Question

Name the hormones that were discovered from (a) Urine (b) DNA degradation product (c) Cotton Balls (d) Fungus.

Answer 1

The hormones that were discovered are phytohormones, which are plant hormones. They are essential to plants as they perform cell elongation in the stem tip, promote cell division in plant roots and shoots, promote seed and bud dormancy, and inhibition of seed and bud dormancy respectively. These hormones are not only produced by plants but also by pathogenic microorganisms like bacteria and fungi.

Complete answer
The hormone discovered from urine is Auxin. The first naturally occurring Auxin was discovered by Kogl and Haagen-Smith in 1931 from human urine. Auxin stimulates cell elongation in the stem tip by stimulating factors such as elastin to lose cell walls. Auxin also participates in phototropism, geotropism, and hydrotropism. There is an uneven distribution of Auxin in plants due to environmental factors such as uni-directional light or gravity, which results in uneven plant growth.
The hormone discovered from DNA degradation products is cytokinin. Cytokinin was discovered by Miller in Tobacco Pith culture with Herring fish sperm’s DNA. Cytokinin promotes cell division in the roots and shoots of the plants. Cytokinins in plants can act on the cells that produce them, the neighboring cells as well as cells located far from the Cytokinin Producing Cells.
The hormone discovered from cotton balls is Abscisic Acid (ABA). In 1963 Addicott et al. isolated ABA hormone for the first time. ABA promotes seed and bud dormancy. ABA plays a key role during adaptive stress in plants by suspending the primary and secondary growth of plants to adjust in winter conditions.
The hormone discovered from fungus is Gibberellin (GA). Gibberellins were first isolated from Fusarium moniliforme (Fujikuroi) by Kurosawa in 1926 while he was studying Foolish Seedling Disease that causes a strong elongation of the rice stem. The name Gibberellin is derived from Gibberella fujikuroi, a hormone-producing fungus. Gibberellins help in the inhibition of seed and bud dormancy. Gibberellins are synthesized in plastids and then modified in endoplasmic reticulum and cytoplasm.
So the correct answer is (a) Urine – Auxin; (b) DNA degradation product – Cytokinin; (c) Cotton Balls – Abscisic Acid; (d) Fungus – Gibberellin.

Note: There are more than 100 Gibberellins discovered from fungi and higher plants named as $G{{A}_{1}}$, $G{{A}_{2}}$, and so on. $G{{A}_{3}}$ was the first gibberellin that was discovered. Auxins are mostly produced in the shoot apical meristem and are then transported in a unidirectional pattern. Abscisic Acid and Gibberellin work antagonistically to each other.