Overall quick tests Flashcards
What is a chromosome?
A long strand of DNA
What are alleles?
Different versions of the same gene
What is meant by a carrier of a genetic disease?
Someone who could possibly pass on the disease to a child, but doesn’t have it themselves.
What is a phenotype? (HT)
The characteristics that an individual shows
Why will someone with only one allele for Huntington’s disease definitely develop the disease?
Because the allele for Huntington’s disease is dominant.
Give some symptoms of cystic fibrosis.
- Weight loss
- Breathing difficulty
- Chest infection
- Difficulty digesting food
Why are genetic tests carried out on fetuses?
To see if the fetus has any faulty genes/alleles
What is a stem cell?
An unspecialised cell
A stem cell taken from bone marrow is what type of stem cell?
A adult stem cell
What type of microorganism cant be treated with antibiotics?
Virus
Which 3 conditions are ideally needed for microorganisms to grow rapidly?
- Warmth
- Moisture
- Nutrients (food)
Which type of blood cell ‘fights’ microorganisms?
White blood cell
What are the unique markers on the cell surface of a microorganism called?
Antigens
Why are microorganisms like MRSA often called ‘superbugs’?
They are resistant to anitbiotics
Why is the heart called a double pump?
The left and right sides of the heart pump blood to different parts of the body
What is measured by the higher number in a blood pressure reading?
Pressure as the heart is contracting
What is the name of the process that maintains the internal conditions in the body?
Homeostatis
What is meant by a species?
Similar individuals capable of interbreeding to produce fertile offspring
How are cactus leaves adapted to reduce water loss by evaporation?
The leaves are reduced to spines
What does a food chain show?
Feeding relationships between organisms
What is the ultimate source or energy for the Earth?
The Sun
What is a heterotroph?
An animal that consumes other organisms
What do detritivores feed on? (HT)
Dead organisms
What process removes carbon dioxide from the air?
Photosynthesis
What is natural selection?
When individuals have characteristics that suit their environment/increase their chances of survival in an environment
Name the scientist who suggested the theory of natural selection.
Charles Darwin
What is meant by ‘sustainability’?
Meeting people’s needs without damaging the Earth’s environment for future generations
What do nitrogen-fixing bacteria do? (HT)
Remove nitrogen from the air
What process in bacteria breaks down nitrates to nitrogen? (HT)
Denitrification
What is the function of mitochondria in a cell?
They contain enzymes for aerobic respiration
What are 3 structures found in plant cells but not in animal cells?
- Cell wall
- Chloroplasts
- Permanent vacuole
What are enzymes?
Protein molecules that speed up reactions in cells/act as catalysts in living things
What is respiration?
The release of energy (from food chemicals) in all living cells
How is anaerobic respiration different from aerobic respiration?
Anaerobic respiration doesn’t use oxygen whereas aerobic does use oxygen
What word describes an enzyme’s structure when it’s destroyed? (HT)
Denatured
What is the green pigment that absorbs light energy in a plant cell?
Chlorophyll
What is the waste product of photosynthesis?
Oxygen
What do plants needs from the soil to add to glucose to make amino acids?
Nitrates
What is a transect?
- A random section across an area
- A representative area to sample
What is diffusion?
The movement of substances from a region of high to low concentration
What is the only substance moved by osmosis?
Water
What is a tissue?
A group of similar cells to perform a function
Name the process by which body cells divide to produce new identical cells.
Mitosis
Where are gametes produced in the body?
- Testes
- Ovaries
What is the name of the single cell produced after the fertilisation of an egg cell by a sperm cell?
Zygote
What is the missing word?
Adenine, cytosine, thymine and guanine are the four _______ in a DNA molecule.
bases
What carries genetic information from the DNA in the nucleus to the cytoplasm? (HT)
Messenger RNA (mRNA)
What is the name given to the areas of plants where growth occurs?
Meristems
Which tubes carry water up a plant?
Xylem (vessels)
Which tubes carry dissolved food in a plant?
Phloem
What is needed for a cutting from a plant to develop roots?
Hormone/Auxin
Plants grow towards light. What is this called?
Phototropism
What is a stimulus?
A change in an organism’s environment
What type of neuron carries impulses from the central nervous system to an effector such as a muscle?
Motor neuron
What is the name of the gap between two neurons?
Synapse
What is the name of the long fibre attached to the cell body in a motor neuron?
Axon
What is a reflex action?
A fast, automatic, involuntary response to a stimulus
What is the name given to the type of action when the final response has no direct connection to the stimulus?
Conditioned reflex action
What develop in the human brain to allow learning from experience, e.g. language?
Neuron pathways
Which part of the brain is most concerned with intelligence and memory?
Cerebral cortex
Name the technique that produces images of cross-sections of the brain.
MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging)
What is memory?
The ability to store an retrieve information
What is the ‘type’ of memory when the brain only stores information for a limited time?
Short-term memory
How do drugs like ecstasy and prozac affect the nervous system?
They affect the passage of an impulse across a synapse
What are the tough, fibrous tissues that connect bone to muscle?
Tendons
What are the pair of muscles that work opposite to each other called?
Antagonistic pairs
Give the formula for working out body mass index (BMI).
BMI = body mass (kg) / [height (m)] squared
Give the main symptoms of a sprain.
- Swelling
- Redness
- Pain at the joint
- Warmth
What is the function of red blood cells?
They carry oxygen around the body
Name the main artery carrying blood from the heart to the rest of the body (not to the lungs).
Aorta
How does shivering help to raise your body temperature?
Heat is released into the blood as a result of increased respiration
Name the hormone that’s released to cause sugar to be taken from the blood by cells.
Insulin
What is the difference between type 1 and type 2 diabetes?
Type 1 occurs when the pancreas stops producing insulin, whereas type 2 occurs when the body stops responding to its own insulin or doesnt make enough insulin
Why are complex carbohydrates more likely to maintain body sugar levels than simple carbohydrates?
Complex carbohydrates release sugar more slowly, whereas simple carbohydrates release it rapidly
Why does the removal of trees and vegetation cause soil erosion?
The roots bind the soil together and without them the soil is washed away. The leaves also protect the soil from direct rainfall.
Why is there no waste in a perfect closed loop system?
Any waste output is used as input in another part of the system
Why are decomposer organisms, such as fungi, so important to ecosystems?
They break down waste materials and dead organisms so the products can be recycled
How does the use of quotas in sea fishing help to sustain stocks?
It allows fish to remain and reproduce to increase populations
What are containers of growing microorganisms that make products useful to industry, e.g. enzymes, called?
Fermenters
What is genetic modification?
Changing the genetic make-up/genotype of an organism
What is nanotechnology?
The science of working with extremely small structures
What are unspecialised cells that have the potential to become any specialised cell called?
Stem cells
