Characteristics of Living Organisms Flashcards

Flashcards on Characteristics of Living Organisms

MRS C GREN

Acronym for the characteristics of living organisms: Movement, Respiration, Sensitivity, Control, Growth, Reproduction, Excretion, Nutrition.

Nutrition

The process by which organisms obtain food to provide energy for life processes.

Autotrophic

Organisms, like plants, that create their own food for energy through photosynthesis.

Heterotrophic

Organisms, like animals, that consume other living organisms to obtain energy.

Respiration

A chemical reaction in all living organisms where energy is released from glucose. Can be aerobic or anaerobic.

Excretion

The removal of toxic materials and waste substances from organisms produced by metabolic reactions.

Sensitivity

An organism's ability to detect and respond to stimuli in its surroundings.

Geotropism

A plant's response to gravity, causing roots to grow down into the soil.

Phototropism

A plant's response to light, causing shoots to grow towards sunlight.

Movement

An action by an organism causing a change of position or place; locomotion is movement from place to place.

Homeostasis

The control of an organism's internal environment to maintain stable conditions.

Thermoregulation

The control of body temperature in organisms.

Reproduction

The process that leads to the production of more of the same kind of organism. Can be sexual or asexual.

Sexual Reproduction

Reproduction involving the fusion of male and female gametes, resulting in offspring with DNA from both parents.

Asexual Reproduction

Reproduction involving only one parent, producing an exact clone of the parent.

Growth

Defined as a permanent increase in size. Which can occur throughout an organisms life.

Eukaryotic Organisms

Organisms whose cells contain a nucleus with a distinct membrane; includes animals, plants, fungi, and protoctists.

Prokaryotic Organisms

Single-celled organisms that do not contain a nucleus; the nuclear material is found in the cytoplasm.

Animals

Multicellular eukaryotes without cell walls or chloroplasts that feed on organic substances and usually have nervous coordination.

Plants

Multicellular eukaryotes with cellulose cell walls and chloroplasts that feed by photosynthesis and store carbohydrates as starch or sucrose.

Fungi

Usually multicellular eukaryotes with chitinous cell walls that feed by secreting extracellular digestive enzymes and absorbing digested molecules.

Protoctists

A diverse kingdom of mainly microscopic, single-celled eukaryotic organisms that don't fit into other eukaryotic kingdoms.

Prokaryotes

Single-celled organisms with no nucleus, where the nuclear material is found in the cytoplasm.

Pathogen

Any microorganism that causes disease in another organism, including bacteria, fungi, protoctists, and viruses.

Viruses

Small, parasitic particles with no cellular structure that can only reproduce inside living cells.