WORDS MADE FROM TROPH AND TROPOS ROOTS
One is “troph,” which means growth and nourishment, and the other is “tropos,” which means to turn or change. We will see how, in different contexts of biology, these roots are used.
Trophozoite
In the life cycle of the malaria parasite in human red blood cells (RBCs), one of the stages is the trophozoite stage. Once inside the red blood cell, the malaria parasite begins to grow and feed on the contents of the cell, especially hemoglobin (the protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen). The word “trophozoite” comes from the Greek words “tropho,” meaning nourishment, and “zoon,” meaning animal. As this is the period when the parasite is nourished, the name trophozoite is given.
Trophoblast
The trophoblast is the outer layer of cells in a blastocyst that provides nutrients to the embryo and develops into the placenta. It is named as such because it is the nourishing layer of the blastocyst.
Muscular Atrophy
In the word “atrophy,” a- means “no,” so the word together means “a lack of nourishment.” When muscles are not used or when they don’t receive enough nutrients, they start to shrink or weaken. This can happen due to various reasons, such as lack of physical activity, aging, or certain medical conditions. Such a disease is called muscular atrophy.
Phototroph
Phototrophs are organisms that get their energy from light. They use sunlight to make food. Plants, for example, are phototrophs. Plants can also be called autotrophs, as they are not dependent on others for their food. In both of these words, the suffix “troph” conveys the meaning of food, energy, or nourishment, as seen in the previous cases.
WORDS FROM TROPOS (MEANING TO TURN)
Phototropism
The word “tropism” is derived from the Greek word “tropos,” which means “a turning” or “a change in direction.” This term is used to describe directional growth movements in plants in response to an environmental stimulus. In the case of phototropism, the stimulus is light. When a plant’s shoot grows towards a light source, it exhibits positive phototropism. Conversely, when a plant’s roots grow away from light, it shows negative phototropism.
Connection Between Growth and Movement
I was confused between these two words with similar pronunciation: phototrophism, which is related to growth and nourishment, and phototropism, which is related to turning and movement.
While I am not entirely sure, it seems that there is a connection between growth, energy, and movement.
In the case of plants, plants need light as an energy source to produce food through photosynthesis. By growing towards light, plants can ensure their leaves and stems are optimally positioned to absorb sunlight for photosynthesis. So, phototropism is needed for phototrophism (producing energy through light). Once the plant has managed to make energy for itself, it uses that energy to move towards the light to make more food.
In summary, you can move properly if you have energy, and you move to gain energy somehow.
Entropy
The word “entropy” is also derived from the same root as “tropos,” meaning to turn. Entropy is a measure of disorder in a system, indicating how energy is distributed and how likely it is for a system to evolve into a more disordered state. It is a measure of how fast change is happening, which clarifies the reason behind its naming.
Trophy
When, in a battle, your enemy turns their back and flees from the battlefield, you gain the spoils of war. These spoils are proof and a memory that you have won the battle. Eventually, from this idea, “trophy” became associated with a prize after a victory.
