Question 1

Which of the following component is present in our body in the smallest amount?

Accepted Answer

The percentage of phosphorous in the human body is about 1%. 
Phosphorus is an essential element that is necessary for the body since it is used for bone and teeth formation, as calcium on its own cannot build sturdy tissues and bones.
Phosphorus is also present in the genetic material of cells of the body.

Question 2

Explain with examples : macronutrients, micronutrients, beneficial nutrients, toxic elements and essential elements.

Accepted Answer

Macronutrients : They are the nutrients required by plants in large amounts. They are present in plant tissues in amounts more than 10 mmole kg–1 of dry matter. Examples include hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen.Micronutrients : They are also called trace elements and are present in plant bodies in very small amounts, i.e., amounts less than 10 mmole kg– 1 of dry matter. Examples include cobalt, manganese, zinc, etc.Beneficial nutrients : They are plant nutrients that may not be essential, but are beneficial to plants. Sodium, silicon, cobalt and selenium are beneficial to higher plants.Toxic elements : Micronutrients are required by plants in small quantities. An excess of these nutrients may induce toxicity in plants. For example, when manganese is present in large amounts, it induces deficiencies of iron, magnesium, and calcium by interfering with their metabolism.Essential elements : These elements are absolutely necessary for plant growth and reproduction. The requirement of these elements is specific and non-replaceable. They are further classified as macro and micro-nutrients.

Question 3

In plant nutrition elements are classified as major or minor depending on :

Accepted Answer

The essential mineral nutrients required by plants can be macronutrients, which are required in large quantity in excess of 10 millimoles per kg dry matter of plant. Micronutrients are required in small quantity i.e., less than 10 millimoles per kg dry matter of plant.

Question 4

The plant ash indicates:

Accepted Answer

The plant ashes indicate the mineral salts absorbed by plants. The plant ash left behind forms a very small proportion of plant's dry weight. Analysis of plant ash shows that about 92 mineral elements are present in different plants.

Question 5

The technique of Hydroponics can be used to know:(I) The essentiality of mineral elements for plant growth(II) Toxicity of minerals to plant when is present in excess.(III) The essential role of element in the metabolism of plant.(IV) The symptoms produced due to deficiencies.Which of the statements given above are correct?

Accepted Answer

The soilless production of plants is called hydroponics. In this method plants are raised in small tanks of concrete or metal, filled up with a water solution. The solution contains appropriate quantities of all mineral elements. Hydroponics helps to know: (I) The essentiality of mineral elements. (II) Toxicity to plant when element is present in excess. (III) The role of essential element in the metabolism of plant. (IV) The deficiency symptoms. (V) Possible interaction among different elements present in plants.

Question 6

Assertion: Certain essential elements are called structural elements of cells. Reason: These essential elements are the components of certain biomolecules.

Accepted Answer

Some essential elements play a structural role in plants. These essential elements are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. They are the building blocks of macromolecules that form the bulk of plant body. Carbon and hydrogen are components of all organic substances. Many of them also contain oxygen. Nitrogen is a constituent of amino acids, proteins, nucleic acids, chlorophyll, auxin, cytokinins and vitamins.

Question 7

Which one of the following roles is not characteristic of an essential element?

Accepted Answer

Changing the soil chemistry is not a role of the essential element. Whereas rest all are the characteristics of an essential element. These are directly involved in the metabolism of plants.

Question 8

Match the element with its associated functions/roles and choose the correct option among given below

Accepted Answer

(b) Correct match is as follows

Question 9

What are essential elements for plants? Give the criteria of essentiality? How are minerals classifieds depending upon the amount in which they are needed by the plants?

Accepted Answer

An element is essential to plants if it is necessary for supporting its normal growth and reproduction. The requirement of this element must be specific and is not replaceable by any another element in the soil. They must be directly involved in the metabolism of the plant. Criteria for Essentiality: An element can not be considered as essential merely on the basis of its presence in the plant. It is considered essential on the basis of the following criteria.(i) The plant is unable to grow normally and complete its life cycle in the absence of the element. (ii) The element is specific and can not be replaced by another element. (iii) The element plays a direct role in the metabolism of the plants. The essential elements are further classified into two categories:(a) Macroelements: These are the elements required by plants in larger quantities. These are C, H, O, N, P, K, Mg, Ca and S. (b) Microelements (Trace elements): These are required by plants in low quantities (often less than 1 ppm). These include B, Zn, Mn, Cu, Mo, Cl, Fe and Ni.

Question 10

With the help of examples describe the classification of essential elements based on the function they perform.

Accepted Answer

Essential elements are involved in performing variety of functions in plants. Some of the major functions are enlisted below(i) Frame work elements Essential elements as components of biomolecules and hence are structural elements of the cell. Carbon, hydrogen and oxygen are considered as framework elements because they constitute carbohydrates which form cell wall.(ii) Protoplasmic elements N, P and S are considered as protoplasmic elements as they form protoplasm along with C,H and oxygen.(iii) Catalytic enzyme Essential elements that activates or inhibit enzymes, i.e., without the presence of these elements some enzymes can not function e.g., Mg2+ acts as an activator for both ribulose biphosphate carboxylase oxygenase (Rubisco) and phosphoenol pyruvate carboxylase (PEP carboxylase).Both are the critical enzymes involved in photosynthetic carbon fixation in plants.(iv) Balancing elements Elements counteract the toxic effect of other minerals by causing ionic balance (e.g., calcium, magnesium and potassium).(v) Influencing on the osmotic pressure of the cell Some essential elements alters the osmotic potential of the cell. Plant cells contain dissolved mineral elements in the cell sap influencing osmotic pressure of the cell, e.g., K is involved in opening and closing of stomata.

Question 11

Which of the following elements is not an essential micronutrient for plant growth?

Accepted Answer

Nickel is not an essential micronutrient for plant growth.

Question 12

Zn, Mo, Fe, Cu are

Accepted Answer

Zn, Mo, Fe, Cu are required by plants in very low amount, so they are called trace elements or microelements.

Question 13

Which of the following is/are not an essential micronutrient?

Accepted Answer

Nickel and cadmium are physiologically inactive minerals for plants, i.e., not required for healthy growth of plants.

Question 14

Name the elements, which occur in nucleic acid macromolecule?

Accepted Answer

Nucleic acids (DNA and RNA) are macromolecules and polymers of nucleotides, building blocks of the nucleic acid are nucleotides, which consists of nitrogenous base, pentose sugar and phosphate, so the elements occurring in nucleic acid are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen and phosphorus.

Question 15

Sulphur is found as a constituent in which of the following amino acids?

Accepted Answer

Plant obtains sulphur in the form of sulphate (SO42−​  ). Sulphur is present in two amino acids-cysteine and methionine and is the main constituent of several coenzymes, vitamins and ferredoxin

Question 16

Which one of the following elements in plants is not remobilised?

Accepted Answer

Calcium is the element in plants which is not mobilised.This is because it is a structural component and hence needs to be localised.Phosphorus, Sulphur and Potassium are not structural elements and hence can be remobilised based on their need.

Question 17

Which one of the following is correctly matched ?

Accepted Answer

Passive transport of nutrients does not require energy input (ATP). An example of passive transport is diffusion, the movement of molecules from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration. Carrier proteins and channel proteins are involved in facilitated diffusion.Apoplast refers to the non-protoplasmic components of a plant, including the cell wall and the intracellular spaces. Symplast refers to the continuous arrangement of protoplasts of a plant, which are interconnected by plasmodesmata. Phosphorus, sulphur, nitrogen, and potassium most readily mobilise elements in the plant.Bakane of rice seedlings was discovered by Hori in 1918. Bakanae is a seed-borne fungal disease. The fungus infects plants through the roots or crowns. Then it grows systemically within the plant. The infected plants are abnormally tall with thin and pale leaves, produce fewer tillers, and also produce only partially filled or empty grains.

Question 18

Which of the following statement is incorrect ?

Accepted Answer

At the roots, cells in contact with the soil actively take up ions., which are only present in small quantities. This creates a difference in the concentration of these ions between the root and the soil. Water, therefore, moves into the root from the soil to eliminate this difference. This means that there is a steady movement of water into the root xylem, creating a column of water that is steadily pushed upwards. The excess water absorbed is removed by the process of transpiration.

Question 19

Who proved for the first time that the plants contain a large number of minerals and micro-elements ?

Accepted Answer

Leibeg proved  for the first time that the plants contain a large number of minerals and micro-elements ?

Question 20

Pitcher is a modification of

Accepted Answer

The tip of the lamina of the leaf in Nepenthes (pitcher plant) gets modified into pitcher which contains proteolytic enzymes to digest the trapped insects to make up the nitrogen deficiency in plants.

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