Lecture 2 Flashcards
Which organisms are able to thrive almost everywhere (including places too acidic, salty, cold, or hot for most other organisms)?
Prokaryotes
What are some key differences between prokaryotes and eukaryotes?
PROKARYOTES
They have smaller cell sizes (smaller in diameter)
They usually have no membrane, other than the cell membrane, which may be unfolded.
The DNA is not contained in a discrete region.
Small genome.
Presence of few organelles (ribosome being one of them)
Are eukaryotes more ancient or prokaryotes?
Prokaryotes
Most prokaryotes are _____, although some species form colonies.
Unicellular
What are the different shapes for prokaryotes?
Spheres-Spiral-Cylinder. SSC
What is the cell wall of eukaryotes made of?
Chitin or cellulose
What do bacterial cell walls contain?
Peptidoglycan, a network of sugar polymers cross-linked by polypeptides.
Which of the domains contains polysaccharides and proteins but lacks peptidoglycan?
Archaea
What is responsible for targeting peptidoglycans and damaging bacterial cell walls?
Antibiotics
What does it mean for something to be motile?
It can move.
How do motile bacteria move?
They propel themselves using the flagella that are structurally and functionally different from eukaryotic flagella.
Define Taxis. When does it happen?
Taxis is the ability to move toward or away from certain stimuli; it happens in a heterogenous environment.
What are characteristics of prokaryotes evolving and reproducing?
They can reproduce very quickly by binary fission and divide every 1-3 hours.
They can evolve rapidly due to their short generation times.
Do prokaryotes or eukaryotes have considerable genetic variation? What are factors attributed to this?
Prokaryotes; the three factors are rapid reproduction, mutation, and genetic recombination.
RMR. (Reproduction-Mutation-Recombination)
In what ways can prokaryotic DNA from different individuals be brought together?
Transformation-Transduction-Conjugation. TTC
Define Transformation
A prokaryotic cell can take up and incorporate foreign DNA from the surrounding environment in a process called transformation.
Define Transduction
The movement of genes in between bacteria by bacteriophages (viruses that infect bacteria)
Define Conjugation
Occurs when genetic material is transferred between two bacterial cells that are temporarily joined.
Define Phototrophs
Obtain energy from light.