L

SYLLABUS

Unit 1: Chemistry of Life (8-11%)

Unit 2: Cell Structure and Formula (10-13%)

Unit 3: Cellular Energetics (12-16%)

Unit 4: Cell Communications and Cell Cycle (10-15%)

Unit 5: Heredity (8-11%)

Unit 6: Gene Expression and Regulation (12-16%)

Unit 7: Natural Selection (13-20%)

Unit 8: Ecology (10-15%)

Test Information

Section I | 60 Questions | 50% of Test | 1hr 30m

Section II | 6 Questions | 50% of Test | 1hr 30m

Unit 1: Chemistry of Life

8-11% Of the Exam

Youll learn about water’s role as the basis of life and the function of macromolecles like lipids and proteins

Topics May Include

  • The structure of chemical properties of water

  • the makeup and properties of macromolecles

  • the structure of DNA & RNA

Topics of the Unit

  • 1.1 Structure of water and Hydrogen Bonding

  • 1.2 Elements of life

  • 1.3 Intro to Biological macromolecules

  • 1.4 Properties of Biological Macromolecules

  • 1.5 Structure and function of biological macromolecules

  • 1.6 Nucleic Acids

Unit 2: Cell Structure and Function

You’ll study the makeup of cells and the fundamentals of evolution

10-13% of The Exam

Topics May Include

  • Cellular components and functions of those components

  • Cell interaction with its enviroment

  • The cell membrane structure and function

  • Cell regulatory mechanisms like osomosis and selective permability

  • cellular compartmenalization

Topics of the Unit

  • 2.1 Cell Structure: Subcellular Components

  • 2.2 Cell Structure and Function

  • 2.3 Cell Size

  • 2.4 Plasma Membrane

  • 2.5 Membrane Permability

  • 2.6 Membrane Transport

  • 2.7 Facilitated Diffusion

  • 2.8 Tonicity and Osmoregulation

  • 2.9 Mechanisms of Transport

  • 2.10 Cell Compartmentalization

  • 2.11 Origins of cell Compartmentalization

Unit 3: Cellular Energetics

12-16% Of Exam

You’'ll explore how cells interact with their enviroment and how fundamental biological processes work at the cellular level

Topics may Include

  • The structure and function of enzymes

  • The role of energy in living systems

  • The process of photosynthesis

  • The process of cellular respiration

  • Molecular diversity and cellular response to enviromental changes

Topics

  • 3.1: Enzyme Structure

  • 3.2: Enzyme Catalysis

  • 3.3: Enviromental impacts on Enzyme Function

  • 3.4: Cellular Energy

  • 3.5: Photosynthesis

  • 3.6: Cellular Respiration

  • 3.7: Fitness

Unit 4: Cell Communication and Cell Cycle

10-15% of The Exam

You’ll learn how cells grow and reproduce, as well as how cells communicate

Topics may include

  • The mechanisms of cell communcation

  • Signal transduction

  • Cellular responses and feedback mechanisms

  • The events in a cell cycle

Topics of the Unit

  • 4.1: Cell Communication

  • 4.2: Introduction to signal transduction

  • 4.3: Signal transduction

  • 4.4: Changes in signal transduction pathways

  • 4.5: Feedback

  • 4.6: Cell Cycle

  • 4.7: Regulation of cell cycle

U5: Heredity

8-11% Of Exam

You’ll learn how traits are passed down from one generation to the next

Topics may Include

  • The process and function of meiosis

  • The concepts genetic diversity

  • Mendels law’s and probability

  • Non-mendelian inheritance

  • Factors affecting inheritance and gene expression

Topics of the Unit

  • 5.1: Meiosis

  • 5.2: Meiosis and Genetic Diversity

  • 5.3: Mendelin Genetics

  • 5.4: Non Mendelian Genetics

  • 5.5: Enviromental Effects on phenotype

  • 5.6 Chromosomal Inheritance

U6: Gene Expression and Regulation

12-16% of Exam

You’ll study how heredity information passes from parent to offspring and how those traits are expressed

Topics Include

  • The roles and function of DNA and RNA

  • The mechanisms of gene expression

  • How genotype affects phenotype

  • Mutations, genetic diversity and natural selection

  • Genetic engineering and biotechnology

Topics of the Unit

  • 6.1: DNA and RNA structure

  • 6.2: Replication

  • 6.3: Transcription and RNA processing

  • 6.4: Translation

  • 6.5: Regulation of Gene Expression

  • 6.6: Gene Expression and Cell Specialization

  • 6.7: Mutation

  • 6.8: Biotechnology

Unit 7: Natural Selection

13-20% of Exam

You’ll learn about Darwin’s theory, the concept of natural selection and evolution

Topics may Include

  • Evidential support for evolution and common ancestry

  • The mechanisms of natural selection and speciation

  • Enviromental and human caused factors in evolution

  • Charting species ancestry through phylogentic trees and cladograms

  • Extinction

  • Models of the origin of life on Earth

Topics of the Exam

  • 7.1: Introduction to Natural Selection

  • 7.2: Natural Selection

  • 7.3 Artifical Selection

  • 7.4: Population Genetics

  • 7.5: Hardy-Weinberg Equallibrium

  • 7.6 Evidence of Evolution

  • 7.7: Common Ancestory

  • 7.8 Continuing Evolution

  • 7.9 Phylogeny

  • 7.10: Speciation

  • 7.11: Extinction

  • 7.12: Variations in Population

  • 7.13: Origins on Earth

Unit 8: Ecosystems

10-15% of Exam

You’ll explore biological concepts at a broader organism level and analyse how populations interact with ecosystems

Topics may include

  • Communcation and responses to enviromental change

  • Energy Flow within and across ecosystems

  • Factors in the growth, density and success of populations

  • Factors in community and ecosystem dynamics

  • Invasive species, human interaction and enviromental changes

Topics in this Unit

  • 8.1: Responses to the enviroment

  • 8.2: Energy flow through ecosystems

  • 8.3: Population Ecology

  • 8.4: Effect of density of population

  • 8.5: Community Ecology

  • 8.6: Biodiversity

  • 8.7 Disruptions to Ecosystems