CHAPTER - 6

LIFE PROCESSES

● Class :- X
● Subject :- Science(Biology)
1) Criteria to decide whether something is alive :-
● The most important criteria to decide whether something is alive is
movement. All living things move without the help of any external help.
Some movements are easily visible like the movements of body parts.
Some movements are not easily visible like molecular movements. The
molecular movements in cells and tissues is necessary for all life
processes.
2) Life processes :-
● Life processes are the basic processes in living organisms which
are necessary for maintaining their life. The basic life processes are –
nutrition, respiration, transportation, and excretion.
● i) Nutrition :– is the process of taking food by an organism and its
utilization by the body for life processes.
● ii) Respiration :– is the process by which food is burnt in the cells of
the body with the help of oxygen to release energy.
●iii) Transportation :– is the process by which food, oxygen, water, waste

products are carried from one part of the body to the other,
●iv) Excretion :- is the process by which waste products are removed
from the body.
3) Nutrition :-
● Nutrition is the process of taking food by an organism and its
utilisation by the body to build the body, for growth, to repair the
damaged parts of the body and for energy.
● Life on earth depends on carbon based molecules and most of the
food are also carbon based molecules. The outside raw materials
used by living organisms are food, water and air.
●a) Modes of nutrition :- There are two main modes of nutrition. They
are autotrophic nutrition and heterotrophic nutrition.
●i) Autotrophic nutrition :- is nutrition in which organisms prepare their

own food from simple inorganic substances like carbon dioxide and
water in the presence of sunlight and chlorophyll.
● Eg :- all green plants and some bacteria.
●ii) Heterotrophic nutrition :- is nutrition in which organisms get their

food directly or indirectly from plants.

● Eg :- all animals fungi and some bacteria.

●b) Types of heterotrophic nutrition :- There are three main types of

heterotrophic nutrition. They are saprophytic, parasitic and holozoic

nutritions.
●i) Saprohytic nutrition :- is nutrition in which organisms get their food
from dead and decaying organisms. They break down the food material
outside their body and then absorbs it. Eg :- mushroom, bread mould,
yeast, some bacteria etc.
● ii) Parasitic nutrition :- is nutrition in which organisms get their food

from living organisms (host) without killing them. Eg :- cuscuta,

orchids, ticks, lice, leeches, round worm, tape worm, plasmodium etc.
●iii) Holozoic nutrition :- is nutrition in which organisms take food

directly and then digests and absorbs it. Eg :- amoeba, paramaecium,

birds, fishes, humans etc.
4) Nutrition in plants :-
● Photosynthesis :- is the process by which plants prepare food by
using carbon dioxide and water in the presence of sunlight and
chlorophyll. The food prepared is carbohydrate which is stored in the
form of starch. Oxygen is released in this process.

● Equation of photosynthesis :-
● Sunlight
● 6CO + 12H O C6H12O6 + 6H2O + 6O2
2 2
● Chlorophyll

● Process of photosynthesis :-
● Photosynthesis takes place in three main steps. They are :-
● i) Absorption of light energy by chlorophyll.
● ii) Conversion of light energy into chemical energy and splitting up of
● water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen.
●iii) Reduction of carbon dioxide by hydrogen to form carbohydrates.
●
● Chlorophyll :- are the green pigments present in the leaves. If we
observe a cross section of a leaf under a microscope, we can see cells
containing green dot like structures called chloroplasts which contain
chlorophyll.
● Stomata :- are tiny pores present in the leaves through which exchange
of gases takes place. Each stoma has a pair of guard cells which
controls the opening and closing of the stomatal pore. When water
enters the guard cells, it swells and the pore opens and when the guard
cells lose water, it shrinks and the pore closes.
5a) Activity to show that chlorophyll is necessary for
photosynthesis :-
● Take a potted plant having variegated leaves (croton plant). Keep it in
a dark room for three days so that all the starch is used up. Then keep
it in sunlight for 6 hours. Then take a leaf from the plant and mark the
green areas of the leaf on a sheet of paper. Then dip the leaf in boiling
water to make it soft. Then dip the leaf in alcohol and heat it in a water
bath to decolourise it and remove the chlorophyll. Then wash the leaf in
water and dip it in dilute iodine solution. It will be seen that only the
green parts of the leaf turns blue black. This shows that chlorophyll is
necessary for photosynthesis.
b) Activity to show that carbon dioxide is necessary for
photosynthesis :-
● Take two potted plants of the same size and keep them in a dark
room for three days so that all the starch is used up. Then keep the
plants on separate glass plates. Keep a watch glass containing some
potassium hydroxide near one plant to absorb carbon dioxide. Cover
both the plants with bell jars and seal the bottom of the jars with
vaseline to make it air tight. Keep the plants in sunlight for three hours.
Then take a leaf from each plant and test for starch. The leaf of the
plant kept in the jar containing potassium hydroxide does not show the
presence of starch. This shows that carbon dioxide is necessary for
photosynthesis.
6) Nutrition in animals :-
● a) Nutrition in amoeba :-
● Amoeba is a unicellular animal living in water. It takes in food by
forming finger like projections called pseudopodia and forms a food
vacuole. Inside the food vacuole the food is digested and absorbed. The
undigested food is then sent out through the surface of the cell.
b) Nutrition in Human beings :-
● Nutrition in human beings takes place in the digestive system. It
consists of the alimentary canal and glands which produce enzymes
which breaks down food into smaller molecules.
● The main organs of the digestive system are mouth, oesophagus,
stomach, small intestine, large intestine, and anus. The main glands are
salivary glands, gastric glands, liver, pancreas and intestinal glands.
● In the mouth :- the food is broken down into smaller particles by the teeth and
mixed with saliva from the salivary glands. Saliva contains the enzyme salivary
amylase which converts starch into sugar. Then the food passes through the
oesophagus into the stomach.
● In the stomach :- the gastric glands produce gastric juice which contains the
enzyme pepsin, hydrochloric acid and mucous. Pepsin breaks down proteins.
Hydrochloric acid makes the medium acidic and helps in the action of pepsin.
Mucous protects the walls of the stomach from the action of the acid. Then
the food passes into the small intestine.
● In the upper part of the small intestine called duodenum :- the food is mixed
with bile from liver and pancreatic juice from the pancreas. Bile breaks down
fats into smaller globules. Pancreatic juice contains the enzymes trypsin and
lipase. Trypsin breaks down proteins and lipase breaks down fats.
● In the small intestine :- the glands the walls of the small intestine produces
intestinal juice. The enzymes of the intestinal juice coverts carbohydrates into
glucose, fats into fatty acids and glycerol and proteins into amino acids. The
walls of the small intestine has several finger like projections called villi having
blood vessels. It helps to increase the surface area for the absorption of
digested food. The digested food is absorbed by the blood and transported to all
cells in the body. Then the undigested food passes into the large intestine.
● In the large intestine :- water is absorbed and the waste material is removed
through the anus.
●
7a) Respiration :-
● Respiration is the process by which food is burnt in the cells of the
body with the help of oxygen to release energy. It takes place in the
mitochondria of the cells.
● The energy released during respiration is used to make ATP molecules
(Adenosine tri phosphate) from ADP molecules (Adenosine di phosphate)
and inorganic phosphate.
● Energy
● ADP + Phosphate ATP
● from respiration
● Energy is stored in the cells in the form of ATP molecules. When the
cells need energy, ATP is broken down in the presence of water to form
ADP and energy is released.
● water
● ATP ADP + Energy
b) Types of respiration :-
● There are two main types of respiration. They are aerobic and anaerobic respiration.
●i) Aerobic respiration :- takes place in the presence of oxygen. It produces more energy.
The end products are carbon dioxide, water and energy. It takes place in most organisms.
● In aerobic respiration glucose is converted into pyruvate in the cytoplasm in the
presence of oxygen and then in the presence of oxygen, pyruvate is converted into
carbon dioxide, water and energy in the mitochondria.
● presence of oxygen presence of oxygen
●Glucose Pyruvate CO2 + H2O + Energy
● in cytoplasm in mitochondria
●ii) Anaerobic respiration :- takes place in the absence of oxygen. It produces less energy.
The end products are lactic acid or ethanol, carbon dioxide, and energy. It takes place in
muscle cells and yeast.
● In anaerobic respiration in muscle cells, glucose is converted into pyruvate and in the
absence of oxygen pyruvate is converted into lactic acid and energy.
● presence of oxygen absence of oxygen
●Glucose Pyruvate Lactic acid + Energy
● in cytoplasm in muscle cells
● In anaerobic respiration in yeast, glucose is converted into pyruvate and in the absence
of oxygen pyruvate is converted into ethanol, carbondioxide and energy. This process is
called fermentation.
● presence of oxygen absence of oxygen
●Glucose Pyruvate Ethanol + CO2 + Energy
● in cytoplasm in yeast
● C₆H₁₂O₆

● C3H4O3

● C 3 H 6 O3

● C2H5OH
 Breakdown of glucose by various pathways :-

● presence
● of oxygen
● CO 2 + H2O + Energy
● (in mitochondria)

● presence absence
● of oxygen of oxygen
●Glucose Pyruvate Lactic acid + Energy
● in cytoplasm + (in muscle
● Energy cells)
●
● absence
● of oxygen
● Ethanol + CO 2 + Energy
● (in yeast)
●
 b) Respiration in Humans :-
● The main organs of the respiratory system are nostrils, nasal cavity,
pharynx, larynx, trachea, bronchi, bronchioles, lungs and diaphragm.
● Air enter through the nostrils. The hairs and mucous traps the dust
particles. It then passes through the phraynx, larynx, trachea, bronchi
and enters the lungs. The trachea has rings of cartilage which
prevents it from collapsing when there is no air in the trachea. The
bronchi divides into smaller tubes called bronchioles which ends in
tiny air sacs called alveoli. The alveoli is supplied with blood vessels
through which exchange of gases takes place. The alveoli helps to
increase the surface area for the exchange of gases.
 Mecahanism of breathing :-
● When we breathe in air, the muscles of the diaphragm contracts and
moves downward and the chest cavity expands and air enters into the
lungs.
● When we breathe out air, the muscles of the diaphragm relaxes and
moves upward and the chest cavity contracts and air goes out of the
lungs.
1.Vital capacity (VC) is the
maximum amount of air a person
can expel from the lungs after a
maximum inhalation. 3
to 5 litres.

2. Inspiratory reserve volume.

The amount of extra air inhaled
3. Tidal volume is defined as the
volume of air moved into and out of
the lungs.
4. (TLC) It is the
maximum volume of air
the lungs can accommodate or
sum of all volume compartments or
volume of air in lungs after
maximum inspiration
5. Residual volume is the amount
of air that remains in a person's
lungs after fully exhaling.
● In aquatic animals, rate of breathing is fast due to the
less amount of dissolved oxygen in water
● Fishes take in water through their mouths and force it to
the gills from where the dissolved oxygen is absorbed
by blood.

● Terrestrial organisms use atmospheric oxygen and

different animals use different organs for breathing.
● The surface of the organs is very fine and delicate and
placed within the body.
● Passages are there in the body which takes the oxygen
rich air to the area of respiration.
8) Transportation :-
a) Transportation in Human beings :-
● The main transport system in human beings is the circulatory
●system. It consists of blood, arteries, veins capillaries and heart.
●
● i) Blood :- transports food, oxygen and waste products. It consists of
●plasma, red blood cells (RBC), white blood cells (WBC) and platelets.
●Plasma transports food, water, carbondioxide, nitrogenous waste etc.
●Red blood cells transports oxygen. White blood cells kills harmful
●microbes and protects the body. Platelets help in clotting of blood and
●prevents loss of blood during injury.
● ii) Arteries :- carry pure blood from the heart to all parts of the
body.
●They are thick walled and do not have valves.
●iii) Veins :- carry impure blood from all parts of the body to the heart.
●They are thin walled and have valves.
●iv) Capillaries :- are very narrow blood vessels which connects
●arteries and veins together. The exchange of food, water, oxygen,
●carbon dioxide etc. between the blood and cells take place through
●the capillaries.
●v) Heart :- is a muscular organ which pumps blood to all parts of the
body.
●It has four chambers. The upper chambers are called atria and the lower
chambers are called ventricles. Since the ventricles pump blood to the
different organs its walls are thicker than the atria. The right and left
chambers are separated by a septum. It prevents the mixing of
oxygenated and deoxygenated blood. The atria and ventricles have valves
between them to prevent blood flowing backward.
Working of the heart (Circulation of blood) :-
● Working of the heart ( Circulation of blood ) :-
● When the left atrium relaxes oxygenated blood from the lungs flows
into it through the pulmonary vein. When it contracts, the left ventricle
expands and the blood flows into it. Then the left ventricle contracts and
the oxygenated blood is pumped out through the aorta to all parts of the
body. After circulating through all parts of the body the deoxygenated
blood enters the right atrium through the vena cava. When the right
atrium contracts, the right ventricle expands and the blood flows into it.
Then the right ventricle contracts and the blood is pumped to the lungs
through the pulmonary artery. In the lungs carbon dioxide is removed and
oxygen is absorbed and the oxygenated blood again enters the left atrium
and the process repeats.
● Since blood flows through the heart twice in one cycle, it is called
double circulation.

● Lymph :- is a colourless fluid present in intercellular spaces. It is formed

from the plasma which escapes from the capillaries. Lymph drains into
lymphatic capillaries which forms lymph vessels and joins into large veins.
● Lymph transports digested fats and drains excess fluids from
intercellular spaces back into the blood. It contains lymphocytes which kills
germs and protects the body
 Hearts of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and fishes :-
●i) The heart in mammals :- and birds have four chambers and the right and left
sides of the heart is separated by a septum. This prevents mixing of oxygenated
and deoxygenated blood and provides efficient supply of oxygen. This is necessary
because they need more energy to maintain their body temperature.
●ii) The heart in amphibians and reptiles :- have three chambers and allows some
mixing of oxygenated and deoxygenated blood because the do not use energy to
maintain their body temperature. Their body temperature is the same as the
temperature of the surroundings.
●iii) The heart in fishes :- have only two chambers and blood is oxygenated in the gills.
●
b) Transportation in plants :-
● In plants, transportation of materials like food, water and minerals
takes place through conducting tissues called xylem and phloem.
●i) Xylem :- transports water and minerals from the roots to all parts of
the plant. It consists of xylem vessels and tracheids. Water and
minerals enter the roots by diffusion. Then due to transpiration, the
suction force helps in the upward movement of water an minerals.
● ii) Phloem :- transports food from the leaves to the other parts of the
plant. This process is called translocation. The phloem consists of sieve
tubes and companion cells. Food from the leaves is transferred to the
xylem by the energy of ATP molecules. Due to osmotic pressure water
enters the phloem and helps in the transport of food.
9) Excretion :-
● Excretion is the process by which the waste products produced
during metabolic activities is removed from the body.
● In unicellular organism the waste products are removed from the
cells into the surroundings by diffusion.
● In multicellular organisms the waste prducts are removed through
specialised organs.
a) Excretion in Human beings :-
● The excretory system consists of a pair of kidneys , a pair of
ureters, urinary bladder and urethra. Each kidney has a number of
excretory units called nephrons.
Urine formation occurs in three processes:
Filtration
Reabsorption
Secretion
Filtration
During filtration, blood enters the afferent arteriole and flows into the glomerulus where filterable blood
components, such as water and nitrogenous waste, will move towards the inside of the glomerulus, and
nonfilterable components, such as cells and serum albumins, will exit via the efferent arteriole. These filterable
components accumulate in the glomerulus to form the glomerular filtrate.
Normally, about 20% of the total blood pumped by the heart each minute will enter the kidneys to undergo
filtration; this is called the filtration fraction. The remaining 80% of the blood flows through the rest of the body to
facilitate tissue perfusion and gas exchange.
Reabsorption
The next step is reabsorption, during which molecules and ions will be reabsorbed into the circulatory system. The
fluid passes through the components of the nephron (the proximal/distal convoluted tubules, loop of Henle, the
collecting duct) as water and ions are removed as the fluid osmolarity (ion concentration) changes. In the
collecting duct, secretion will occur before the fluid leaves the ureter in the form of urine.
Secretion
During secretion some substances±such as hydrogen ions, creatinine, and drugs—will be removed from the blood
through the peritubular capillary network into the collecting duct. The end product of all these processes is urine,
which is essentially a collection of substances that has not been reabsorbed during glomerular filtration or tubular
reabsorbtion.
Urine is mainly composed of water that has not been reabsorbed, which is the way in which the body lowers blood
volume, by increasing the amount of water that becomes urine instead of becoming reabsorbed. The other main
component of urine is urea, a highly soluble molecule composed of ammonia and carbon dioxide, and provides a
way for nitrogen (found in ammonia) to be removed from the body. Urine also contains many salts and other
waste components. Red blood cells and sugar are not normally found in urine but may indicate glomerulus injury
and diabetes mellitus respectively.
● Nephron :-
● Each nephron has a cup like structure called Bowman’s capsule
containing a bundle of capillaries called glomerulus. The Bowman’s
capsule leads into a tubular structure which joins into a collecting
duct. The renal artery brings the nitrogenous waste like ammonia,
urea, uric acid (urine) along with excess water, salts etc. into the
nephron. It filters the nitrogenous waste, water and salts which
passes through the tubular structure into the collecting duct. The
waste then passes through the ureters into the urinary bladder and
is then sent out through the urethra
●as urine.
● The useful products like amino acids, glucose, salts etc. are
reabsorbed by the capillaries around the tubular structure and goes
into the real vein.
●b) Excretion in plants :-
● In plants the gaseous waste products produced during respiration
(CO2) and photosynthesis (O2) are removed through the stomata.
Excess water is removed through the stomata. This process is called
transpiration.
● Some waste products are stored in the leaves and removed when
the leaves dry and fall off. Some waste products are stored in
vacuoles. Some waste products like gums and resins are stored in
the old xylem cells. Some waste products are removed through the
roots.