesis, respiration, mineral nutrition and water relation. It describes the effects of external factors on plants with special emphasis on both biotic and abiotic stresses.
It presents information on physiological principles of yield formation. It deals with problems of the protection of environment.
It presents the basic knowledge of plant propagation.