2510119
Description
Flashcards by Kathryn Bellis, updated more than 1 year ago
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Created by Kathryn Bellis
over 9 years ago
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| Question | Answer |
| Stimulus/Stimuli | A change in an organism's environment (internal or external) that can be detected by receptor cells. |
| Receptor | A specialised cell that detects stimuli and initiates nerve impulses. May be individual cells or concentrated in sense organs (e.g eye) |
| Taxis/Taxes | Behavioural response in which an organisms shows directional movement to (positive) or away (negative) from a stimulus. |
| Kinesis/Kineses | A change in the speed of random movement of an organism in response to a environmental stimulus. |
| Tropisms | Growth (in plants) in response to a directional stimulus. Can be positive (growing towards the stimulus) or negative (growing away from the stimulus) |
| Reflex | A reflex is a fixed movement of some part of an organism/animal in response to a particular stimulus. |
| Sensory Neurone | A nerve cell that carries impulses from a receptor to the CNS |
| Motor Neurone | A nerve cell that carries impulses away from the CNS to the effectors. |
| CNS | Central Nervous System - the brain & spinal cord. The CNS processes incoming information and produces a response. |
| Effectors | Organs that bring about a response - usually muscles or glands. |
| Myogenic | (E.G HEART) The muscle contraction originates from within the muscle itself. |
| Medulla Oblongata | Location of the cardiovascular centre that controls heart rate |
| Acetylcholine (Ach) | Neurotransmitter secreted from the synapses of many nerves, including most of the PNS. |
| Acetylcholinesterase | Enzyme found in the synaptic cleft of cholinergic nerves, where it breaks down the acetylcholine into Ethanoic Acid & Choline. Prevents overstimulation. |
| Actin | Protein found in muscle contraction. |
| Action Potential | A nerve impulse - a wave of depolarisation that spreads along the axon. |
| Addition (Genetics) | Type of genetic mutation in which a base is added, causing frameshift in one direction. Causes many codons to be changed. |
| Auxin | Plant growth regulator (aka plant hormone). |
| Adenyl Cyclase* | Enzyme in mechanism of hormone action. Activated when a hormone fits into a receptor cell on the cell surface membrane, which activates a second messenger, leading to enzymes in the cell being activated/deactivated. |
| Adrenaline | Fast-acting hormone. Secreted by adrenal glands. Prepares body for action; raised heartbeat, BP, and glucose levels. |
| Adrenergic Synapse | In the SNS, a synapse that secretes noradrenaline. |
| Anti-codon | Seq^n of 3 BASES found on tRNA that codes for a specific amino acid. Binds to complementary codon on mRNA during translation. |
| BMR | Basal Metabolic Rate. Measured as O2 consumption per unit body mass per unit of time when the organism is at rest. |
| Blind Spot | Point on the retina where the optic nerve joins. No rods/cones. |
| Carcinogen | A cancer causing agent. |
| Cholinergic Synapse | Synapse that secretes acetylcholine. |
| Cloning | The process of making a genetically identical copy. |
| Codon (aka triplet) | A group of three bases in DNA or RNA that codes for an amino acid. |
| cDNA | Complementary DNA which has been made from mature RNA by REVERSE TRANSCRIPTION. |
| Reverse Transcriptase | Enzyme that catalyses the process of reverse transcription. |
| Cyclic AMP | The second messenger in hormone action. The enzyme adenyl Cyclase turns ATP into this. |
| Cystic Fibrosis | Recessive genetic disease in which a faulty allele fails to make membrane protein CFTR. Symptom: buildup of sticky mucus in the lungs, pancreas, and reproductive system. |
| Degenerate Code | 64 Codons, 20 amino acids. Some amino acids have more than one codon. |
| Deletion (Genetics) | Type of gene mutation in which a base is lost, causing a frameshift. |
| Dideoxy Sequencing | Technique used to find the base sequence of a piece of DNA. |
| DNA Polymerase | Enzyme that catalyses the addition of complementary nucleotides during DNA replication. |
| Ectotherm | An animal whose core body temperature is similar to that of the environment. They can thermoregulate, but only by modifying behaviour. |
| Endotherm | An animal that can maintain a stable core body temperature regardless of the environmental temperature. |
| EPSP | Excitatory PostSynaptic Potential - a charge that builds up in a neurone after synaptic transmission. If a threshold is exceeded, an impulse is generated. |
| Fovea | Region of the retina where cones are concentrated. |
| Frameshift | In mutation, a situation where a base is lost or added, causing all other bases to move along in a particular direction. |
| FSH | Follicle Stimulating Hormone |
| Glucagon | Hormone, secreted by alpha cells in the islets of Langerhans in the pancreas, in response to LOW BLOOD GLUCOSE LEVELS. |
| Gluconeogenesis | The production of new glucose from non-carbohydrate sources (e.g proteins or lipids). Happens during fasting/dieting/starving when glucose and glycogen levels are low. |
| Glycogen | The main storage carbohydrate in animals. Highly branched polymer of glucose. |
| Glycogenesis | The production of glycogen by the polymerisation of glucose. |
| Glycogenolysis | The breakdown of glycogen to release glucose. Stimulated (indirectly) by Glucagon. |
| Homeostasis | The ability of an organism to maintain a constant internal environment/maintained within certain limits. |
| Hormone | Chemical, secreted by endocrine glands, that has an effect on a target organ or cell. |
| Hypothalamus | Part of the brain which is sensitive to many different internal and external stimuli. Controls the secretions of the pituitary gland and the whole endocrine system. THERMOREGULATION. Heat loss/gain centres located here. |
| In Vitro | Carried out outside of an organism. "In Glass" |
| In Vivo | Process happening in living cells, tissues or whole organisms. "In Life" |
| Insulin | Hormone made by BETA cells in the islets of Langerhans (pancreas). Works by stimulating cells to open extra glucose channels in cell membranes, so it can leave the blood and enter cells where it can be metabolised. |
| Iodopsin | Light-sensitive pigment found in CONE CELLS on the retina. |
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