Unit 5 Study - Bio

Sensory neurons

Nerve cells that carry signals from sense organs to the brain or spinal cord.

Motor neurons

Nerve cells that carry signals from the brain or spinal cord to muscles.

Diaphragm

A muscle under the lungs that helps with breathing.

Hemoglobin

A protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen.

Chemoreceptors

Cells that detect chemical changes, like oxygen or carbon dioxide levels.

Antibody

A protein made by the immune system to fight pathogens.

Genetic engineering

Changing an organism’s DNA to give it new traits.

Substrate

The substance an enzyme acts on.

Pathogen

A microbe that causes disease.

Enzymes

Proteins that speed up chemical reactions in the body.

ATP

A molecule that stores and provides energy for cell processes.

Mitosis

The process that makes new, identical cells for growth, repair, and replacement.

Circulatory system

A system that transports oxygen, nutrients, hormones, and waste through the body.

Endocrine system

A system where glands release hormones into the blood, controlling various body functions.

Hypothalamus

Links the nervous and endocrine systems and controls hormone release from the pituitary gland.

Heart chambers

Four chambers of the heart: two atria and two ventricles.

Pathway of blood

Body → right atrium → right ventricle → lungs (gets oxygen) → left atrium → left ventricle → body.

Types of blood vessels

Arteries carry blood away from the heart; veins carry blood back to the heart; capillaries exchange gases and nutrients with cells.

Function of the digestive system

Breaks down food to absorb nutrients and eliminate waste.

Mechanical digestion

The physical breakdown of food (e.g., chewing, stomach churning).

Chemical digestion

The breakdown of food with enzymes and acids (e.g., saliva, stomach acid, pancreatic enzymes).

Alimentary canal

The pathway food takes, starting from the mouth, to the rectum for expulsion.

HeLa cells

Cancer cells taken from Henrietta Lacks in 1951, vital for medical research.

Purpose of the respiratory system

To bring in oxygen and remove carbon dioxide from the body.

Gas exchange occurs

In the alveoli of the lungs.

Three phases of respiration

1. Ventilation, 2. External respiration, 3. Internal respiration.

Purpose of the excretory system

To remove waste and excess substances from the body, maintaining homeostasis.

Nephrons

Functional units of the kidney that filter blood and produce urine.

Dialysis

A process using a machine to filter waste from the blood when kidneys fail.

1st line of nonspecific defense

Physical barriers like skin and mucous membranes, and chemical barriers like enzymes that prevent pathogen entry.

Purpose of fever

To raise body temperature to help kill pathogens and enhance immune response.

Inflammatory response

An increase in blood flow to injured tissue that delivers immune cells to fight infection.

Vaccine

A harmless part of a pathogen introduced to stimulate the immune system to produce antibodies.