Genetics and Cell Division
This "twisted ladder" structure, established by James Watson, Francis Crick, and Rosalind Franklin) in 1953, consists of a sugar-phosphate backbone and nitrogen base "rungs".
What is the double helix? (or What is DNA?)
This protective barrier surrounds all cells, regulating the passage of substances like ions and water to maintain homeostasis.
What is the plasma membrane (or cell membrane)?
This molecule is known as the "energy currency" of the cell and is compared to a $1 bill because of it provides quick energy for the cell.
What is ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate)?
These are the two taxonomic categories used to name organisms in binomial nomenclature.
What are genus and species?
This describes an organism that eats producers.
What is a first order consumer or herbivore?
These are the different versions of a gene found at the same location on a chromosome; the version most commonly found in nature is called "wildtype," while others are called "mutants".
What are alleles?
Often called the "powerhouses" of the cell, these organelles are responsible for making ATP, the cell’s main energy-carrying molecule.
What are mitochondria?
In an ecological pyramid of energy, this is the approximate percentage of energy that is actually transferred from one trophic level to the next.
What is 10%?
In the study of ecology, these are the non-living parts of an environment, such as the sun, wind, moisture, and soil.
What are, abiotic features?
This is a vital network of membranes in eukaryotic cells, acting as the cell's manufacturing and transport system with two types.
What is the endoplasmic reticulum?
This specific inheritance pattern occurs when the phenotype of a heterozygote is an intermediate blend of the two parents, such as when a red flower and a white flower produce pink offspring
What is incomplete dominance?
In everything from carbohydrates, to DNA, to organelles, to cell types, ______ determines ____.
What is, form determines funtion?
This specific type of cellular transport requires the cell to expend energy (ATP) because it moves materials through a membrane against a concentration gradient.
What is active transport?
Because these organisms are considered more important than others in a food web, their loss can cause an entire ecosystem to collapse.
What is a keystone species?
This is the term for a biological catalyst.
What is an enzyme?
This process of cell reduction results in four haploid gametes and creates genetic variation through mechanisms like independent assortment and crossing over.
What is meiosis?
In plant cells, this large organelle that contains mostly water provides turgor pressure to keep the cell wall supported and may store bitter-tasting wastes to discourage animals from eating the plant.
What is the central vacuole?
This is the byproduct of the process when an animal cells need energy but lacks oxygen.
What are lactic acid and CO2?
This is the benefit of niche partitioning.
What is, niche partitioning can increase biodiversity by giving multiple species access to a limited resource. By dividing up the resource in such a way that the species don't have to compete with one another, a greater number of species are able to survive.
This is the term for a type of inheritance in which two versions (alleles) of the same gene are expressed separately to yield different traits in an individual.
What is codominance?
This describes the process of translation in protein synthesis.
What is, the ribosome reads the mRNA strand and tRNA molecules bring the corresponding amino acids to build a protein?
This type of molecule interferes with enzyme function by binding to an allosteric site, which shifts the protein's three-dimensional structure and alters the active site.
What is a non-competitive inhibitor?
These specialized plant cells regulate homeostasis by bowing outward to open the stoma when water is plentiful, and closing to prevent water loss during dry times.
What are guard cells?
This evolutionary mechanism involves changes in allele frequency due to chance events or "sampling error," and it typically has a much stronger effect on small populations.
What is, genetic drift?
This is the term for a set of three DNA bases that ultimately code for one amino acid.
What is a codon?