A Preview of Cell Biology

Cell

The basic unit of biology.

Cell Theory

States that all organisms consist of one or more cells, the cell is the basic unit of structure for all organisms, and all cells arise only from preexisting cells.

Cytology

The branch of biology that focuses on the structure and function of cells.

Micrometers (μm)

A unit of measurement equal to one millionth of a meter; used to measure cells and organelles.

Nanometer (nm)

A unit of measurement equal to one billionth of a meter; used for molecules and subcellular structures.

Angstrom (Å)

A unit of measurement equal to 0.1 nm; used in cell biology to measure dimensions within proteins and DNA molecules.

Light Microscope

An instrument that uses visible light to observe small samples, allowing identification of cellular structures.

Fluorescence Microscopy

A technique that uses fluorescence to detect specific proteins or DNA sequences in cells.

Electron Microscope

A type of microscope that uses a beam of electrons for imaging, providing much higher resolution than light microscopes.

DNA

The molecule that contains the genetic information of an organism, known to be the hereditary material.

Recombinant DNA technology

Technique for joining together DNA from different sources to create new genetic combinations.

Model Organism

A species widely studied and well characterized, used for experimental research.

Hypothesis

A tentative explanation for a phenomenon that can be tested through experiments.

Independent Variable

The condition in an experiment that is varied to test its effect.

Dependent Variable

The outcome measured in an experiment, which is affected by changes in the independent variable.

CRISPR

A genome editing tool that allows for targeted modifications in the DNA of organisms.

Bioinformatics

The application of computer science and statistics to the understanding of biological data.

Proteomics

The study of the functions and interactions of all proteins in a particular cell or organism.

Transcriptionomics

The study of all genes transcribed in a cell.

Metabolomics

The analysis of all metabolic reactions occurring at a given time in a cell.