BIO - TERMS - PIGMENT

Question 1

accessory pigments

Answer 1

Visible light–absorbing pigments (carotenoids, xanthophylls, and phycobilins) in plants and photosynthetic bacteria that complement chlorophylls in trapping energy from sunlight.

Question 2

antenna complex

Answer 2

Part of a photosystem that captures light energy and channels it into the photochemical reaction center. It consists of protein complexes that bind large numbers of chlorophyll molecules and other pigments.

Question 3

anthocyanin

Answer 3

A purple to blue plant flavenoid pigment present in many foods, such as blueberries, that have potential health benefits, such as cancer prevention as well as antiaging and anti-inflammatory effects. They are essentially anthocyanidins with sugar moieties attached.

Question 4

Anthocyanins

Answer 4

Red purple and blue pigments that belong to a class of plant secondarymetabolites called flavonoids; anthocyanins are composed of phenolic anthocyanidin moieties and sugars.

Question 5

bacteriochlorophyll

Answer 5

A photosynthetic pigment that transfers electrons for photophosphorylation; found in anoxygenic photosynthetic bacteria.

Question 6

bacteriorhodopsin

Answer 6

Pigmented protein found in the plasma membrane of a salt-loving archaeon, Halobacterium salinarium (Halobacterium halobium). Pumps protons out of the cell in response to light.

Question 7

Betaxanthins

Answer 7

Yellow nitrogen-containing pigments. The core structure is a non-enzymatically formed condensation product of one molecule of betalamic acid (derived from one molecule of tyrosine) and one amino acid.

Question 8

Bilin

Answer 8

Linear tetrapyrroles that are biological pigments.

Question 9

Biliverdin

Answer 9

A green pigment formed from heme.

Question 10

Bodying agents and thickeners

Answer 10

Improve thickness and creaminess of the formulation. This is usually achieved by using salt, fatty alcohols, waxes, or gums. Gums have the advantage of acting as foam stabilizers and suspending agents able to keep insoluble particles like pigments or zinc pyrithione in suspension.

Question 11

Betacyanins

Answer 11

Reddish nitrogen-containing pigments. The core structure is derived from two molecules of tyrosine.

Question 12

Albinism

Answer 12

Absence of pigment in skin, hair, and eyes of an animal. Absence of chlorophyll in plants.

Question 13

chlorophyll a

Answer 13

A photosynthetic pigment that transfers electrons for photophosphorylation; found in plant, algae, and cyanobacteria.

Question 14

Chromatic adaptation of photosynthesis

Answer 14

A process that helps to optimize light-absorption of photosynthesis; adaptation is mediated by alterations in antenna pigment composition at the thylakoid membranes of chloroplasts.

Question 15

intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells

Answer 15

Light-sensitive neurons in the ganglion cell layer of the retina that transduce light with the photopigment melanopsin.

Question 16

iris

Answer 16

The circular, pigmented muscle that controls the size of the pupil in the eye.

Question 17

Lipofuscin

Answer 17

“Age pigment,” formed from partially oxidized lipids and partially denatured proteins.

Question 18

melanocyte

Answer 18

(mel′ă-nō-sı̄t) Pigment-producing cell in the basal layer of the epidermis.

Question 19

carotenoids

Answer 19

Lipid-soluble photosynthetic pigments made up of isoprene units.

Question 20

phycoerythrin

Answer 20

A light harvesting protein pigment made by algae and used in conjunction with flow cytometry, it can also be recognized as a ligand by some γ:δ T-cell receptors.

Question 21

pyocyanin

Answer 21

A blue-green pigment produced by Pseudomonas aeruginosa.