Perspectives of Biology Exam 2 Study Guide

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the Perspectives of Biology Exam 2 Study Guide, including photosynthesis, metabolism, cellular respiration, fermentation, translation, gene expression, and the cell cycle.

Autotroph

An organism that produces its own organic nutrients using sunlight.

Heterotroph

An organism that obtains energy and nutrients by consuming other organisms rather than producing its own.

Photosynthesis Chemical Equation

$$CO_2 + H_2O + \text{sunlight} \rightarrow C_6H_{12}O_6 + O_2$$

Pigments of Photosynthesis

Light-absorbing molecules in photosynthetic cells, including Chlorophyll a, Chlorophyll b, and Carotenoids.

Thylakoid

Membrane-bound compartment inside the chloroplast where the light reactions occur and chlorophyll absorbs light.

Stroma

The fluid-filled region of the chloroplast surrounding the thylakoids where the carbon reactions (Calvin Cycle) take place.

Calvin Cycle

The carbon reactions of photosynthesis that take place in the stroma and consist of carbon fixation, PGAL synthesis, and the regeneration of RuBP.

Photosynthetic Variations in Plants

Adaptive pathways for carbon fixation that vary across plants, categorized into C3 plants, C4 plants, and CAM plants.

Anabolism

Metabolic reactions that consume energy to synthesize and build complex molecules.

Catabolism

Metabolic reactions that break down complex molecules into simpler ones, releasing energy.

The First Law of Thermodynamics

Matter can be neither created or destroyed.

The Second Law of Thermodynamics

Physical and chemical processes proceed in such a way that the disorder of the universe increases.

Biochemical Pathway

A series of reactions catalyzed by different enzymes that can follow linear, cyclic, or branching arrangements.

Phenylketonuria

A metabolic disorder that results from a defect in an enzyme of a biochemical pathway.

Aerobic Cellular Respiration Chemical Equation

$$C_6H_{12}O_6 + O_2 \rightarrow 6CO_2 + 6H_2O$$

Glycolysis

The initial stage of cellular respiration that takes place in the cytoplasm, generating ATP and electron carrier molecules.

Kreb's Cycle

The stage of cellular respiration occurring in the mitochondria that generates carrier molecules and ATP.

Electron Transport System

The stage of cellular respiration located in the inner matrix of mitochondria that uses carrier molecules to produce ATP.

Fermentation

An anaerobic pathway carried out by many prokaryotes and some eukaryotes that uses pyruvate, bypasses the Krebs cycle and ETC, and generates ATP only in glycolysis.

Alcoholic Fermentation

A form of fermentation in bacteria and yeast where NADH reduces pyruvate to ethanol, producing ATP.

Lactic Acid Fermentation

A form of fermentation in humans where NADH reduces pyruvate to lactic acid, producing ATP.

Codon

A three-letter nucleotide code on mRNA that codes for a specific amino acid.

Start Codon (AUG)

The mRNA codon recognized by the ribosome during translation initiation that codes for methionine and binds to the tRNA anti-codon UAC.

Stop Codons (Nonsense Codons)

The three mRNA codons (UAA, UAG, and UGA) that do not code for amino acids and signal the termination of translation.

Operator

A prokaryotic DNA regulatory region to which repressor proteins bind to regulate transcription.

Enhancers

Regulatory DNA sequences that participate in the regulation of transcription in eukaryotic cells.

Sickle Cell Disease

A genetic disease caused by a single nucleotide change in DNA.

DNA Helicase

The enzyme that separates the strands of DNA during DNA replication.

DNA Polymerase

The enzyme that brings nucleotides to pair with complementary bases during DNA replication.

Binary Fission

The method of cell division used by prokaryotic cells to create two exact copies for daughter cells.

Interphase

The portion of the cell cycle consisting of G 1 (grows and prepares to divide), S-phase (DNA replication takes place), and G 2 (cell prepares to divide).

Mitosis

Eukaryotic nuclear division consisting of four stages: Prophase, Metaphase, Anaphase, and Telophase.

Apoptosis

Programmed cell death that regulates cell life and prevents the propagation of damaged cells.