General Biology I – Final Exam Review

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the key topics for the General Biology I Final Exam (Spring 2026), including chemistry, cell structure, metabolism, genetics, and molecular biology.

Abiotic vs. Biotic Interactions

The study of interactions between non-living factors (abiotic) and living organisms (biotic) within an environment.

Isotopes

Atoms of the same element that have the same number of protons but different numbers of neutrons.

Polar Covalent Bond

A type of chemical bond where electrons are shared unequally between atoms due to differences in electronegativity.

Properties of Water

Includes cohesive behavior, temperature moderation, acting as a versatile solvent, and expansion upon freezing.

Isomers

Compounds that have the same molecular formula but different structures and properties.

Glycosidic bond

The covalent bond that forms between carbohydrate monomers.

Ester bond

The covalent bond that forms between the components of lipids.

Peptide bond

The covalent bond that forms between amino acids in a protein.

Phosphodiester bond

The covalent bond that forms between nucleotides in a nucleic acid.

Antiparallel

The arrangement in a DNA double helix where the two sugar-phosphate backbones run in opposite $5' \rightarrow 3'$ directions.

pH scale

A measure of acidity or basicity based on the concentration of hydrogen ions $[H^+]$.

Cotransport

A mechanism where a transport protein couples the downhill diffusion of a solute to the uphill transport of a second substance against its own concentration gradient.

Endosymbiont theory

The theory that mitochondria and plastids, including chloroplasts, originated as prokaryotic cells engulfed by an ancestral eukaryotic cell.

Exergonic reaction

A spontaneous chemical reaction in which there is a net release of free energy.

Activation energy

The initial investment of energy for starting a reaction; enzymes work by lowering this barrier.

Allosteric Regulation

The binding of a regulatory molecule to a protein at one site that affects the function of the protein at a different site; includes activation, inhibition, and cooperativity.

Redox reactions

Chemical reactions that involve the transfer of electrons between reactants, involving oxidation (loss of electrons) and reduction (gain of electrons).

Substrate-level Phosphorylation

The formation of ATP by an enzyme directly transferring a phosphate group to ADP from an intermediate substrate in catabolism.

Chemiosmosis

The process in which energy stored in the form of a hydrogen ion gradient across a membrane is used to drive cellular work, such as the synthesis of ATP.

Calvin Cycle Phases

The three phases of the Calvin cycle in photosynthesis: carbon fixation, reduction, and regeneration of RuBP.

Origin of replication

A specific sequence of nucleotides where DNA replication begins.

Okazaki fragments

Short, newly synthesized DNA fragments that are formed on the lagging template strand during DNA replication.

Promotor

A specific nucleotide sequence in the DNA of a gene that binds RNA polymerase, positioning it to start transcribing RNA at the appropriate place.

RNA Splicing

The process in eukaryotic RNA processing where introns are cut out and exons are joined together.

Reading frame

The triplet grouping of ribonucleotides used by the translation machinery during polypeptide synthesis.

Silent Mutation

A nucleotide-pair substitution that has no observable effect on the phenotype (e.g., results in a codon that codes for the same amino acid).

Nonsense Mutation

A mutation that changes an amino acid codon to one of the three stop codons, resulting in a shorter and usually nonfunctional protein.

Binary fission

A method of asexual reproduction by division in half; used by prokaryotes (bacteria and archaea).

Centromere

In a duplicated chromosome, the region on each sister chromatid where it is most closely attached to its sister chromatid by proteins that bind to the specific DNA sequences.

Cyclin-dependent kinases (Cdks)

A protein kinase that is active only when attached to a particular cyclin, helping to regulate the cell cycle.

Crossing Over

The reciprocal exchange of genetic material between nonsister chromatids during Prophase I of meiosis.

Independent assortment

The mechanism where each pair of alleles segregates independently of each other pair of alleles during gamete formation; occurs during Metaphase I of meiosis.

Law of Segregation

Mendel’s first law, stating that the two alleles for a heritable character separate (segregate) during gamete formation and end up in different gametes.

Pleiotropy

The ability of a single gene to have multiple effects on the phenotype.

Epistasis

A type of gene interaction in which the phenotypic expression of one gene alters that of a second gene that is independently inherited.