LS7A Cell Organization, Transport, and Energy Flashcards

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering cell organization, organelle functions, membrane transport mechanisms, thermodynamics, and lipid structures based on the LS7A lecture transcript.

Organelle

A specialized structure within a cell that performs a specific function.

Cytoplasm

The region of the cell outside the nucleus, including the jelly-like substance and organelles.

Cytosol

The fluid portion of the cytoplasm.

Mitochondria

An organelle that supplies the cell with energy.

Chloroplast

An organelle found in leaf cells that performs photosynthesis to supply a plant with energy.

Golgi Apparatus

An organelle that packs and releases enzymes, also described as the site that makes enzymes.

Lysosome

An organelle responsible for the breakdown of molecules and cellular waste; without them, waste would build up in the cytoplasm.

Vacuole

An organelle used for food storage.

Phagocytes

Cells that engulf and absorb bacteria and other small cells and particles, typically containing an abundance of lysosomes.

Tonicity

Refers to the ratio of solute to solvent concentration between two solutions.

Hypertonic

A solution that has more solute and less solvent than another solution, often causing cells to shrivel.

Hypotonic

A solution that has less solute and higher solvent concentrations than another solution, often causing cells to swell.

Isotonic

A solution that has an equal solute to solvent concentration ratio compared to another solution, maintaining a balance.

Osmosis

The diffusion of water from a hypotonic area (higher solvent) to a hypertonic area (lower solvent).

Primary Active Transport

A transport process powered by ATP energy that moves molecules from low to high concentrations using membrane proteins.

Secondary Active Transport

A transport process powered by an electrochemical gradient where molecules move from high to low concentrations via coupled transport.

Facilitated Diffusion

The transport of large, charged, and polar molecules from high to low concentrations using proteins without requiring energy.

Simple Diffusion

The transport of small, nonpolar, and uncharged molecules from high to low concentrations without requiring energy.

Energy

The capacity to do work, existing in forms such as thermal, chemical, light, and mechanical.

Work

The ability to do something like changing or moving something.

Metabolism

The sum of all chemical reactions in a cell.

Anabolic Reactions

Metabolic reactions that involve building complex molecules from smaller units; they are endergonic and require energy.

Catabolic Reactions

Metabolic reactions that involve breaking molecules into smaller units; they are exergonic and release energy.

Gibbs Free Energy ($\text{AG}$)

The amount of energy available to do work; represented by the variable $\Delta G$.

Enthalpy ($\text{AH}$)

The change in heat of a system or the potential energy stored in the bonds of a system; represented by $\Delta H$.

Entropy ($\text{AS}$)

The measure of disorder in a system; represented by $\Delta S$.

Endergonic Reactions

Non-spontaneous chemical processes that require energy and have a positive $\Delta G > 0$.

Exergonic Reactions

Spontaneous chemical processes that release energy and have a negative $\Delta G < 0$.

Lipids

Insoluble organic compounds, including triglycerides, cholesterol, fatty acids, and phospholipids, that help store energy.

Hydrophilic

The property of being water-loving and soluble, typically associated with polar molecules.

Hydrophobic

The property of being water-fearing and insoluble, typically associated with nonpolar molecules.

Saturated Fatty Acid

A fatty acid with no double bonds and a linear structure, making the cell membrane more rigid.

Unsaturated Fatty Acid

A fatty acid with double bonds and a kinked structure, making the cell membrane more flexible.

Cholesterol

A lipid component of cell membranes that acts as a buffer, decreasing fluidity at high temperatures and increasing it at low temperatures.

Triglycerides

Complex lipid molecules consisting of glycerol and three fatty acid chains, commonly found in food.

Selective Permeability

A property of the cell membrane barrier that allows specific molecules or ions to travel through while blocking others.

Fluid Mosaic Model

A model of the cell membrane describing it as a lipid bilayer containing proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids.