Cell respiration: process of oxidizing food molecules, like glucose, to carbon dioxide and water; cells

release energy from the chemical bonds of food molecules and provide that energy for the essential
processes of life; occurs in two phases: glycolysis (breakdown of glucose to pyruvic acid), and the
complete oxidation of pyruvic acid to carbon dioxide and water.
C6H12O6 (Glucose) + 6O2 (Oxygen) + 6H2O (Water) = 12H20 + 6CO2 (Carbon dioxide) + Energy
Cell transpiration: loss of water from a plant in the form of water vapour. Water is absorbed by roots
from the soil and transported as liquid to the leaves via xylem. In the leaves, small pores allow water to
escape as a vapour. Of all the water absorbed by plants, less than 5% remains in plant for growth.
tRNA: transfers specific amino acids to growing polypeptide chain during translation

mRNA: conveys genetic information from DNA to the ribosome

nRNA: ribonucleic acid found in the nucleolus of the cell

rRNA: the catalytic component of the ribosomes
Nucleic acid: basic building block of DNA or RNA
Enzyme: acts as a catalyst; lowers energy of activation and increases rate of reaction; not consumed or
altered by reaction; does not alter the equilibrium
Enzyme inhibition:
a. Competitive inhibitors: compete with substrate by binding to active site
b. Noncompetitive inhibitors: bind to enzyme in area other than active site
c. Allosteric inhibitor: bind to enzyme and change configuration of enzyme
Adrenaline/ Epinephrine: triggers the body’s fight-or-flight response - air passages dilate, blood vessels
contract, body’s ability to feel pain decreases, strength & performance increases
Choline: reduces the risk of neural tube defects, fatty liver disease; is the precursor molecule for the
neurotransmitter acetylcholine. It is a water-soluble essential nutrient
Noradrenaline/ Norepinephrine: life-threatening drops in blood pressure; fight-or-flight chemical.
Acetylcholine: is the chemical responsible for most synaptic transmission in neurons
Glycolysis: sugar-splitting; splits glucose into two 3-carbon molecules (pyruvate) with the production of
2 ATP molecules; part of cellular respiration (first phase of most carbohydrate catabolism)
Fermentation: pathway of anaerobic respiration; one pathway produces ethanol, and the other produces
lactate. It replenishes the necessary NAD+ for glycolysis to proceed with its net yield of 2 ATP molecules
per glucose.
Aerobic respiration: Glucose -> Glycolysis -> TCA or Kreb’s Cycle -> Electron Transport Reactions
(where bulk of ATP molecules is produced) -> ATP; uses the end product of glycolysis (pyruvate) in the
TCA cycle to produce much more ATP that can be obtained from any anaerobic pathway.
Anaerobic respiration: without the presence of oxygen. It takes place in the fluid portion of the
cytoplasm. It leaves a lot of energy in ethanol or lactate molecules that the cell cannot use and must
excrete
Apical bud: where the shoot growth occurs; produces auxin (IAA). When removed, the lowered IAA
concentration allows the lateral buds to grow and produce new shoots
Lanolin paste: protects against ravages of climate and environment; this will cause the plant to bend
toward the side without the paste
Auxin: essential for plant body development (cell enlargement, bud formation, and root initiation); has
role in coordination of growth and behavioral processes in plant’s life cycle
Abscisic acid: plant growth regulator. It acts as an inhibitory chemical compound that affects bud growth,
and seed and bud dormancy
Gibberellin: plant hormones that regulate growth and influence various developmental processes (stem
elongation, germination, dormancy, flowering sex expression, enzyme induction, etc.)
Ethylene: important natural plant hormone; used to ripen fruits
Cytokinin: promotes cell division (cytokinesis); involved primarily in cell growth and differentiation, but
also affect apical dominance, auxillary bud growth, and leaf senescence.
Na+: major extracellular cation; has a high concentration outside the cell
K+: major intracellular cation; has a low concentration outside the cell
*3 Na+ move out the cell while 2 K+ move into the cell
Cl-: major extracellular anion
Hemolysis: rupturing of erythrocytes and the release of their content into the surrounding fluid
Plasmolysis: process in which cells lose water in a hypertonic solution. It is the process in plant cells
where cytoplasm pulls away from cell wall due to loss of water through osmosis
Cytolysis: occurs if the cell is in a hypotonic solution, resulting to lower external osmotic pressure and a
net flow of water into the cell
Turgidity: a cell in a hypotonic solution will absorb water by endosmosis, so that the increased volume
of water in the cell will increase pressure, making the protoplasm push against the cell wall (turgor)
Protein digestion: occurs in the stomach and in the small intestine (duodenum) through the action of
pepsin, trypsin, and chymotrypsin
Carbohydrate digestion: begins in the mouth; bonds between glucose molecules are broken by salivary
and pancreatic amylase
Fat digestion: begins in the mouth (lipase); also by bile to break fats into fatty acids
Lipolysis: breakdown of fatty acids that are stored in adipocytes; its products are free fatty acids
Small intestine: where 90% of absorption and digestion take place
Large intestine: where electrolyte and water absorption take place
Transamination: a chemical reaction that transfers an amino group to a ketoacid to form new amino
acids; a degradation pathway which convert essential amino acids to nonessential amino acids
Beta-oxidation: is the catabolic process by which fatty acid molecules are broken down in the cytosol in
prokaryotes and in the mitochondria in eukaryotes to generate acetyl-CoA, which enters the citric cycle,
and NADH and FADH2 (coenzymes used in the electron transport chain)
Pentose phosphate pathway: process that generates NADPH and pentoses. This is an alternative to
glycolysis. Primary role is anabolic and takes place in cytosol or in plastids of plants
Medulla: its functions are involuntary. It is responsible for the regulation of blood pressure and
breathing. It also helps transfer neural messages from the brain to the spinal cord
Cerebrum: responsible for perception, imagination, thought, judgment, and decision-making.
Pons: for hearing, equilibrium, taste, facial sensations such as touch and pain, motor roles in eye
movement, facial expressions, chewing, swallowing, and the secretion of saliva and tears; sleeping and
dreaming
Follicle-stimulating: follicle maturation; spermatogenesis

Luteinizing: ovulation; testosterone synthesis

Adrenocorticotropic (ACTH): stimulate adrenal cortex to make/secrete glucocorticoids

Prolactin: stimulate milk production/secretion

Endorphins: inhibit perception of pain

Oxytocin: uterine contraction and milk secretion

Vasopressin (ADH): water reabsorption in kidneys

T3 and T4: metabolic activity

Calcitonin: decrease blood calcium level

Parathyroid: increase blood calcium level

Glucocorticoids: increase blood glucose level and decrease protein synthesis

Mineralocorticoids: increase water reabsorption in kidneys

Epinephrine/Norepinephrine: increase blood glucose level and heart rate
Glucagon: convert glycogen to glucose in liver and increase blood glucose

Insulin: lowers blood glucose and increases glycogen stores

Somatostatin: supress secretion of glucagon and insulin

Testosterone: maintains male secondary sexual characteristics

Estrogen: maintains female secondary sexual characteristics

Progesterone: promotes growth/maintenance of endometrium

Thigmotropism: the directional response of a plant organ to touch or physical contact with a solid object
Heliotropism: directional response to the sun; the growth movement of plants that is induced by sunlight
Geotropism: gravitropism; turning or growth movement by a plant or fungus in response to gravity; roots
grow towards the direction of gravitational pull, and stems grow in the opposite direction
Phototropism: growth and bending of a plant in the direction of its light source
Photosynthesis (use of iodine): test for the presence of starch. A positive test for starch in a leaf provides
evidence that photosynthesis has occurred
Carbon dioxide: carbaminohemoglobin; lowers haemoglobin’s affinity for oxygen via the Bohr effect
Carbon monoxide: carboxyhemoglobin; is a stable complex that forms in RBCs; hinders the ability of
haemoglobin to deliver oxygen to the body; forms more readily than does oxyhemoglobin
Renal vein: drains the kidney; carries blood filtered by the kidney
Pulmonary vein: carries oxygenated blood from the lungs and drains into the left atrium of the heart
Pulmonary artery: carries deoxygenated blood from the heart to the lungs; only artery that carries
deoxygenated blood
Hepatic portal vein: carries blood from the GI tract and spleen to the liver. It carries blood rich in
nutrients that have been extracted from food, and the liver processes these nutrients.
Plants in dry, desert conditions
Xerophytes: plants that have adapted by altering their physical structure. They have special means of
storing and conserving water. They have few or no leaves, which reduces transpiration
Phreatophytes: grow extremely long roots, allowing them to acquire moisture at or near the water table
Nitrogen: is required by plants in the largest quantity and is most frequently the limiting factor in crop
productivity. Its content in a plant tissue ranges from 1% to 6%. Forms of nitrogen for plant uptake are
ammonium and nitrate
Ecological succession: process of change in the species structure of an ecological community over time
Seral stage: sere; is an intermediate stage found in ecological succession in an ecosystem from a
disturbed unvegetated state advancing towards its climax community.
Microsere: the sere of a microhabitat usually terminating by the loss of identity of the habitat and without
the development of a climax.
Biome: is a formation of plants and animals that have common characteristics due to similar climates and
can be found over a range of continents.
Deciduous forest: has 4 distinct seasons and evenly distributed annual precipitation. Have broad-leaved
trees that loses their leaves seasonally
Tundra: long, cold winter and short summer. Vegetation includes mosses, lichens, and herbs. Frozen
undersoil
Taiga: swampy coniferous forest; has freezing temperature for at least 6 months of the year. Have cone-
bearing trees like pines, spruce, and firs. Largest terrestrial biome. Heavy snowfall
Rainforest: temperature is moderate, humidity is high, and has average rainfall. Most numerous
biodiversity
Savannah: grassland; develop in the middle of continents with enough annual rainfall to support
vegetation. Has 2 distinct seasons (dry and rainy)
Lentic: freshwater biome; standing water
Lotic: freshwater biome; running water
Abyssal zone: remains in perpetual darkness and never receives daylight; characterised by continuous
cold and lack of nutrients
Littoral zone: intertidal or foreshore or seashore; is the area that is above water at low tide and under
water at high tide; the area between tide marks
Kelp forest: one of the most productive and dynamic ecosystems on Earth
Cold seep: cold vent; an area of the ocean floor where hydrogen sulphide, methane, and other
hydrocarbon-rich fluid seepage occurs, often in the form of brine pool
Coral reefs: diverse underwater ecosystems held together by calcium carbonate structures secreted by
corals
Neritic zone: the relatively shallow part of the ocean adjoining the seacoast; it forms a relatively stable
and well-illuminated environment for marine life
Demersal zone: comprises the water column that is near to the seabed and the benthos.
Pelagic zone: neither close to the bottom nor near to the shore
Benthic zone: is the ecological region at the lowest level of a body of water
R-selection: producing large numbers of offspring that mature rapidly with no parental care (high
mortality rate)

K-selection: small number of offspring, slow maturation and strong parental care

Speciation: process by which a new species is formed

Adaptive radiation: occurs when several separate species arise from a single ancestral species

Evolutionary bottleneck: species may face a crisis so severe as to cause a shift in allelic frequencies of
the survivors of the crisis

Divergent evolution: exists when two or more species evolving from the same group maintain a similar
structure from the common ancestor

Convergent evolution: two species independently evolve similar structures

Polymorphism: occurrence of distinct forms

Oligotroph: is an organism that can live in an environment that offers very low levels of nutrients;
characterized by slow growth, low rates of metabolism, and generally low population density. It can
survive in lower carbon concentrations
Copiotroph: is an organism that tends to be found in environments which are rich in nutrients (carbon). It
tend to grow in high organic substrate conditions
Eutrophication: hypertrophication; is the depletion of oxygen in a body of water, which kills aquatic
animals; a response to the addition of excess nutrients (phosphates), which induces explosive growth of
plants and algae, the decaying of which consumes oxygen from the water