Gen Bio II 1st Exam All Terms

University Scares Me into Working Overtime

Science News: Chimpanzees

Because of a lower level of “alloparenting'", chimpanzees showed that they took all of their risky behaviors when they were younger, as opposed to humans who take their most risky behaviors as teenagers to young adults {Observed in the Congo Forest}

Evolution

Happens over time as genetic mutations and sudden stressors can change what is considered beneficial to a population.

Plant BioDiversity: Location

Plants are way more diverse in the tropical regions (closer to the equator) that have more consistent sunlight access, as well as more nutrients overall.

Animal BioDiversity: Location

Animals are more diverse in tropical regions (closer to the equator) because of the high diversity of herbivore feed that then feed carnivors. [Amazon Rainforest is a hotspot]

Causes of Primate Loss

Among many others, Logging and Ranching that causes general tree line loss

Bacteria BioDiversity: Location

Bacteria like to be in Highly Basic pH’s. Acidic pH’s denature their enzymes.

Origin of Life on Earth: Time

The first life probably arrose some 0.6 Billion Years into Earth’s existence.

Origin of Life: What kind of life?

[Big Assumption] Life most likely originated deep in the ocean near underwater thermal vents, a sweet spot where unicellular organisms were able to consume chemical energy to survive. These organisms were most likely Archaea

Single Cell Organisms: Time

Single Cell Organisms Showed up on Earth’s timeline Something like 3.5 Billion Years Ago

Earth Age: Time

The Earth is 4.5 Billion Years Old

Science News: Cyanobacteria

A strand of cyanobacteria was found to produce a natural substance that blocked UV rays when exposed to light. Researchers found this and wanted to use it as a natural form of sunscreen since chemical sunscreen is bad for the coral reefs.

Archaea

Single-celled organisms that hold no organelles. They are considered the origin of life and after the Endosymbiotic Event lead to the creation of the two types of eukaryotes.

Endosymbiotic Event

It is supposed that an Archean consumed a dead Bacteria through Phagocytosis which, instead of breaking down and consuming, persisted inside of the unicellular organism as an early membrane-bound organelle. This is the origin for either the Mitochondrea or the Chloroplast, depending on which Bacteria was consumed. (Cyanobacteria = Photo) (Proteobacterium = Chemo)

Bacteria: vs Archaea and Eukarya

Have some Organelles, No Nucleus, and a Cell Wall made with Peptidoglycan

Archaea: vs Bacteria and Eukarya

No organelles, no nucleus and no Peptidoglycan in the Cell Wall

Eukarya: vs Bacteria and Archaea

Many Organelles, has a nucleus, no Peptidoglycan in the Cell Wall

Bacteria Culturing

A sample of bacteria in a certain area spread along a media that is then left to grow to better identify what types of bacteria can be found in the sampled area

MicroSequencing

Originally was planned to be used only for the sequencing of the Human Genome. Leads to the identification of different bacteria species that were once indistinguishable.

Craig Venter on the Sorcerer II

Uses the technology made by Micro Sequencing to go out Ocean Sampling to try and identify more bacteria species. Now it’s an annual event throughout the scientific community to refresh the databases of existing bacteria.

Bacteria Live Everywhere

2 miles beneath the Earth’s surface

Outside of the International SpaceStation

Inside Antartica’s Ice + Oceans

pH’s acidic enough to degrade Metal

Bacteria: Endospore

When not in a habitable environment, instead of dying, bacteria enter a metabolic hibernation until conditions change. (Think of Tardigrades but not Tardigrades cuz Tardigrades are Eukaryotes) {25 Million Year old dead Bee Gut Bacteria Revivification}

Prokaryote: Structure

→ Attachment assisters (Fimbriae, Pili. et.al.)

→ Cell Wall {Important for Homeostasis}

→ BioFilm to protect a colony of different Prokaryote {Think: teeth plack}

Prokaryotes: Why are they important

Prokaryotes are the number one chemical and physical decomposers. Without them, there would be very little ways to break down and convert dead biomass into simpler energy sources for the circle of life to continue.

Different forms of Nutrition (4)

Photoautotrophs, Photoheterotrophs, Chemoautotrophs, and Chemoheterotrophs

Photoautotrophs

Mostly plants and some bacteria, they obtain their energy from light and their carbon source from CO2 usually in gas form

Photoheterotrophs

Mostly bacteria, these organisms obtain their energy from light and get their carbon source from Organic Compounds

Chemoautotrophs

Mostly Archaea, they get their energy from Inorganic Substances in Chemical Reactions and obtain their main carbon from CO2

Chemoheterotrophs

All fungi fall under this category, they get their energy from Organic Substances, and they get their main carbon source through Organic Compounds

Science News: Ants

There is a species of tree leaf ant that has been observed to feed a specific type of fungi to obtain the sugars that they produce as a result. To protect these fungi that the ants farm, they also feed and harvest Streptomyces, an antifungal bacterium, to keep their specific fungi safe from invaders.

Niche Complementary Organisms

There is on the top layer of green algae that takes in a certain wavelength of light. It is then underneath that algae that the Purple Sulfur bacteria lives that is able to subsist off of hte wavelengths of life that the algae does not eat.

Bacteria Negatives

1) Bacterial Infections make up ½ of all human diseases

2) BioTerrorism (Anthrax, the Plague, COVID-19)

Data Interpretation: E. Coli

A strain of the bacteria was put in a low glucose media to see how the bacteria would react and adapt. In response, their cells grew in size and something happened to their metabolism rate that made it so that, in relation to the ancestral population’s growth rate, their growth rate increased as more and more generations of the bacteria spawned and mutations grew. The slope evens out once the bacteria has finally reached a level o mutation where they have become accustomed to the environment and no longer need to change to survive.

Fungi: Fun Facts

They make up the largest organism in the world, found in the Malheur National Forest in Oregon state.

Science News: White Nose Fungus

There are strains of fungal infections that can hook onto animal hosts and affect their day to day lives. The in-class example was the little brown bat here in the United States that is being endangered by a type of fungal infection that causes them to shake out of hibernation and die as a result of that lost metabolic energy. This infection came to the USA from Europe and though it didn’t negatively affect the native bat population in the EU, the USA’s population has been majorly affected.

Fungus: Nutrition

Chemoheterotrophs, they secrete exoenzymes to break down complex molecules into substances digestible to their network of hyphae

Fungus: Functions

→ Decomposers

→ Parasites

→ Symbiosis

Fungus: Structure

Hyphae that are cobwebbed into the soil and everything that they can grow into to better absorb nutrients. The visible mushroom is a reproductive structure that holds spores (sporophyte)
Mycelia is the name for a giant network of hyphae that connect in between different sporophytes.
Cell walls are made out of CHITIN

Fungus: