• In order to force bacteria to take up the plasmid, the
bacterial cells must first be made ‘competent’ to take up DNA. This is
done by treating them with a specific concentration of a divalent cation,
such as calcium, which increases the efficiency with which DNA enters
the bacterium through pores in its cell wall. Recombinant DNA can then
be forced into such cells by incubating the cells with recombinant DNA
on ice, followed by placing them briefly at 42°C (heat shock), and then
putting them back on ice. This enables the bacteria to take up the
recombinant DNA.
into the nucleus of an animal cell.
•In another method, suitable for plants,cells are bombarded with high velocity micro-particles of gold or tungsten
coated with DNA in a method known as biolistics or gene gun. And the
last method uses ‘disarmed pathogen’ vectors, which when allowed to
infect the cell, transfer the recombinant DNA into the host
All points from NCERT : Calcium
•The amount of nutrients, such as carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, calcium, etc., present in the soil at any given time, is referred to as the standing state. It varies in different kinds of ecosystems and also on a seasonal basis.
•High concentrations of DDT disturb calcium metabolism in birds, which causes thinning of eggshell and their premature breaking, eventually causing decline in bird populations.
•Some of the cnidarians, e.g., corals have a skeleton composed of calcium carbonate.
•Bones have a hard and non-pliable ground substance rich in calcium salts and collagen fibres which give bone its strength
•Algae have cell wall, made of cellulose, galactans, mannans and minerals like calcium carbonate, while in other plants it consists of cellulose, hemicellulose, pectins and proteins
•The middle lamella is a layer mainly of calcium pectate which holds or glues the different neighbouring cells together. The cell wall and middle lamellae may be traversed by plasmodesmata which connect the cytoplasm of neighbouring cells.
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•If the tissue is fully burnt, all the carbon compounds are oxidised to gaseous form (CO2 , water vapour) and are removed. What is remaining is called ‘ash’. This ash contains inorganic elements (like calcium, magnesium etc).
•Elements most readily mobilised are phosphorus, sulphur, nitrogen and potassium. Some elements that are structural components like calcium are not remobilised.
•Macronutrients are generally present in plant tissues in large amounts (in excess of 10 mmole Kg^ –1 of dry matter). The macronutrients include carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorous, sulphur, potassium, calcium and magnesium
•Calcium: Plant absorbs calcium from the soil in the form of calcium ions (Ca2+). Calcium is required by meristematic and differentiating tissues. During cell division it is used in the synthesis of cell wall, particularly as calcium pectate in the middle lamella. It is also needed during the formation of mitotic spindle. It accumulates in older leaves. It is involved in the normal functioning of the cell membranes. It activates certain enzymes and plays an important role in regulating metabolic activities.
•Calcium & Sulphur: Immobile elements
•Immobile elements: Appear deficiency in younger parts
•The deficiency symptoms tend to appear first in the young tissues whenever the elements are relatively immobile and are not transported out of the mature organs, for example, element like sulphur and calcium are a part of the structural component of the cell and hence are not easily released. This aspect of mineral nutrition of plants is of a great significance and importance to agriculture and horticulture
•Necrosis, or death of tissue, particularly leaf tissue, is due to the deficiency of Ca, Mg, Cu, K
• Many a times, excess of an element may inhibit the uptake of another element. For example, the prominent symptom of manganese toxicity is the appearance of brown spots surrounded by chlorotic veins. It is important to know that manganese competes with iron and magnesium for uptake and with magnesium for binding with enzymes. Manganese also inhibit calcium translocation in shoot apex. Therefore, excess of manganese may, in fact, induce deficiencies of iron, magnesium and calcium. Thus, what appears as symptoms of manganese toxicity may actually be the deficiency symptoms of iron, magnesium and calcium
•An injury or a trauma stimulates the platelets in the blood to release certain factors which activate the mechanism of coagulation. Certain factors released by the tissues at the site of injury also can initiate coagulation. Calcium ions play a very important role in clotting.
•Coronary Artery Disease (CAD): Coronary Artery Disease, often referred to as atherosclerosis, affects the vessels that supply blood to the heart muscle. It is caused by deposits of calcium, fat, cholesterol and fibrous tissues, which makes the lumen of arteries narrower.
•Muscle fibre is a syncitium as the sarcoplasm contains many nuclei. The endoplasmic reticulum, i.e., sarcoplasmic reticulum of the muscle fibres is the store house of calcium ions.
•The junction between a motor neuron and the sarcolemma of the muscle fibre is called the neuromuscular junction or motor-end plate. A neural signal reaching this junction releases a neurotransmitter (Acetyl choline) which generates an action potential in the sarcolemma. This spreads through the muscle fibre and causes the release of calcium ions into the sarcoplasm. Increase in Ca++ level leads to the binding of calcium with a subunit of troponin on actin filaments and thereby remove the masking of active sites for myosin.
•Bone and cartilage are specialised connective tissues. The former has a very hard matrix due to calcium salts in it and the latter has slightly pliable matrix due to chondroitin salts.
•Thyroid hormones play an important role in the regulation of the basal metabolic rate. These hormones also support the process of red blood cell formation. Thyroid hormones control the metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Maintenance of water and electrolyte balance is also influenced by thyroid hormones. Thyroid gland also secretes a protein hormone called thyrocalcitonin (TCT) which regulates the blood calcium levels.
•Exopthalmic goitre is a form of hyperthyroidism, characterised by enlargement of the thyroid gland, protrusion of the eyeballs, increased basal metabolic rate, and weight loss, also called Graves’ disease.
•The parathyroid glands secrete a peptide hormone called parathyroid hormone (PTH). The secretion of PTH is regulated by the circulating levels of calcium ions.
•Parathyroid hormone (PTH) increases the Ca2+ levels in the blood. PTH acts on bones and stimulates the process of bone resorption (dissolution/ demineralisation). PTH also stimulates reabsorption of Ca2+ by the renal tubules and increases Ca2+ absorption from the digested food. It is, thus, clear that PTH is a hypercalcemic hormone, i.e., it increases the blood Ca2+ levels. Along with TCT, it plays a significant role in calcium balance in the body
• The thyroid gland hormones play an important role in the regulation of the basal metabolic rate, development and maturation of the central neural system, erythropoiesis, metabolism of carbohydrates, proteins and fats, menstrual cycle. Another thyroid hormone, i.e., thyrocalcitonin regulates calcium levels in our blood by decreasing it
•The parathyroid glands secrete parathyroid hormone (PTH) which increases the blood Ca2+ levels and plays a major role in calcium homeostasis.
•The male accessory glands include paired seminal vesicles, a prostate and paired bulbourethral glands. Secretions of these glands constitute the seminal plasma which is rich in fructose, calcium and certain enzymes
•The Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi has also released several vegetable crops that are rich in vitamins and minerals, e.g., vitamin A enriched carrots, spinach, pumpkin; vitamin C enriched bitter gourd, bathua, mustard, tomato; iron and calcium enriched spinach and bathua; and protein enriched beans – broad, lablab, French and garden peas
•In sedimentary cycles of matter, materials involved in circulation between biotic and abiotic components of biosphere are non-gaseous and the reservoir pool is lithosphere, e.g., phosphorus, calcium, magnesium. Sulphur has both sedimentary and gaseous phases
•Sedimentary cycles include those of iron, calcium, phosphorus, and other more earthbound elements. In this cycle, the reservoir is the Earth's crust
•DDT causes egg shell thinning in birds because it inhibits calcium ATPase
