10.

COORDINATION AND RESPONSE

10.1 HORMONES

A hormone is a chemical secreted by an endocrine gland, transported in the bloodstream and affecting a target
organ.

Describe the chemical control of metabolic activity by adrenaline and thyroxine.

 What is Adrenaline?

• A hormone secreted by adrenal glands situated on top of each kidney.

• Secreted under stressful situations and prepares the body for fight or flight.
• Release of adrenaline into the bloodstream allows the muscles, heart and brain to have more
energy so we can run faster, lift up heavier objects and think more clearly.

 How it affects metabolic activities

• Decreases blood flow to the skin and alimentary canal so that more blood could be pumped to the
muscles, heart and brain.
• Increases blood flow to muscles, heart and brain by speeding up heart beat rate.
• Increase supply of oxygen and glucose to the muscles, heart and brain by increasing the breathing
rate and stimulating the conversion of glycogen to glucose.

 What is Thyroxine?

• A hormone produced by the thyroid gland situated at either side of the larynx.
• Regulates growth and development of the body.
• Controls basal metabolic rate.
• Influences rate of heart beat.

 How it affects metabolic activities

 Too little thyroxine (under-secretion)

• Caused by lack of iodine in diet, which affects the manufacture of thyroxine.

• Causes stunted mental and physical growth in children (cretinism).
• Causes weight gain and very slow physical and mental activity in adults (myxodema).

 Too much thyroxine (over-secretion)

• In adults, causes an increase in metabolic rate, loss of weight and bulging eyes (hyperthyroidism).
• Both conditions (over and under-secretion) may lead to enlargement of the thyroid gland (condition
known as goitre).

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10.2 TROPIC AND TAXIC RESPONSES
Taxic response is the movement of an organism in response to an external stimulus.

DESCRIBE: GEOTROPISM AND PHOTOTROPISM

GEOTROPISM
 Geotropism is a plant growth response to gravity

 Negative and positive geotropism.

 Negative geotropism means – away / against the force of gravity.
 Positive geotropism means – towards force of gravity.

 Plants are naturally negatively geotropic because they grow away/against gravity from gravity

PHOTOTROPISM
 Phototropism is a plant growth response to light

 Negative and positive phototropism.

 Negative Phototropism means – away / against light.

 Positive Phototropism means – towards light.

 Plants are naturally positively phototropic because they grow towards light.

 In summary we are asked to describe tropism in plants, we can say plants are negatively geotropic
and positively phototropic.

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 Discuss the use of chemicals such as auxins and hormones in food production.

AUXINS
Auxins promote development of fruits;
 Farmers spray synthetic hormones on fruit trees to promote fruit development.
 The fruits produced are seedless (since no pollination or fertilisation).

HORMONES
Farmer sometimes use hormones to make their animals grow faster, or to produce more of a particular product. One
hormone used in this way is called bovine somatotropin, or BST.
BST is a hormone which is naturally produced by cattle. However, if cows are given extra BS, they make more
milk. Some people think it would be a good idea to give cow BST, to get higher milk yields. You would need fewer
cows to get the same amount of milk.

Here are arguments against it.

• Some people are worried about drinking milk from cows treated with BST. They think BST might damage
their health. This is very unlikely, because the hormone does not get into the milk in any significant
quantity.
• It is difficult to see why we need BST. For example, the European Union already produces more milk than
it needs, so milk quotas have to be imposed, to stop farmer from producing too much milk.
• There are concerns that the BST might harm the cows. Cows treated with BST make very large amounts of
milk, far beyond the ‘natural’ levels which they produce. This make them more likely to get infections of
their udders (breast), and may make them feel less comfortable.

Explain the chemical control of plant growth by auxins including geotropism and phototropism in terms
of auxins regulating differential growth, and the effects of synthetic plant hormones used as weed killers

 AUXINS IN GEOTROPISM

• Growth is controlled by hormones called auxins found in growing points of plants e.g. shoots and root
tips
• Gravity causes auxins to accumulate on the lower side of a germinating seedling.
• The high concentration on the lower side (root) causes the cells on the lower side to elongate less than
the cells on the upper side.
• Roots are positively geotropic hence they grow towards the stimulus of gravity
• The high concentration of auxins on the shoot accelerate growth hence the shoot bends upwards.
• Shoots are therefore negatively geotropic since they grow away gravity

 AUXINS IN PHOTOTROPISM

• Light coming from one direction causes auxins in the tip of stem to accumulate on the darker
part of the tip.
• This causes the cells on the darker side to elongate more than the cells on the side facing the light.
• Tips of stems are positively phototropic because they grow toward stimulus of light.

 SYNTHETIC HORMONES (AUXINS) USED AS WEED KILLERS;

 Weed killers with high concentration of auxins work by increasing the growth rate of weeds such that
the weeds cannot provide enough food from photosynthesis to maintain this growth rate and soon die.

Describe simple behavior in terms of the taxic responses of invertebrates.

Taxic responses occurs in animals and occurs when the whole organism move towards or away a particular stimuli.

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 Invertebrates move away from an unpleasant stimuli like (smell) (chemo taxis) and move towards the
pleasant stimuli, like light when in a dark tunnel (photo taxis)

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10.3 NERVOUS CONTROL IN HUMANS
Sense organs are groups of receptor cells responding to specific stimuli: light, sound, touch, temperature and
chemicals.

Describe the human nervous system in terms of the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord
as areas of coordination) and the peripheral nervous system.

The human nervous system is made up of two parts:

• Central nervous system (CNS) - brain and spinal cord: role of coordination
• Peripheral nervous system (PNS) - nerves: connect all parts of the body to the CNS.
Together the CNS and PNS, they coordinate and regulate body functions.

Sense organs are linked to the peripheral nervous system. They are groups of receptor cells
responding to specific stimuli: light, sound, touch, temperature and chemicals. When exposed to a
stimulus they generate an electrical impulse which passes along peripheral nerves to the CNS,
triggering a response.

Identify motor, relay and sensory neurones from diagrams.

• Cell body – contains nucleus surrounded by a cytoplasm, normally found in the central nervous
system
• Dendrites – branching fibres of cell body responsible for making contacts with other neurones and
picking stimuli.
• Axon – long nerve fibre responsible for carrying impulses to other neurones or effectors.

Outline the functions of sensory neurones Relay neurones and motor neurones.

Sensory neurones
• Carry impulses from a receptor to the central nervous system.
• Cell body found in dorsal root ganglion of spinal cord

Relay neurone

• Transmit impulses within central nervous system.

• Cell body found within grey matter of spinal cord.

Motor neurone
• Transmit impulses from central nervous system to effectors.
• Have nerve end plates
• Cell body found within grey matter of spinal cord.
•
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Describe effectors in terms of muscles and glands.

Effectors are muscles or glands which respond when they receive impulses from motor neurones. Examples of
effectors are the biceps and triceps muscles in the arm.

Describe the action of antagonistic muscles in terms of the biceps and triceps and the associated
bones.

Structure of the human arm

When stimulated, muscles contract get shorter). The biceps and triceps are antagonistic muscles - they have opposite effects
when they contract.

The biceps is attached to the scapula (shoulder blade) and the radius. Contraction of the biceps pulls on the
radius, moving the lower arm toward the scapula. This results in the arm bending (flexing) at the below - the
arm is raised.

The triceps is attached to the scapula, humerus and ulna.

Contractions of the triceps pulls on the ulna, straightening (extending) the arm. In doing so, the triceps pulls the
biceps back to its original lengths.

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Describe a simple reflex arc in terms of sensory, relay and motor neurones, and a reflex action as a
means of integrating and coordinating stimuli with responses.

 A reflex action is an automatic response to a stimulus.

 A reflex arc describes the pathway of an electrical impulse in response to a stimulus.

 Relay neurones are found in the spinal cord, connecting sensory neurones to motor neurones.

On the picture below, the stimulus is a drawing-pin sticking in the finger. The response is the withdrawal of the arm due to
contraction of the biceps.

The sequence of events is:

Reflex: automatically and rapidly integrating and coordinating stimuli with responses

Neurones do not connect directly with each other: there is a gap called a synapse. The impulse is 'transmitted'
across the synapse by means of a chemical called acetylcholine.

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 Identify the component parts of the eye.

The eye
• The eyebrow stops sweat running down into the eye.
• Eyelashes help to stop dust blowing on to the eye.
• Eyelids can close automatically (blinking is a reflex) to prevent dust and other particles getting ton to the
surface of the cornea.
• Blinking also helps to keep the surface moist by moving liquid secretions (tears) over the exposed surface.
Tears also contain enzymes that have an antibacterial function.

Component parts of an eye

• Sclera – white out covering of the eye, protects delicate part of the eye. Maintain shape of eyeball.
• Cornea – transparent front part of the eye, focuses light by bending light as it enters.
• Choroid – contains melanin and blood vessels, absorb scattered light. Supply oxygen and nutrients to the
eye.
• Iris – front part contains radial and circular muscles. Controls amount of light entering the eye.
• Pupil – opening in the iris, allows light to enter the eye.
• Retina – contains photoreceptor cells (cons and rods). It is a screen where images are formed.
 Cons : sensitive to high light intensity
 Rods : sensitive to low light intensity
• Lens – elastic, transparent, and biconcave. Converges light rays onto the retina.
• Ciliary muscles – change shape of lens for near and distant objects.
• Optic nerves – carries impulses about the image formed on the retina to the brain for interpretation.
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Relate the structure of the eye to its function including accommodation and pupil reflex.

The amount of focusing needed by the lens depends on the distance of the object being viewed – light from near
objects requires a more convex lens than light from a distant objects.

The shape of the lens needed to accommodate the image is controlled by

the ciliary body - this contains a ring of muscle around the lens.

Distant objects
The ciliary muscles relax, giving them a larger diameter. This pulls on the suspensory ligaments which,
in turn, pull on the lens. This makes the lens thinner (less convex). As the ciliary muscles are relaxed,
there is no strain on the eye.

Near objects
The ciliary muscles contract, giving them a smaller diameter. This removes the tension on the suspensory
ligaments which, in turn, stop pulling on the lens. The lens becomes thicker (more convex). As the ciliary
muscles are contracted, there is strain on the eye, which can cause a headache if a near object (book,
microscope, computer screen etc.) is viewed for too long.

Pupil reflex

The reflex changes the size of the pupil to control the amount of light entering the eye. In bright light, pupil size is reduced
as too much light falling on the retina could damage it. In dim light, pupil size is increased to allow as much light as possible
to enter the eye.

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 The retina detects the brightness of light entering the eye. An impulse passes to the brain along sensory neurones and travels
back to the muscles of the iris along motor neurones, triggering a response - the change in size of the pupil due to
contraction of radial or circular muscles.

State the advantages of pupil reflex.

Protects the eye from damage by light by controlling the intensity of the light that falls on the retina.

Distinguish between rods and cones, in terms of function and distribution.

 RODS
 Sensitive to low light intensity.
 Detect shades of grey

 Function
 Provide us with night vision, when we can recognize shapes but not colours

 Distribution
 Found throughout the retina, but none in the center of the fovea or in the blind spot

 CONES
 Sensitive only to high light intensity.
 Detect colour (don’t operate in poor light)

 Function
 There are three types, sensitive to red, green and blue light

 Distribution
Concentrated in the fovea

Compare hormonal and nervous systems.

FEATURE HORMONAL SYSTEMS NERVOUS SYSTEMS.

Made up of Secretory cells Neurones
Form of transmission Chemical Electric impulses
Transmission pathway Blood plasma Nerve fibres (axons and dendrons)
Speed of transmission Slow Fast
Duration of effect Long term Short term
Response Widespread throughout the target organ Localized

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 Distinguish between voluntary and involuntary actions.

• Voluntary actions are actions that involve the conscious thought, we choose to make them and the decisions
occur in our brains. e.g.

• Involuntary actions occur automatically without having to think about them. e.g. swallowing, blinking,
movement of food in ileum, breathing

Feature Voluntary action Involuntary action

Nature -Conscious thought (make decision about -Does not involve thought
making action). -Not under the control of the will
-Free will -Cannot control the activities.
-Consciously control skeletal muscles
Examples Involving skeletal muscle (e.g. knee jerk)
If we want to ask question, we raise -smooth muscles (e.g. peristalsis)
our hands -cardiac muscles (e.g. pumping of the heart)
Role Respond with the benefit of experience Respond quickly to avoid danger
Controlled by Forebrain (Cerebrum): - -Hind-brain (cranial reflex action)
coordinates incoming -Spinal cord (spinal reflex action), e.g. blinking of the
information, initiates impulses eyes
sent to the effectors.
- may spontaneously initiates actions without
any sensory stimulation.
Speed of action Slow response, as the cerebrum needs time to Rapid response, as the cerebrum is not involved.
“think” before an action is carried out.

The same stimulus may produce various The same stimulus always results in the same response
Response to the responses. (stereotyped response), e.g. the knee jerk reflex.
same stimulus E.g. When you are hungry, you may decide to
eat or not to eat, or just need to drink water.

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10.4 HOMEOSTASIS
Homeostasis is the maintenance of a constant internal environment.

Identify, on a diagram of skin, hairs, sweat glands, temperature receptors, blood vessels and fatty
tissue.

Describe temperature regulation in terms of:

• Insulation
• The role of temperature receptors
• Sweating
• Shivering
• Vasodilation and
• Vasoconstriction

Temperature receptors (thermo receptors) pick up the changes and send the impulse to the hypothalamus (part of
the brain) which will cause the following;

When it is hot
• Erector muscles will relax causing hair to lie flat preventing a layer of air being trapped for insulation.
• Sweat glands will produce more sweat, as the sweat evaporates, it cools the body.
• Blood capillaries at surface of skin will dilate (vasodilation), causing more blood to flow near skin surface
causing heat loss through radiation.

When it is cold
• shivering: muscles contract and relax spontaneously ---> produces heat --> warms blood
• Vasoconstriction: arterioles near skin become narrower so little blood can flow through them
(the blood flows through the deep-lying capillaries instead) so that they conserve heat.
• Metabolism may increase ---> release of heat energy.

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 • Hair stands up. In human, it just produces ‘goose pimples’. But in hair animals (cat), it acts as an
insulator: trap a thicker layer of warm air next to the skin, prevent skin from losing more
warmth.
Describe the control of the glucose content of the blood by the liver, and by insulin and glucagon from the pancreas.

• Glucose provide energy during process of respiration.

• Some glucose absorbed from the ileum stays in the blood and taken up by respiring cell.
• Excess glucose is taken up by the liver and stored as glycogen.
• The control of glucose concentration in the blood is a very important part of homeostasis.
• Two hormones insulin and glucagon) control blood glucose levels.
• Both hormones are secreted by the pancreas and are transported to the liver in the bloodstream

When blood glucose levels get too high or too low, a person may:
• lose consciousness
• fall into a coma
• die

Too little glucose ---> Cells cannot release enough energy they need. Brain cells are especially dependent on
glucose for respiration, and die quite quickly if they are deprived of it.

Too much glucose in the blood ---> water moves out of cells and into the blood by osmosis ---> Cell has too little
water to carry out normal metabolic process.
The control of blood glucose concentration is carried out by the pancreas and the liver. Pancreas secretes
insulin and glucagon: 2 hormones that work side-by side.

Describe sugar diabetes, its treatment and control.

Sugar diabetes (diabetes mellitus)

This is a condition which result to an inability of a person to regulate blood glucose levels.
There are two types of sugar diabetes mellitus
• Type 1: people produce no insulin at all. Starts at childhood and it is hereditary.

• Type 2: body cells are unable to absorb glucose. Starts at adulthood especially in obese people and it is not
hereditary

Treatment
 Insulin injection

It is controlled by changing lifestyle, i.e.

 Reducing weight through regular exercise
 Reducing fat intake in diet
 Increasing fibre content in diet.
 Anti-diabetic tablets are prescribed for patients who are unable to change their lifestyles.

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10.5 DRUGS
A drug is an externally administered substance that modifies or affects chemical reactions in the body.

describe the medicinal use of drugs (penicillin and aspirin)

Medicinal drugs
• These drugs are also called medicines e.g. panado, aspirins, penicillin, ARV’s etc.
• These drug are used to help fight diseases or to help treat injuries or pain.
• Some of these drugs can be purchased over the counter or obtained through a doctor’s prescription.

Describe the effects of alcohol, tobacco, cannabis (dagga), solvents such as petrol, benzene, and
some glues, heroin, and the dangers of their misuse.

Effects of excessive consumption of alcohol

• Small amounts – alcohol can relax the body and create a sense of wellbeing.
• Alcohol is a depressant: larger amounts slow down the transmission of electrical impulses in the brain, so
reactions are depressed, coordination is impaired and reasoned judgments become difficult. Mood swings
involving violence can result.
• Increase reaction time makes driving and handling machinery dangerous.
• Poor judgments may leads to criminal activity and sexual promiscuity.
• Long-term excessive drinking can lead to addiction (alcoholism).
• This can lead to financial difficulties and family problems.
• As the liver removes alcohol from the blood, heavy drinking can lead to liver damage such as cirrhosis.
• Drinking can cause brain damage, peptic ulcers in the stomach and obesity.
• Drinking during pregnancy can damage the fetus, increase the risk of miscarriage or premature birth, and reduce the
average birth

Tobacco

• Lung cancer
• Bronchitis
• Coronary Heart diseases

Cannabis

• Dilates the pupil

• Alters state of consciousness – people see, smell and hear things that are not there.
• Trembling and itching.
• Increase heart rate and blood pressure

Solvents

• Slurred speech, lack of coordination, hallucinations, and delusions.

• Promotes feeling of euphoria
• Brain damage leading to memory loss, liver and kidney damage

Heroin

• Heroin is a powerful depressant.

• It is a narcotic, producing a dream-like feeling of relaxation and reducing severe pain.
• It is very addictive, leading to dependency (addiction).
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 • Withdrawal symptoms can be very unpleasant – involving cramp, sleeplessness, violent vomiting, sweating
and hallucinations.
• The body develops a tolerance to the drug, so an addict needs to take increasing amount to achieve the
same feeling. This leads to the risk of overdosing on the drug.
• When injected using unsterilized and shared needles, there is a risk of infections such as hepatitis and HIV.
• Addiction creates financial problems leading to family breakdown, criminal activity and sexual
promiscuity.

Describe the personal and social problems arising from drug abuse such as alcohol and heroin

Drug abuse problems.

• Car accidents due to drink and driving

• Less money spent on food and other family needs since a lot of money is spent on drugs
• Loss of employment / jobs due to absenteeism or poor performance at work.

COORDINATION AND RESPONSE,HORMONES, HOMEOSTASIS AND DRUGS

SUMMARY

 All organisms are able to sense changes in their environment, called stimuli, and respond to them. The part
of the body that senses the stimulus is a receptor, and the part that responds is an effector.

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 The human nervous system contains specialized cells called neurons. The brain and spinal cord make up
the central nervous system (CNS), which coordinates responses to stimuli.
 Reflex actions are fast, automatic responses to a stimulus. They involve a series of neurons making up a
reflex arc. A sensory neurone takes the impulse to the CNS and a motor neurone takes it from the CNS to
an effector.
 Receptors are generally found within sense organs.
 The receptors in the eye are rod and cone cells, found in the retina.
 Rods respond to dim light and cones to bright light. Cones give colour vision.
 The cornea and lens focus light rays onto the fovea, the part of the eye where cone cells are most densely
packed.
 The shape of the lens is changed by the contraction or relaxation of the ciliary muscle. When focusing on a
distance subject, the muscle relaxes so that the suspensory ligament are pulled taut and the lens is pulled
into a thin shape. When focusing on a near object, the muscle contracts and the lens falls into its natural,
more rounded shape.
 Muscles can pull when they contracts, but they cannot push. A pair of muscles is therefore needed to pull in
different directions, e.g. at the elbow joint. They are antagonistic muscles.

 Hormones are chemicals made in endocrine glands and carried in the blood plasma. Adrenaline is
secreted by the adrenal glands, and bring about changes that supply the muscles with extra glucose. This
gives the energy for contraction for ‘fight or flight’. Plant response to some stimuli by growing towards or
away from them. These responses are tropism.
 Auxins are mostly made in the tips of the shoots and roots, and can diffuse to other parts of the shoots or
roots. It collects in the shady side of the shoot, making the side grow faster so the shoot bends towards the
light. Auxins are used as selective weed killers.

 Homeostasis is the maintenance of a constant internal environment. It is achieved using negative feedback.
 Organisms that can control their internal body temperature are called homeotherms. Mammals and birds are
homeotherms. All other animals are poikilotherms, meaning that they have only limited ways of controlling their
temperature.
 The control of body temperature in humans involves the hypothalamus, the skin and muscles. When the body
becomes too hot, sweating and vasodilatation increase the rate of heat loss from the skin. When the body becomes too
cold, shivering increases heat production, and vasoconstriction reduces the rate of heat loss from the skin.
 The pancreas, working in conjunction with the liver, controls blood glucose concentration. When this rises too high,
the pancreas secretes insulin which causes the liver to remove glucose from the blood and convert it to glycogen.
When blood glucose concentration falls to low, the pancreas secretes glucagon which causes the liver to convert
glycogen to glucose.

 A drug is a substance that effects chemical reactions in the body. Many drugs are used in medicine. For example,
antibiotics are used to kill bacteria that are causing disease in the body.
 Heroin is a depressant that is often addictive. Use of heroin often leads to crime and misery for the user’s family.
People who inject heroin run a high risk of infection with HIV.
 Alcohol is also a depressant. Drinking alcohol lengthens reaction time, reduced self-control and may cause aggression,
causing serious problems for friends and family. Some people become addicted to alcohol. Over time, the liver is
damaged by excessive alcohol intake.

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