protist plant, fungi vocabulary Flashcards
Protist
A protist is any eukaryotic organism that is not an animal, plant or fungus. The protists do not form a natural group, or clade, but are often grouped together for convenience, like algae or invertebrates
Heterotroph
an organism deriving its nutritional requirements from complex organic substances.
Eukaryote
A eukaryote is any organism whose cells have a cell nucleus and other organelles enclosed within membranes. Eukaryotes belong to the domain Eukaryota or Eukarya, and can be unicellular or multicellular organisms.
Decomposer
Decomposers are organisms that break down dead or decaying organisms, and in doing so, they carry out the natural process of decomposition.
Parasite
In biology, parasitism is a non-mutual relationship between species, where one species, the parasite, benefits at the expense of the other, the host. Traditionally parasite primarily meant an organism visible to the naked eye, or a macroparasite.
Host
an animal or plant on or in which a parasite or commensal organism lives.
Fungi
A fungus is any member of the group of eukaryotic organisms that includes microorganisms such as yeasts and molds, as well as the more familiar mushrooms.
Spore
a minute, typically one-celled, reproductive unit capable of giving rise to a new individual without sexual fusion, characteristic of lower plants, fungi, and protozoans.
Lichen
A lichen is a composite organism that arises from algae or cyanobacteria living among filaments of multiple fungi in a symbiotic relationship. The combined lichen has properties different from those of its component organisms.
Nonvascular plant
Non-vascular plants are plants without a vascular system consisting of xylem and phloem. Although non-vascular plants lack these particular tissues, many possess simpler tissues that are specialized for internal transport of water.
Vascular plant
Vascular plants, also known as tracheophytes and also higher plants, form a large group of plants that are defined as those land plants that have lignified tissues for conducting water and minerals throughout the plant.
Gymnosperm
The gymnosperms are a group of seed-producing plants that includes conifers, cycads, Ginkgo, and gnetophytes. The term “gymnosperm” comes from the Greek composite word γυμνόσπερμος, meaning “naked seeds”.
Angiosperm
The flowering plants, also known as angiosperms, Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta, are the most diverse group of land plants, with 416 families, approximately 13,164 known genera and c. 295,383 known species.
Photosynthesis
Photosynthesis is a process used by plants and other organisms to convert light energy into chemical energy that can later be released to fuel the organisms’ activities
Cellular respiration
Cellular respiration is a set of metabolic reactions and processes that take place in the cells of organisms to convert biochemical energy from nutrients into adenosine triphosphate (ATP), and then release waste products.
Transpiration
Transpiration is the process of water movement through a plant and its evaporation from aerial parts, such as leaves, stems and flowers.
Tropism
the turning of all or part of an organism in a particular direction in response to an external stimulus.
Gravitropism
Gravitropism (also known as geotropism) is a turning or growth movement by a plant or fungus in response to gravity. It is a general feature of all higher and many lower plants as well as other organisms.
Phototropism
the orientation of a plant or other organism in response to light, either toward the source of light ( positive phototropism ) or away from it ( negative phototropism ).
Asexual Reproduction
Asexual reproduction is a type of reproduction by which offspring arise from a single organism, and inherit the genes of that parent only; it does not involve the fusion of gametes, and almost never changes the number of chromosomes.
Toxoplasmosis
a disease caused by toxoplasmas, transmitted chiefly through undercooked meat, or in soil or cat feces. Symptoms generally pass unremarked in adults, but infection can be dangerous to unborn children.
Malaria
an intermittent and remittent fever caused by a protozoan parasite that invades the red blood cells. The parasite is transmitted by mosquitoes in many tropical and subtropical regions.
Giardia
Giardia infection is an intestinal infection marked by abdominal cramps, bloating, nausea and bouts of watery diarrhea. Giardia infection is caused by a microscopic parasite that is found worldwide, especially in areas with poor sanitation and unsafe water.
