Prerequisites:  Botany SI2104, Chem PS/SI1050 or Chem SI1120 or Chem 2310, and Math QL1050 or Math QL1080
Lecture:  8:00-9:50, TuTh, SL421            Lab:    11:30-2:20, TuTh; SL422
Instructor: Dr. S. Harley; e-mail: sharley@weber.edu; Office: SL409M, 626-7434; Office hours: MWF 9:00-9:50, TuTh 8:00-8:50, or by appointment
Botany Department Office: SL402M, 626-6174

Catalog description:
A study of the physiological processes of plants, including carbon metabolism, mineral assimilation, water relations, and plant hormones.  Two hours of lecture and two 3 hour lab periods per week.

    Plant Physiology meets twice a week for lecture.  The lectures cover water relations, photosynthesis, respiration, intermediary metabolism, mineral uptake and assimilation, nitrogen metabolism, plant hormones, and photomorphogenesis.  Approximately half of a student's grade is based on mastery of the lecture material.
    The field of plant physiology has developed due the laboratory work of many investigators.  With two lab periods per week, the experimental nature of this field can be emphasized.  The lab exercises are designed to be investigational.  Besides introducing students to many of the techniques used in plant physiology, lab also provides an opportunity to develop good lab discipline through the keeping of a laboratory notebook.  In addition, students get practice in the formalized writing used to present experimental results and conclusions through the writing of laboratory reports.  Approximately half of a student's grade is based on the lab reports and notebook.  

Required texts and materials:
Textbook:    L Taiz and E Zeiger.  Plant Physiology, 4th ed, 2006.  Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, MA.  Textbook website:  http://www.plantphys.net.

Lab Manual:    Will be provided as a collection of PDF files on CD at the first class meeting.

You will also need a bound, quad-ruled laboratory notebook, a calculator capable of doing standard deviation and linear regression analysis, and safety glasses.

Writing Papers in the Biological Sciences, 3rd ed, by V. E. McMillan, is recommended.  (This text is required for Botany 2121.)

Students With Disabilities
Any student requiring accommodations or services due to a disability must contact Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) in room 181 of the Student Services Center.  SSD can arrange to provide course materials in alternative formats, if necessary.

Student Behavior
This class meets in a laboratory room.  Therefore, food and drink are prohibited.  Feet must be in enclosed shoes.  Your clothing must cover your lap when you are seated.  Safety glasses are required.  Additional safety information will be covered in the first lab period.
You are expected to comply with the Botany Department Statement of Expectations of Students.

Botany Student Portfolio
Botany majors must turn in a copy of the Botany Essay that is in their respective portfolios at the start of the semester. At the end of the semester, the entire portfolio must be turned in, including an essay revised in light of the material covered in Plant Physiology. Be sure that the revisions stand out from the rest of the essay by using a different font and providing a cover sheet that lists where the revised sections are located.

Grade Calculation

You need at least 480 points (60% of the total points available) to pass (D-) the class.  Also in order to pass, you need a minimum of 195 points (50%) from the three exams.   If you neglect to do one or more of the items marked with an asterisk (* ), you will get a UW.


NO MAKE-UP EXAMS.   NO MAKE-UP ACTIVITIES.
Extra Credit:  There is no extra credit in this class.  (1)  If you do not have time to master the content material and complete the assignments listed above, you certainly do not have time to do extra work.  (2)  It is not to fair to your classmates for you to have different criteria for your grade.

Point totals to achieve a specific grade are as follows:

Lecture Outline  (subject to change)

I.    Introduction -- chapter 1 (Botany SI2104 notes on biomolecules, cell structure, Botany LS1203 notes on plant cells and tissues)
II.    Water relations -- chapters 3, 4  (Botany SI2104 notes on membranes)
III.    Photosynthesis -- chapters 7, 8, 9  (Botany SI2104 notes on photosynthesis)
    A.    The nature of light
    B.     The light reactions
        i.    The Z-scheme
        ii.    Photolysis
        iii.    Photophosphorylation
    C.    Calvin cycle
    D.    Photorespiration
    E.    C4 photosynthesis
    F.    Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM)

End of material to be covered on the first exam on February 21.

IV.    Respiration and related metabolism -- chapter 11 (Botany SI2104 notes on respiration)
    A.    Glycolysis
    B.     Krebs cycle
    C.    Electron transport chain
    D.    Oxidative phosphorylation
    E.    Alternate pathway (cyanide resistant respiration)
    F.    Pentose phosphate shunt
    G.    β-Oxidation
    H.    Gluconeogenesis
V.    Mineral nutrition -- chapters 5, 12  (Botany SI2104 notes on mineral nutrition, Botany 2503 notes on plastid functions)
    A.    Mineral uptake mechanisms and kinetics
    B.    Mineral assimilation, excluding nitrogen
    C.    Nitrogen assimilation and metabolism

End of material to be covered on the second exam on March 25.     
Note:  Material for the second exam is dependent on material from the first exam.  You will be responsible for comparing and contrasting photosynthesis and respiration on the second exam.

VI.    Plant growth and development -- chapters 16-25
    A.    Plant hormones
        i.    auxin
        ii.    gibberellin
        iii.    cytokinin
        iv.    abscisic acid
        v.    ethylene
        vi.    brassinosteroids
        vii.    jasmonates, salicylates, and peptide hormones  
        viii.  florigen
    B.    Phytochrome
    C.  Blue light responses
VII.    Tools in plant physiology – ch 14 (online)  (Botany 2503 notes on macromolecule techniques)
    A.  Antibodies
    B.  Recombinant DNA
    C.  Model organisms
End of material to be covered on the third exam  on April 29.
The third exam is not formally cumulative, but there is an assumption that you remember material from earlier in the semester.

Plant Physiology Laboratory Schedule, 2008 (subject to change)

Lab Notebooks and Reports

Lab notebooks are due at the start of the exams on February 23, March 28,  and May 2 for scoring.  Lab notebooks are due at the beginning of lecture for pre-lab checks.
 
Reports are due at the BEGINNING of lecture on the due date unless otherwise noted.  Late assignments will docked 4 points for each calendar day they are late.  Reports are to be typed, double spaced with one inch margins and 12 point font.  The required report format is in your lab manual.

In addition to the basic information required in your lab notebook (see the lab manual) and IMRAD format for all reports (see the lab manual), the following elements for each lab exercise are specifically required for notebooks (NB) and reports (R):
1.  Beer’s Law.  NB:  absorption spectrum (graph)
           NB:  [methyl red] from the standard curve (graph and linear regression
                 calculation)

2.  antho/beta.  NB:  HCl responses; NaOH responses; TLC plate; Rf values; graphs of
                 absorption spectra with wavelength range for 95-100% max A
                 indicated.
           NB, R:  Summary table of results
           NB, R:  Draw supported  conclusions about the identities of the unknowns.

3.  Leaf Sen I.  NB:  std curve for [kinetin]; calculation of [kinetin equivalent] in unknown

4.  Leaf Sen II:  NB, R:  rationale
          NB:  calculation of [chl], normalized to g fr wt of leaf if applicable
              NB, R:  graph or table of final results (depending on experiment done);
                 interpretation of  results based on the rationale

5.  β-gal dev:  NB:  calculations of β-gal activity
        NB, R:  graphs of β-gal activity vs. age
        NB, R:  graphs of fresh and dry weights vs. age

6.  β-gal kinetics.  NB, R:  graphs for pH optimum, inhibitors/activators  (indicate best ↑ and ↓),
                 and Km (Hanes plot)

7.  Cell Membranes.  NB: graphs for sections I, II, and III
                            NB: answers to I #10, II # 5, and III # 6
8.  NR I.  NB:  data printouts, graph of NR activity vs. [nitrite]

9.  NR II:    NB:  data printouts and calculations
           NB, R:  graph or table of final results (depending on experiment done); interpretation
           of  results based on the rationale

10.  RNase I.  NB:  gel; interpretation of the gel; answers to #11

11.  RNase II.  NB, R:  rationale
         NB:  gel; interpretation of the gel
         R:  scan or photocopy of gel; interpretation of the gel

12.  ethylene.  NB:  sketch of  section; tissue prints (protein stain, peroxidase stain)
        R:  sketch, scan, or photocopy of tissue prints

13.  lectin purification: NB, R: column elution profile, purification table
             NB:  gel; interpretation of the gel
             R:  scan or photocopy of gel; interpretation of the gel

14.  SDS/PAGE, etc.  NB:  gel, western blot, ELISA data and standard curve, calculation of
                 [lectin]
            R:  photocopies or scans of gel and blot; [lectin]

Autobiography Summary

Every year, the Annual Review of Plant Biology (Annual Review of Plant Physiology and Plant Molecular Biology from 1988 to 2001 and  Annual Review of Plant Physiology prior to that) includes  a short autobiography by a plant physiologist who has made career-long and significant contributions to the field.  You are to select one of these autobiographies, summarize it, and give your reaction, including an explanation of why you selected that particular autobiography.  The autobiographies vary widely in style and approach, so you might want to read several before choosing  one to summarize.
Summary due:  Jan 31.  Be sure to include a citation for the autobiography you choose.  Your summary cannot be longer than two pages.

Plant hormone lecture