Department of Biochemistry

and Molecular Biology

Introducing non-chordates and chordates:

Lecture_ 05 (18.12.2023)
Dr. Sultana Parvin,
Lecturer, PrimeAsia University.
 Non-chordates and chordates
Chordates and non-chordates are two sub-kingdoms of the Animalia kingdom

Chordates and non-chordates are two groups of animals that are differentiated by the
presence or absence of a structure called the notochord at some point in their lifecycle.
Chordates have a notochord, while non-chordates do not. The notochord is a flexible rod-like
structure that provides support to the body
•The Kingdom Animalia is classified based on the level of organisation, body
symmetry, germ layers, nature of coelom, segmentation, notochord, etc.
The different phylum of the Kingdom Animalia are

Phylum:
•Porifera
•Coelenterata (Cnidaria)
•Platyhelminthes
•Nematoda
•Annelida
•Arthropoda
•Mollusca
•Echinodermata
Vertebrate animals are classified into seven main classes that include:
Mammalia-

The majority of species are characterized by epidermal hair and the females give birth
and suckle the young. However, duck-billed and spiny anteater lay eggs.

Aves/Birds - Animals that are characterized by wings, feathers, and a beak. Reproduction
involves laying eggs that vary in size depending on the type of bird. Examples of birds
include kiwi, emu, chicken, and woodpecker among others. Some birds have wings but
cannot fly. On the other hand, some animals like bats have wings but are classified as
mammals. Therefore, not all animals that fly are

Reptile-
Reptiles (cold-blooded) are four-legged animals and are characterized by the presence of
a tail and dermal scales. For the majority of species, eggs are fertilized internally resulting
in direct development of the organism. Reptile examples include turtles, snakes, and
crocodiles among others.
Amphibians-
Amphibians include cold-blooded animals that spend part of their lives in water. While
they can absorb oxygen through their skin in a moist environment, some species (or in
some stage of their life) have gills used to breathe in water. They can also breathe using
lungs on land. They lay jelly-like eggs in moist environments or in water and include frogs
and salamanders etc.
 Difference Between Non-chordates and Chordates

Chordates Non-chordates

Notochord

Present (at least in one stage in their lifecycle) Absent. Non-chordates do not have a

Cold Blooded/Warm Blooded

Chordates can either be cold-blooded or warm-blooded All non-chordates are cold-blooded

Mode of Respiration

Respiration occurs either through lungs or gills Non-chordates respire through tracheae, gills or body surface

Presence of Haemoglobin

Present Absent. Hemolymph is present, which is analogous to blood in the vertebrates

Coelom

True coelomates Can be either true coelomates, acoelomates, pseudocoelomates.

Tail (post-anal)

Usually present Absent

Heart

Ventrally placed Absent. Dorsal/ lateral placement if present

Example

Mammals Arthropods

Blood Circulation

Closed Usually open circulation

Brain
Invertebrates:
Phylum:
Cnidaria
The body is composed of two tissue layers. The inner layer, or endoderm, lines the central
digestive cavity. The outer layer, or ectoderm, protects the animal externally. The cnidarians
have a mouthlike opening—the only opening into the gut—that takes in food and ejects waste
material. There is a rudimentary nervous system. Cnidarians are headless creatures with radial
symmetry; they have similar body parts arranged around a central axis. Among the cnidarians
are the corals, hydras, jellyfishes, and sea anemones.

phylum:
Platyhelminthes (flatworms)
are the simplest kind of animal that has a definite head and bilateral symmetry. The mouth is on
the underside of the triangular head, which bears sense organs. the simplest living animals to
have three tissue layers. Ectoderm, Endoderm and Mesoderm. -Flatworms Phylum: Nematoda
have a digestive tube with two openings—a mouth and an anus through which wastes are
expelled. Roundworms
Phylum:
Annelida
Segmented or ringed worms Have digestive tube with a mouth and anus Unlike round worms,
the digestive tube of segmented worms is lined by a mesodermal tissue layer. Earthworms
Phylum: Mollusca
The soft-bodied animals (Latin Mollusca means soft) Mollusks have soft, fleshy bodies not
divided into segments. The main part of the body is enclosed in a fold of tissue called the
mantle. They have bilateral symmetry. Many kinds of mollusks are covered by a shell

Phylum:
Arthropods
( The Largest Group of Animals) About 85% known species are arthropods This is the only
invertebrate group with jointed appendages (legs, feet, and antennae). They can walk, fly,
burrow, swim the wings, legs, jaws, and antennae of the insects are all made of chitin and are
attached to the outer skeleton. The body is divided into sections, or segments. Lobsters, crayfish
Phylum:
Echinodermata Spiny-Skinned Animals The young, called larvae, have bilateral symmetry but
adults have radial symmetry The Echinodermata have an endoskeleton, or skeleton that is
embedded in the flesh. Star fish
Chordata

The most complex members of the animal kingdom belong to the phylum Chordata. Most
members of this phylum are vertebrates—that is, they have a backbone. Groups of primitive
chordates known as tunicates and cephalochordates, however, do not have a backbone. The
major subdivisions of the vertebrates are the fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals.
Members of this phylum possess the following structures at some period of their life, either as
embryos or as adults: a notochord, a nerve tube, and pharyngeal gill slits or pouches. A
notochord is an internal supporting rod extending the length of the body. It is found in the
embryos of all chordates, including human beings. Only the most primitive chordates, such as
the amphioxus, or lancelet, the lamprey, and the hagfish, retain the notochord as adults,
though remnants of the notochord are also present in sharks. In other chordates, such as
amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, the notochord is replaced during development of
the embryo by a bony column of vertebrae, which gives the column and the animal flexibility
The nerve tube structure lies in the midline of the body on the top (dorsal side) of the
notochord. In the annelid worms and the arthropods, in contrast, the main nerve is solid and
lies on the underside (ventral side). In most chordates the forward end of the nerve tube forms
a brain; the remainder is the spinal cord. Primitive Chordates The small marine animal known
as the amphioxus is one of the nonvertebrate chordates. This animal is a slender, semi-
transparent sea dweller about 4 inches (10 centimeters) long. Scientists believe that it may be
closely related to the common ancestor of the vertebrates.