Chordates and Animal Physiology Lecture Review

This set of flashcards covers subphyla of chordates, vertebrate classes, mammalian traits, tissue types, cellular respiration, the immune system, endocrine regulation, and animal circulation based on lecture notes.

Urochrodata

An invertebrate subphylum of chordata, including tunicates and sea squirts, that exhibits more chordate characteristics at the larval stage.

Cephalochordata

An invertebrate subphylum of chordata that resembles fish, with lancelets as an example.

Notochord

A semirigid elongated structure consisting of a fibrous sheath filled with fluid-filled cells that provides support, lateral bending, and muscle attachment.

Dorsal hollow nerve cord

A single, dorsal structure parallel to the digestive tract and notochord whose anterior becomes the brain and the rest becomes the spinal cord.

Pharyngeal slits

Openings in the throat area that serve as food filters in protochordates, gills in aquatic vertebrates, and structures like ears or glands in tetrapodes.

Post anal tail

A characteristic of chordates used for movement in water or climbing.

Myxini

The class of fishes commonly known as hagfish, which lack jaws.

Petromyzontida

The class of jawless fishes commonly known as lampreys.

Chondrichthyes

A class of Gnathostomata consisting of cartilaginous fishes like sharks and rays.

Actinopterygii

A class of Osteichthyes consisting of ray-finned bony fish.

Sarcopterygii

A class of Osteichthyes consisting of lobe-finned bony fish.

Neural crest cells

Cells in vertebrates that form teeth, bones, cartilage, and neurons.

Hox genes

Genes that specify the body plan and organization of an organism.

Anamniota

Organisms that lack an amnion, such as fishes and amphibians.

Amniota

Organisms that possess an amnion, including reptiles, birds (aves), and mammals.

Chorion

A membrane in the amniotic egg responsible for removing $CO_2$ and providing $O_2$.

Amnion

A fluid-filled membrane that encloses the embryo.

Allantois

A part of the amniotic egg that stores metabolic waste.

Anapsid

A skull pattern with $1$ hole, found in turtles.

Synapsid

A skull pattern with $2$ holes, found in mammals.

Diapsid

A skull pattern with $3$ holes, found in lizards, snakes, and birds.

Ornithodelphia

A type of vertebrate (monotremes) that lays eggs and lacks nipples and a placenta.

Eutheria

Placental mammals that develop inside a womb with a complex placenta.

Metatheria

Marsupials that experience premature birth and further development in pouches using a simple placenta.

Pseudostratified epithelium

A single layer of epithelial tissue with cells of varying lengths.

Adipose tissue

A type of connective tissue that stores metabolic energy.

Glia

Cells in nervous tissue that hold neurons in place and assist with transmission.

Suspension feeders

Animals that eat by filtering out particles from the water.

Substrate feeders

Animals that live directly on their food source.

Bulk feeders

Animals that eat very large pieces of food, such as snakes swallowing prey whole.

Homodont

Mammalian teeth that are uniform in size and shape.

Heterodont

Mammalian teeth that have different shapes and sizes.

Glycolysis

The first step of cellular respiration that occurs in the cytoplasm, generates ATP, and does not require $O_2$.

Krebs cycle

Also called the citric acid cycle, it occurs in the mitochondrial matrix and requires $O_2$.

ETC/Chemiosmosis

The step of cellular respiration that occurs in the inner mitochondrial membrane and requires $O_2$.

Innate immunity

Nonspecific immune defense that acts early, including physical barriers, macrophages, and basophils.

Antigens

Substances, mostly carbohydrates and proteins, that signal the release of B and T cells.

Cell mediated immunity

A type of adapted immunity involving T cells that destroy enemy cells.

Humoral immunity

A type of adapted immunity involving B cells that produce antibodies to mark pathogens for destruction.

Secondary immune response

An immune reaction that is faster and stronger because the body remembers a previous encounter with a pathogen.

Endocrine glands

Ductless organs that produce and secrete hormones directly into the bloodstream or surrounding fluid.

Leptin

A peptide hormone released by adipose tissue that decreases hunger and increases metabolism by binding to MC4 in the hypothalamus.

Isogamous

A form of sexual reproduction with identical gametes in size and structure, having no male or female distinction.

Anisogamous

Sexual reproduction where gametes differ in size and structure, typically a small sperm and a large egg.

Parthenogenesis

A form of asexual reproduction where an unfertilized egg develops into a complete adult organism.

Chorioallantoic Placenta

A vascular structure containing both embryonic and maternal tissues that nourishes the fetus.

Altricial

Offspring that are fully dependent on their parents, such as human babies.

Precocial

Offspring that are born independent of their parents.

Colostrum

The initial milk produced by mammary glands containing antibodies, lactoferrin, and white blood cells.

Nodes of Ranvier

Gaps in the myelin sheath containing sodium channels that increase the speed of neural impulse transmission.

Action potential

A positive neural signal triggered by depolarization when sodium gates open and $Na^+$ enters the neuron.

Synaptic cleft

The space between the presynaptic neuron and the postsynaptic neuron where neurotransmitters are released.

Stridulation

Rubbing body parts together to produce auditory signals, like a cricket.

Cones

Photoreceptors in the center of the retina that detect color and absorb wavelengths of light.

Rods

Photoreceptors on the sides of the retina that detect black and white and allow for vision in the dark.

Open circulatory system

A system where fluid flows freely through body cavities, found mostly in insects.

Capillaries

Tiny branched blood vessels that connect arteries and veins and are the site of molecule exchange between blood and interstitial fluid.