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Biology keystone vocab

Terms in this set (84)

Biology
The Scientific study of life
Cell
The basic unit of structure and function for all living organisms
Ecology
Branch of biology that studies the relationships between organisms and their interactions with the environment
Evolution
The changes in inherited characteristics in a species over many generations
Experiment
A planned procedure to test a hypothesis
Gene
The basic unit of hereditary: a segment of DNA that codes for a protein/trait
Heredity
The passing of traits from parent to offspring
Homeostasis
The process in which an organism regulates its internal environment
Hypothesis
An explanation that might be true; a statement that can be tested by additional observations or experimentation.
Metabolism
The chemical processes that occur within a living organism.
Mutation
Permanent change in genetic material (DNA)
Natural selection
Process in which organisms with favorable traits are more likely to survive and reproduce
Observation
Act of noting or perceiving objects or events using senses
Prediction
Expected outcome of a test
Reproduction
Process by which organisms make more of their own kind from one generation to the next
Species
A group of genetically similar organisms that can produce fertile offspring
Theory
A set of related hypothesis that have been tested and confirmed many times by scientists
Active site
The location of an enzyme where the substrate binds
Activation Energy (Ea)
The energy required to get a reaction to begin
Adhesion
The molecular attraction between unlike molecules; helps assist capillary action in plants
Amino acid
Monomer of proteins
Atom
Smallest unit of matter
Carbohydrate
A macro molecule that contains Atoms of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen and a 1:2:1 ratio and serves a major source of energy for organisms
Capillary action
The movement of water molecules through narrow tube is due to adhesive properties
Cohesion
The molecular attraction between like molecules: creates surface tension
Concentration
The amount of substance
Enzyme
A protein that increases the rate of chemical reactions without being changed by the reaction; an organic catalyst
Hydrogen bond
A weak a chemical attraction between polar molecules
Ion
And Adam or molecule that has gained or lost an electron and has a positive or negative charge
Lipid
Macro molecules made mostly of carbon and hydrogen, or insoluble in water and our source of stored energy, and a major part of the cell membrane
Molecule
A group of atoms held together by covalent bond
Monosaccharide
A carbohydrate monomer; single sugar
Nucleic acid
Macro molecule composed of elements C, H, N, O, and P that carries genetic information
Nucleotide
The monomer of nucleic acid's: also ATP is a nucleotide
pH
The concentration of hydrogen ions (H+) in a substance
Polarity
And an even sharing of electrons in an atom that results in opposite charges on opposite ends of the molecule
Protein
A macro molecule that contains the main components of organisms: C, H, O, and N; Performs a variety of structural and regulatory functions for cells
Substrate
A molecule or molecules that bind to an enzyme in order to complete its chemical reaction at a faster rate
Transpiration
The evaporation of water from the leaves of a plant which aids in capillary action
Aerobic
A process that requires oxygen
Anaerobic
A process that does not require oxygen
Autotroph
An organism that can synthesize its own nutrition sources using light or chemical energy
Calvin cycle
A series of reactions in the chloroplast that create carbon compounds from carbon dioxide
Cellular respiration
The metabolic process by which a living cells produce usable forms of energy
Chlorophyll
The molecule in plants that captures light energy from the sun
Electron transport chain
A sequence of chemical reactions that completes the transfer of electrons from one molecule to another
Fermentation
And anaerobic process that converts sugars to carbon dioxide and alcohols
Glycolysis
The breakdown of glucose by enzymes which releases energy and pyruvic acid
Heterotroph
An organism that cannot synthesize its own food and must depend on other sources of molecules for nutrition
Krebs Cycle
A series of reactions in which living cells produce energetic compounds
Photosynthesis
The process in which light energy is converted into chemical energy
Pigment
A lipid molecule that captures light energy
Thylakoid
Small structure found in the chloroplast
Active transport
The transport across the cell membrane against its concentration gradient: requires energy from the cell
Carrier protein
Transport protein that can bind to a molecule on one side of the membrane and carry it to the other side of the membrane
Concentration gradient
A difference in the concentration of a substance across a space
Diffusion
Movement of particles from are of high concentration to area of low concentration
Endocytosis
Movement of a substance into a cell by a vesicle
Equilibrium
A condition in which the concentration of a substance is equal throughout a space
Exocytosis
Movement of a substance out of the cell by a vesicle
Facilitated diffusion
Type of passive transport that uses transport proteins to move substances down the concentration gradient without spending energy
Hypertonic solution
Solution that causes the cell to shrink
Hypotonic solution
Solution that causes a cell to swell
Isotonic solution
Solution that produces no change in cell volume
Ion channel
Transport protein with a hole through which ions can pass
Ion channel
Transport protein with a hole through which ions can pass
Osmosis
Diffusion of water through a selectively permeable membrane
Passive transport
Movement across the cell membrane that doesn't require energy from the cell
Sodium-Potassium Pump
Carrier protein membrane pump that transports three sodium (Na+) ions out of the cell and two potassium (K+) ions into the cell
Amino Acid
The monomer of building blocks for proteins
Asexual reproduction
A single parent passes copies of all it's genes to each of its offspring: creates clones
Autosomes
Chromosomes that are not involved in determining gender
Binary fission
Asexual reproduction that produces clones
cancer
uncontrolled growth and division of cells
Cell cycle
Repeating sequence of cellular growth and division during the life of an organism
Centromere
The part of the chromosome where the chromatids meet
Chromatid
To exact copies of DNA that make up a chromosome
Chromosome
A structure formed of DNA molecules bound with proteins
Chromosomal mutation
A mutation that change is a large section of DNA on a chromosome
Clone
An organism that is genetically identical to the parent
Complementary base pairing
A characteristic of nucleic acid's in which the sequence of bases on the strand is parallel to the sequence of bases on the other
Crossing-over
Occurs when portions of a chromatid on one Homologous chromosomes are broken and exchanged with the other on the homologous chromosome
Cytokinesis
Process during cell division in which the cytoplasm divides
Deoxyribose
A five carbon sugar that is a component of DNA nucleotides
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