Heterotrophic nutrition meaning (what is it, concept and definition)

What is Heterotrophic Nutrition:

Heterotrophic nutrition is that carried out by all living beings that need to feed on other beings or organisms, in which organic substances are transformed into nutrients and energy necessary to live.

Those who carry a heterotrophic nutrition are living beings and organisms such as humans, animals, protozoa, fungi and various bacteria.

Heterotrophic beings are much more abundant than autotrophic organisms, which are those that produce their own nutrients from inorganic substances.

However, heterotrophic beings do not have the ability to transform inorganic matter into organic matter, so they depend on organic elements synthesized by other organisms.

Heterotrophic nutrition happens when heterotrophic beings consume food that is digested and assimilated by the cells of the body that are responsible for absorbing organic matter, which is converted into nutrients, vitamins, minerals and energy, the latter are obtained from proteins, lipids and carbohydrates.

Types of heterotrophic nutrition

There are different types of heterotrophic nutrition depending on how your food is obtained.

• Holozoic nutrition: refers to animals that eat all their food. This nutrition occurs in particular in those animals, such as humans, who have a specialized digestive system that allows the intake of solid foods that go through a process of ingestion, digestion and absorption of nutrients. Saprotrophic nutrition: Refers to organisms that feed on decaying organic matter or lifeless organic debris, for example bacteria, larvae, fungi, molds, or yeast. This type of nutrition is important because it enables the recycling of organic matter from plants and animals. Parasitic nutrition: also known as parasitism. This type of heterotrophic nutrition is typical of organisms that feed on other living things without killing them, for example, worms, lice, ticks, among others.

Stages of heterotrophic nutrition

Below are the stages in which heterotrophic nutrition occurs.

• Capture: occurs when cells capture food particles through whirlwinds created by cilia or flagella, or by generating pseudopodia to surround food. Ingestion: the cell introduces the food into a vacuole or phagosome. However, some hair cells have a cytostoma capable of engulfing food. Digestion: in this process the lysosomes spread their digestive enzymes in the phagosome, which will transform into a digestive vacuole. That is, the matter that is ingested is transformed into simpler substances, molecules or nutrients that the body can absorb and, in turn, that can be used by the cells. Absorption: process in which the nutrients pass to the cells and circulate between them in order to absorb the necessary nutrients for the organism. Metabolism: phase in which chemical transformations take place in cells and that makes it possible to carry out various vital functions such as reproduction, growth or responses to stimuli. Excretion: phase in which the remains of the products generated during metabolism are eliminated and cannot be used as ammonia or carbon dioxide.

See Digestion.

Autotrophic nutrition

Autotrophic nutrition refers to organisms that have the ability to produce their own food from inorganic substances that transform into organic, through various chemical processes. Autotrophic organisms generally generate their food using light energy or chemical reactions.