mitosis and stem cells, reproduction and meiosis, non communicable diseases Flashcards
what does the nucleus of a cell contain?
- chromosomes
What are chromosomes made out of?
DNA molecules
What does a chromosome carry?
- many genes
What are genes?
a small section of DNA on a chromosome
What do genes do?
- carry instructions for making proteins
- determine characteristics of living things
how are chromosomes usually found?
- in pairs
- each chromosome in pair is usually of similar size and shape
- genes at the same location of each of matching chromosomes code for similar things
How many chromosomes do humans have?
23 pairs
different species have different numbers of chromosomes
what would chromomes look like in a cell that is not dividing?
- not be clearly visible
- made of only 1 DNA molecule
What are the three stages of the cell cycle?
1) cell growth- number of subcellular structures increase + DNA replicates to form 2 identical copies of each chromosome
2) mitosis- chromosomes separate then the nucleus divides in two
3) cell division- to make 2 identical daughter cells cytoplasm and cell membrane divides
What are the stages of mitosis?
1) newly replicated chromosomes are joined together
2) they move to the centre of the cell
3) chromosomes are pulled apart and move to opposite poles of the cell
4) the nucleus divides, each new nucleus contains one full set of chromosomes
What do you call cells that are divided by mitosis?
- genetically identical
What is mitosis used for?
- growth of multi cellular organisms
- repair and replacement of cells
What are cells in an early embryo?
- unspecialised
- can differentiate into most different types of human cells
What do scientists do to embryonic stem cells?
clone cells
(making genetically identical copies of cells)
What is the difference between adult stem cells and embryonic stem cells in terms of function?
- stem cells in adults can only produce a limited range of cell types
- replace cells that are worn out or damaged
- differentiate to produce few cell types
What are meristems?
specialised tissues in a plant that contains stem cells
What can cells produced by plant meristems do?
- differentiate into any type of plant cell throughout the life of a plant
Where can meristems be found?
in the growing tips of roots and shoots
How are stem cells used for medical treatment?
- replaces faulty or damaged cells
What is the cultivation process for stem cells?
therapeutic cloning
- collect cell from patient and donated egg cell
- egg cell nucleus replaced by nucleus from patient’s cell
- embryo made that has same genes as patient (therapeutic cloning)
- stem cells removed and used to treat patient
What are the advantages of therapeutic cloning?
- may treat diseases and replace faulty organs
- produces wider range of cells than possible than collecting adult stem cells
- not rejected by patient’s immune system
- many cells produced, some could be used in research
What are the disadvantages of therapeutic cloning?
- stem cells may transfer viral infection
- ethical issues- some people may think that embryo is still a life
- human egg cells are in short supply, collecting them has risks
- may have side effects that are not known while using stem cells
How are plant stem cells used in the laboratory?
- meristem cells cut from a plant
- cultured in laboratory
- produces identical new plants
- new plants are clones of parent plant
What are the advantages of growing plants from stem cells?
- large numbers of new plants produced cheaply and quickly
- rare species could be cloned to prevent exinction
- useful features in crop plants can be cloned from mertistem tissues = many identical useful plants for farmers
What is therapeutic cloning?
- therapeutic cloning produces stem cells from cloned embryos
- stem cells not rejected by patient’s body because they have the same genes as patient
how do you define health?
- the state of a person’s physical and mental well-being