ZOOL Exam 1

Biology

Study of life, living organisms, and structure. A natural science involving growth, evolution, etc.

9 Characteristics of Living Organisms

1. Sense your environment with receptors (pain, temperature).
2. Respond to external stimuli (turn off alarm clock)
3. Adapt to your environment (putting layers on and off)
4. Alter your environment (build a house)
5. Use energy (metabolism - break down proteins that we need).
6. Reproduce (and grow)
7. High degree of organization (how our body is organized and operates)
8. Contain materials found only in living objects (biomolecules)
9. Maintain a constant internal environment (homeostasis- dynamic equilibrium, balance).

Homeostasis

relative constancy - exists at all biological levels of organization

Receptor

responds to changes in environment (stimuli) - sends information to control center

Control Center

determines set point, analyzes info, determines appropriate response.

Effector

provides a means for a response

Scientific Method

1. Observe some aspect of nature
2. Ask a question about the observation
3. Develop a hypothesis
4. Test the hypothesis (experiments)
5. Analyze results
6. Communicate conclusions

Hypothesis

Possible explanation for a set of observations. Not proven. testable.

Experiment

A procedure designed to test some idea/

Theory

Broad generalization based on many experimental observations, can not be tested by single experiments, product of multiple, rigorous testing without ever being disproven.

Negative Feedback

* most common
* shuts off stimulus/reduces intensity.
* works as a household thermostat.

Positive Feedback

* increases original stimulus to push variable farther
* more rare; in labor and blood clotting

Primary Literature

* original documents
* diaries, interviews, speeches, academic research, fiction.

Secondary Literature

* work that synthesize, summarize, and or interpret primary resources.
* Encyclopedias, histories, reviews, textbooks, magazines, biographies.

Response

feeds back to reduce the effect of stimulus and returns variable to homeostasis status

Alkalosis

blood pH increase to 7.8 leads to tetany and death (basic)

Acidosis

blood pH below 7.0 leads to coma and death (acidic)

Buffer System

* keep pH solution stable
* can bind or release H+ as needed
* role of carbonic acid and bicarbonate in blood

ion

charged atom

anion

negative because of electron gain

cation

positive because of electron loss

isotope

same number of proteins, different number of neutrons

Organic

molecules made primarily of carbon atoms

Inorganic

not made of carbon atoms

* water, ions, acids/bases, carbon monoxide, and carbon dioxide being exceptions.

Functional group

group of atoms within a molecule that is responsible for a characteristics of that molecule.

\-PO4

phosphate

\-OH

hydroxyl

\-COOH

carboxyl

\-NH2

amine

\-SH

sulfhydryl

\-COH, -CO-

carbonyl

CH3

methyl

glycogen

storage form of glucose in animals (in liver and muscles)

Triglyceride

backbone of glycerol with 3 fatty acids

Adenine Triphosphate (ATP)

3 phosphate groups, links chemical reactions that release energy, energy “currency” of a cell.

Amylase (starch)

form of glucose (how its stored) in plants, food, grains, legumes.

Phospholipid

found in interface between water and lipids = emulsifiers

peptide (protein)

strong covalent bond in proteins

Ribonucleic Acid (RNA)

nucleic acid found here

Sucrose

disaccharide with glucose and fructose (table sugar)

Lactose

disaccharide with galactose and glucose (milk)

4 Elements that make up the human body in descending order of abundance

oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen

Elements

pure substances consisting of one type of atom

Subatomic particles

1. protons (p+)
2. electrons (e-)
3. neutrons (n)

Atomic number

The number of protons that, that atom has (in the center)

Isotopes

have the same number of protons, have different number of neutrons.

Atomic mass - Atomic #

\# of neutrons

Radisotope

* heavy isotope
* nucleus tends to be unstable
* decomposes to more stable isotope

Radioactivity

process of spontaneous decay (release of neutrons)

Valence Shell

outermost orbit/shell (how we determine how active an atom is)

Ionic

joined atoms that have opposite charges

Covalent

strong; joined atoms share electrons in a polar covalent bond one end is positive, the other is negative. most powerful.

Ion

charged atom

Cation

positive ion because of electron loss

Anion

negative ion because of electron gain

Nonpolar

equal sharing of electrons

Polar

unequal sharing of electrons due to difference in charge (water- polar covalent molecule)

Functions of water in the body

* high heat capacity (a liquid between 32F and 212F)
* water is a coolant (sweating and evaporative cooling)
* water is a solvent (dissolves everything but lipid bases)
* water is a lubricant
* water is a transport medium

hydrophilic

attracted to water (polar molecules)

hydrophobic

repelled by water (non polar)

pH scale

pH 7.0 = neutral H+ and OH- are equal

Biomolecules

make up living things and are built on carbon = organic


1. Carbohydrates
2. Lipids
3. Proteins
4. Nucleic Acids

Carbohydrate

A hydrated carbon

Monomer

building block (lego, train car)

Polymer

long chain of monomers (entire train)

Monosaccharides

basic unit

* glucose, fructose, galactose

Disaccharides

2 units

* sucrose, maltose, lactose.

Polysaccharides

long units

Fatty Acid

building block of lipids

Lipids

biomolecules containing C, H, and O

Saturated

steric acid

Monounsaturated

oleic acid

Polyunsaturated

linoleic acid

Trans Bond

body lacks enzyme to break bond, independent risk factor to heart disease, straightens out carbon chain so the molecules resembles a saturated fat.

Fatty Acid + Glycerol =

Glyceride

Monoglyceride

glycerol backbone with one glyceride

Diglyceride

glycerol backbone with two glycerides

Triglyceride

glycerol backbone with a fatty acid in every spot

Sterols

4 fused together carbon rings which differ in:

* number
* position
* type of functional group

Functions of protein in the body

* structure, transport, enzymes, hormones, channels and pumps, antibodies, acid-base balance, fluid balance.

Amino Acids

Building blocks of all proteins

* 20 amino acids
* order in a protein determined by DNA
* chains fold into complex shapes
* order and shape determine protein function

Nonessential

if we have enough C, H, and O we can make it

essential

can’t make these amino acids have to get them from diet

Primary Structure

order of amino acids would make a chain

Secondary Structure

twist - few proteins stay

Tertiary Structure

pretzel

Quartenary Structure

more than one chain interacting (insulin)

Nucleotides

* sugar (ribose of deoxyribose)
* phosphate group
* nitrogenous base (variable) one thing that makes them different

Nucleic Acids

found in DNA and RNA

Human Biology

The study of human life which examines humans through the different influences and interactions in different fields. The unique structures which make up the human body, growth, genetics, nutrition, physiology, anatomy, evolution. It involves the makeup of humans and how/why they operate the way that they do throughout the lifespan. Some specific scientific disciplines that could describe human biology could be life science, genetics, natural history (of plants and animals), and chemical science, as our body is made up of chemicals - Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Carbon, and Oxygen.

in taxonomy the homo- part of the homo sapiens is the …

genus

Tissues are composed of

cells

If the classroom = the population then individual students =

organisms

Explain the difference between a hypothesis and a theory

A hypothesis is a probable explanation for an observation. It is testable. Ex- If the amount of people using hand sanitizer increases, then the number of people getting sick would decrease.

Whereas a theory is a generalization/explanation based on many experiments and observations. Cannot be a single experiment. Product of multiple tests. Ex. Hand sanitizer is effective is preventing sickness.

Na+

A cation that lost one electron

pH scale is a ratio of

H+/OH-

Hold water molecules together and connects two DNA strands in the double helix

Hydrogen

Animals store glucose in

glycogen

Denaturation

disruption of a protein tertiary structure due to heat and pH changes is

What is the chemical structure of water? Is it polar/nonpolar? List and describe four functions of water in the human body.

The chemical structure of water is: 2 hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. In water, hydrogen bonds form. The (+) charged hydrogen atoms of one water molecule, the (-) charged oxygen atoms of a 2nd water molecule. Water is a polar covalent molecule with two poles - a positive charge on the hydrogen pole, and a negative charge on the oxygen pole.

Four functions of water in the human body:


1. High heat capacity being a liquid between 32F and 212F
2. water is a coolant (sweating and evaporative cooling)
3. water is a solvent (dissolves everything but lipid bases)
4. water is a lubricant (helping to lubriacte the actions of body joints)
5. water is a transport medium (blood moves hormones and we dispose of stuff in our urine).