Vocab for theme 2

transplant rejection

a transplant recipient’s immune system attacks the transplanted organ/tissue

complete blood count

A blood test that’s used to look at overall health and find a wide range of conditions 

debriefing

when an experiement involves deception, participants are told complete and truthful information about the experiment at its conclusion

deception

purposely misleading experiment participants in order to maintain the integrity of the experiment

informed consent

process of informing a research participant about what to expect during an experiment, any risks involved, and the implications of the research, and then obtaining the person’s consent to participate

institutional aniaml care and use committee (IACUC)

committee of administrators, scientists, veterinarians, and community members that reviews proposals for research involving non-human animals

institutional review board

committee of administrators, scientists, and community members that reviews proposals for research involving human participants

alvolus

the terminal structure of the lung passage where gas exchange occurs

aorta

the major artery that takes blood away from the heart to the systemic circulatory system

artery

a blood vessel that takes blood away from the heart

atrium

a chamber of the heart that receives blood from the viens

bicuspid valve

a one-way opening between the atrium and the ventricle in the left side of the heart

bronchi

smaller branches of cartilaginous tissue that stem off of the trachea; air is funneled through the bronchi to the region where gas exchange occurs in the alveoli

bronchiole

an airway that extends from the main bronchus to the alveolar sac

capillary

the smallest blood vessel that allows the passage of individual blood cells and the site of diffusion of oxygen and nutrient exchange

cardiac cycle

the filling and emptying the heart of blood caused by electrical signals that cause the heart muscles to contract and relax

closed circulatory system

a system that has the blood separated from the bodily interstitial fluid and contained in blood vessels

diaphragm

a skeletal muscle located under lungs that encloses the lungs in the thorax

diastole

the relaxation phase of the cardiac cycle when the heart is relaxed and the ventricles are filling with blood

electrocardiogram

the major vein of the body returning blood from the lower parts of the body to the right atrium

larynx

the voice box, located within the throat

nasal cavity

an opening of the respiratory system to the outside environment

open circulatory system

a circulatory system that has the blood mixed with interstitial fluid in the body cavity and directly bathes the organs

pharynx

the throat

primary bronchus (main bronchus)

a region of the airway within the lung that attaches to the trachea and bifurcates to form the bronchioles

pulmonary circulation

the flow of blood away from the heart through the lungs where oxygenation occurs and then back to the heart

superior vena cava

the major vein of the body returning blood from the upper part of the body to the right atrium

systemic circulation

 the flow of blood away from the heart to the brain, liver, kidneys, stomach, and other organs, the limbs, and the muscles of the body, and then back to the heart

systole

the contraction phase of cardiac cycle when the ventricles are pumping blood into the arteries

trachea

the cartilaginous tube that transports air from the throat to the lungs

tricuspid valve

a one-way opening between the atrium and the ventricle in the right side of the heart

vein

a blood vessel that brings blood back to the heart

ventricle

a large chamber of the heart that pumps blood into arteries

plasma

 liquid component of blood that is left after the cells are removed

platelet (thrombocyte)

the small cellular fragment that collects at wounds, cross-reacts with clotting

red blood cell

small (7–8 μm) biconcave cell without mitochondria (and in mammals without nuclei) that is packed with hemoglobin, giving the cell its red color; transports oxygen through the body

serum

plasma without the coagulation factors

white blood cell

large (30 μm) cell with nuclei of which there are many types with different roles including the protection of the body from viruses and bacteria, and cleaning up dead cells and other waste 

• a nucleated cell found in the blood that is a part of the immune system; also called leukocytes

complement system

an array of approximately 20 soluble proteins of the innate immune system that enhance phagocytosis, bore holes in pathogens, and recruit lymphocytes

cytokine

a chemical messenger that regulates cell differentiation, proliferation, and gene expression to effect immune responses

inflammation

the localized redness, swelling, heat, and pain that results from the movement of leukocytes through opened capillaries to a site of infection

innate immunity

an immunity that occurs naturally because of genetic factors or physiology, and is not caused by infection or vaccination

interferon

a cytokine that inhibits viral replication

lymphocytes

a type of white blood cell that includes natural killer cells of the innate immune system and B and T cells of the adaptive immune system

macrophage

a large phagocytic cell that engulfs foreign particles and pathogens

mast cell

a leukocyte that produces inflammatory molecules, such as histamine, in response to large pathogens

monocyte

a type of white blood cell that circulates in the blood and lymph and differentiates into a macrophage after it moves into infected tissue

natural killer cell

a lymphocyte that can kill cells infected with viruses or tumor cells

neutrophil

a phagocytic leukocyte that engulfs and digests pathogens

phagocytosis

the process by which a cell engulfs and digests a small object, such as a viral particle, bacterium or piece of cellular debris. Cells that can carry out phagocytosis are called phagocytes. pathogen a microbe (virus, bacteria, fungus, parasite) capable of causing disease

active immunity

an immunity that occurs as a result of the activity of the body’s own cells rather than from antibodies acquired from an external source

adaptive immunity

a specific immune response that occurs after exposure to an antigen either from a pathogen or a vaccination

antibody

a protein that is produced by plasma cells after stimulation by an antigen; also known as an immunoglobulin

antigen

a macromolecule that reacts with cells of the immune system and which may or may not have a stimulatory effect

B cell

a lymphocyte that matures in the bone marrow

cell-medicated immune response

an adaptive immune response that is controlled by T cells

cytotoxic T lymphcyte (TC)

an adaptive immune cell that directly kills infected cells via enzymes, and that releases cytokines to enhance the immune response

effector cell

a lymphocyte that has differentiated, such as a B cell, plasma cell, or cytotoxic T cell

helper T lymphocyte (TH)-

a cell of the adaptive immune system that binds APCs via MHC II molecules and stimulates B cells or secretes cytokines to initiate the immune response

humoral immune response

the adaptive immune response that is controlled by activated B cells and antibodies

lymph

the watery fluid present in the lymphatic circulatory system that bathes tissues and organs with protective white blood cells and does not contain erythrocytes

memory cell

an antigen-specific B or T lymphocyte that does not differentiate into an effector cell during the primary immune response but that can immediately become an effector cell on reexposure to the same pathogen

passive immunity

an immunity that does not result from the activity of the body’s own immune cells but by transfer of antibodies from one individual to another

primary immune response

the response of the adaptive immune system to the first exposure to an antigen

secondary immune response

the response of the adaptive immune system to a second or later exposure to an antigen mediated by memory cells

T cell

 lymphocyte that matures in the thymus gland

allele

specific version of a gene

chromosome

long strand of genetic information

deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)

helix-shaped molecule made of nucleotide base pairs

dominant allele

allele whose phenotype will be expressed in an individual that possesses that allele

epigenetics

study of gene-environment interactions, such as how the same genotype leads to different phenotypes

fraternal twins

 twins who develop from two different eggs fertilized by different sperm, so their genetic material varies the same as in non-twin siblings

gene

sequence of DNA that controls or partially controls physical characteristics

genetic environmental correlation

view of gene-environment interaction that asserts our genes affect our environment, and our environment influences the expression of our genes

genotype

genetic makeup of an individual

heterozygous

consisting of two different alleles

homozygous

consisting of two identical alleles

identical twins

twins that develop from the same sperm and egg

mutation

sudden, permanent changes in a gene

phenotype

individual’s inheritable physical characteristics

polygenic

multiple genes affecting a given trait

range of reaction

asserts our genes set the boundaries within which we can operate, and our environment interacts with the genes to determine where in that range we will fall

recessive allele

allele whose phenotype will be expressed only if an individual is homozygous for that allele

theory of evolution by natural selection

states that organisms that are better suited for their environments will survive and reproduce compared to those that are poorly suited for their environments

mRNA

 messenger RNA; a form of RNA that carries the nucleotide sequence code for a protein sequence that is translated into a polypeptide sequence

nontemplate strand

 the strand of DNA that is not used to transcribe mRNA; this strand is identical to the mRNA except that T nucleotides in the DNA are replaced by U nucleotides in the mRNA

Promoter

a sequence on DNA to which RNA polymerase and associated factors bind and initiate transcription

RNA polymerase

an enzyme that synthesizes an RNA strand from a DNA template strand

template strand

the strand of DNA that specifies the complementary mRNA molecule

transcription bubble

the region of locally unwound DNA that allows for transcription of mRNA

codon

3 consecutive nucleotides in mRNA that specify the addition of a specific amino acid or the release of a polypeptide chain during translation

genetic code

the amino acids that correspond to three-nucleotide codons of mRNA

rRNA

ribosomal RNA; molecules of RNA that combine to form part of the ribosome

stop codon

one of the three mRNA codons that specifies termination of translation

start codon

the AUG (or, rarely GUG) on an mRNA from which translation begins; always specifies methionine

tRNA

transfer RNA; an RNA molecule that contains a specific three-nucleotide anticodon sequence to pair with the mRNA codon and also binds to a specific amino acid

epigenetic

describing non-genetic regulatory factors, such as changes in modifications to histone proteins and DNA that control accessibility to genes in chromosomes

gene expression

processes that control whether a gene is expressed

post-transcriptional

control of gene expression after the RNA molecule has been created but before it is translated into protein

post-translational

control of gene expression after a protein has been created