Biology Lecture Notes Review: Emergent Properties to Prokaryotes vs Eukaryotes

A set of practice flashcards covering emergent properties, levels of organization, chemical bonds, water properties, biomolecules (carbohydrates, lipids, nucleic acids, proteins), and cell types.

What is an emergent property?

A property that arises from interactions among parts of a system and is not present in the parts themselves.

Provide an example of an emergent property.

Consciousness arises from interactions among neurons in the brain; saltiness arises from a combination of sodium and chloride.

List the levels of biological organization from smallest to largest.

Molecules, organelles, cells, tissues, organs, organisms, populations, communities, ecosystems.

Where do mitochondria exist and what is their role?

Inside cells; they are the site of energy production (cellular respiration).

What is the role of RNA?

RNA carries genetic information and helps synthesize proteins.

What is photosynthesis?

The process by which plants convert light energy into chemical energy (glucose) and release oxygen.

What is the role of feedback in sugar metabolism?

Feedback mechanisms regulate metabolic processes, including sugar levels and energy balance.

What do Unity and Diversity refer to in evolution?

Unity: all life shares a common ancestor; Diversity: variation arises through natural selection.

Name the four major elements essential to biology.

Carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, hydrogen.

Name additional essential elements listed in the notes.

Calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sulfur.

What distinguishes polar from nonpolar covalent bonds?

Polar covalent bonds share electrons unequally due to electronegativity differences; nonpolar covalent bonds share electrons evenly.

What is an ionic bond?

A bond formed by the transfer of electrons resulting in charged ions that attract each other.

What is a hydrogen bond?

A weak attraction between a hydrogen atom bonded to an electronegative atom and another electronegative atom.

Why is water considered a polar molecule?

Because oxygen is more electronegative than hydrogen, creating partial negative charge on O and partial positive charges on H.

Name key properties of water important for life.

Cohesion, adhesion, high heat capacity, high heat of vaporization, universal solvent.

What happens to hydrogen bonds when water freezes?

They form a more open, crystalline structure causing ice to expand.

What are intermolecular forces (IMFs) in water?

Forces such as hydrogen bonds that hold water molecules together and explain its properties.

Why is water a universal solvent?

Its polarity allows it to dissolve many polar and ionic substances.

What is ATP and what happens when it is hydrolyzed?

ATP is adenosine triphosphate; hydrolysis releases energy by converting to ADP + Pi.

What is dehydration synthesis?

A reaction that forms a covalent bond (e.g., a peptide bond) with the release of water.

What is hydrolysis?

The chemical breakdown of a compound by reaction with water, such as breaking peptide bonds.

What is glucose?

A monosaccharide that serves as a primary energy source for cells.

What is a disaccharide?

A carbohydrate formed from two monosaccharides linked by a glycosidic bond.

What is a polysaccharide?

A carbohydrate composed of many monosaccharide units; used for storage or structure.

Which storage polysaccharides are found in plants and animals?

Starch in plants; glycogen in animals.

What are the three major carbohydrate classes?

Monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides.

What are nucleic acids' monomers and polymers?

Monomer: nucleotide; polymer: polynucleotide.

What forms the backbone of nucleic acids?

Phosphodiester bonds linking sugar and phosphate groups.

What are the two categories of nitrogenous bases?

Purines and pyrimidines.

What is the primary function of nucleic acids?

To store and transmit hereditary information.

What components make up a nucleotide?

A sugar (ribose or deoxyribose), a phosphate group, and a nitrogenous base.

What is the monomer of proteins?

Amino acids.

What bond links amino acids to form proteins?

Peptide bonds formed by dehydration synthesis.

Name major functional categories of proteins.

Enzymes, storage, transport, hormones, motor, receptors, and structural proteins.

What is the primary structure of a protein?

The linear sequence of amino acids held together by peptide bonds.

What is the secondary structure of a protein?

Regular folds such as alpha helices and beta-pleated sheets stabilized by hydrogen bonds.

What is the tertiary structure of a protein?

The three-dimensional shape formed by interactions among R groups.

What forces stabilize a protein's tertiary structure?

Hydrophobic interactions, hydrogen bonds, ionic bonds, van der Waals, and disulfide bonds.

What is the quaternary structure of a protein?

The arrangement of multiple polypeptide subunits in a protein complex (e.g., hemoglobin).

What is a prokaryote?

A cell without a nucleus or membrane-bound organelles.

What is a eukaryote?

A cell with a nucleus and membrane-bound organelles.