Unifying Themes of 3.

Organelles These are parts of the cell

that are responsible for
Genetic Information
function and integrity. Some Genetic information is another theme
Life are membrane-bound while to help us understand the study of biology is
others are not. information. All living things must deal with the
The unifying themes in the study of life are the 4.Tissues These are simply a group of transfer and expression of genetic information.
organization, information, energy and matter, cells that perform a Inside cells, chromosomes exist, and inside
interactions, and evolution. Regardless of size specialized function. chromosomes are genetic material in the form
and shape, all forms of life share common 5.Organ This is a body part or a part of DNA or Deoxyribonucleic acid.
characteristics. These characteristics of life of an organisPm that is made
include the following: up of a group of tissues. An
The replication or copying of the DNA is
organ functions, specifically
in a body.
to ensure that the daughter cells will receive
• Energy processing - the use of energy to carry
6.Organism This refers to the individual the same complete set of chromosomes. The
out activities and perform chemical reactions
• Evolutionary adaptation - the tendency of living species. Each thriving DNA will then contain sections called genes.
individuals to adapt to a changing environment plant or animal is an This replication of the DNA before the cell
• Growth and Development- the changes that organism. division will eventually be the template for the
organisms undergo which are controlled by 7.Populations These refer to all individuals trillions of cells that will make up an organism.
inherited genes of a species living in a
• Order - the highly ordered and systematic specific area. Let us take for The structure of the DNA is responsible
structure of an organism example a population of for its ability to store information. It is a double
• Regulation - the tendency of organisms to control crabs living in a coastal area. helix of strands of building blocks called,
their internal environment 8.Communities These are the variety of nucleotides. The following nucleotides are
• Response - the ability of organisms to respond to species inhabiting a specific adenine, thymine, cytosine, and guanine –
environmental stimuli area. An example would be a
aptly abbreviated as A, T, C, and G,
• Reproduction - the ability of every organism to coastal community. In this
reproduce its kind community, we would expect respectively. The different sequence of these
to see a variety of animal and four nucleotides accounts for the encoding of
Levels of Biological Organization plant species that thrives in information in the DNA.
coastal areas. Thus, a
Levels Characteristics / community is a combination The sequencing provides the blueprint for
Description of different populations. most genes to make proteins. In turn, these
1.Molecules These refer to chemical 9.Ecosystems These refer to the biotic and proteins account for the different functions in
structures that are composed abiotic factors in an area. the body and the organism.
of two or more atoms. This includes not only the
2.Cells These are the basic working interaction between living The protein production is controlled
and structural units of an things but also the interaction
indirectly through another related molecule,
organism. Different cells between living and nonliving.
10.Biosphere This consists of all the livable
the RNA. The RNA in this process serves as
work in different organs.
They are structured parts of the earth, by livable, an intermediary. The nucleotide sequence
according to function. we are referring to all spaces along a gene is transcribed into an mRNA,
Organisms can either be which are inhabited by life. then translated into the building blocks of
single-celled or in This includes spaces in the protein, amino acids. The amino acid in this
multicellular form. land, water, and air. case serves as a linked series, after being
completed, it forms a specific protein with a “contemporary species arose from a process is called photosynthesis. The
unique shape and function. This whole succession of ancestors that differed from chemical energy in the form of food molecules
process where the information in a gene them”. This is what we call, descent with will then be passed by plants and other
guides to create a cellular product is called, modification and accounts for the dual nature photosynthetic organisms to other organisms
gene expression. of life’s unity and diversity. Second, that that are not able to produce food. Note that
“natural selection is the primary reason of there is already energy transfer happening in
Adaptation and Evolution descent with modification”. this process.

Through adaptation, the Natural selection sprung from

inherited trait helps the organism’s ability to Darwin’s observations from his studies. It
survive and reproduce in its environment. states that species with inherited traits are Prepared by:
Whereas, evolution means a generation-to- more adaptive to the environment which
generation change with the various inherited means they are more likely to survive and SUBIYYAH M. MONTUD
genes in a population. However, evolution is a reproduce than those who are not. This is
much-debated topic in the past, but because the environment constantly selects
withstanding the scientific information, for the production of traits from the random
evolution has stood its ground and became a variant traits naturally occurring within a
field. population.

Evolution is said to be the scientific thought Energy, Life, and Interactions with the
that would explain or make sense of all the Environment
organisms now. Fossil records show that
organisms have been evolving for billions of A characteristic common to all forms of
years now and that this accounts for the vast life is the need for energy. This is a
diversity and variation of organisms in the past requirement for organisms to perform life
and present. Fossil records also show facts of processes. The various indicators of life and
unity aside from variation. There are animals processes like growing, reproducing, moving,
presently that may seem different from one and other intracellular processes require that
another, let’s take for example the arm of a the organism spend energy.
human being, the wing of the bat, the leg of a
dog, and the flipper of a whale, they might The sun is the primary source of
have different uses but their underlying energy in the environment. All organisms rely
anatomy are similar to one another. They are on the sun’s energy input to survive. It
considered homologous structures. provides energy on earth in the form of light
and is received and utilized by autotrophs or
One notable evolutionary view emerged producers. These autotrophs or producers are
in the 1800s, when the father of evolution, photosynthetic organisms. These organisms
Charles Darwin, published the book, “The absorb sunlight to create food. The
Origin of Species”. This book contained photosystems harvest light and together with
Charles Darwin’s studies and observations, raw materials like CO2, and water converts
which expressed two main points. One, that light energy into chemical energy. This