Variety Of Living Organisms Flashcards
What are animals?
Multicellular organisms with nervous coordination, no cell walls, and cannot carry out photosynthesis. They store carbohydrate as glycogen.
Examples include insects, mammals, and birds.
What is binomial naming?
A system for naming species using two names: the genus and the species.
Example: The common name ‘Lion’ corresponds to the scientific name ‘Panthera’.
What are pathogens?
Microorganisms that cause disease, including fungi, protoctists, prokaryotes, and viruses.
What characterizes protoctists?
Microscopic, single-celled organisms with features similar to either animal cells (e.g., Amoeba) or plant cells (e.g., Chlorella).
Example: Plasmodium is a pathogenic protoctist that causes malaria.
What are plants?
Multicellular organisms that can carry out photosynthesis and store carbohydrate as starch. Their cells have cell walls.
Examples include flowering plants, legumes, and deciduous trees.
What are fungi?
Organisms that can be single-celled or multicellular, do not photosynthesize, and feed by saprotrophic nutrition.
Multicellular fungi are organized into a mycelium made from hyphae.
How do fungi store carbohydrates?
Fungi store carbohydrates as glycogen.
What are viruses?
Non-living parasitic particles that reproduce inside living cells and cause disease, consisting of a protein coat containing DNA or RNA.
Examples include HIV, SARS-CoV-2, and influenza virus.
What is classification in biology?
The grouping of living organisms based on their physical and behavioral characteristics.
What are the five kingdoms of living organisms?
Animals, plants, fungi, prokaryotes (monera), and protoctists (protists).
Viruses are not considered an official kingdom.
What defines eukaryotic cells?
More complex cells with membrane-bound structures, including a nucleus that stores genetic information.
What are prokaryotic cells?
Simpler, usually smaller cells without a nucleus, often single-celled, and may have a flagellum for movement.
What is a key characteristic of prokaryotic organisms?
They are typically single-celled organisms, such as bacteria.
What do prokaryotic cells contain?
Cytoplasm, a cell membrane, a cell wall, plasmids, and DNA in a circular chromosome.
What is cellulose?
A carbohydrate that forms fibers and is found in the cell walls of plant cells.
What is glycogen?
The molecule used as an energy store in animal cells and fungi.
What is a hypha?
One of the long, thin threads of which the body of a fungus is made; each hypha is one cell thick.
What is mycelium?
The mass or network of hyphae that makes up the body of a fungus.
What are saprotrophs?
Organisms that feed on dead or dying organic matter, typically by excreting enzymes and absorbing the digested nutrients.
What is starch?
The molecule used as an energy store in plant cells.
What are the common features of eukaryotic organisms?
Eukaryotic organisms include plants, animals, fungi, and protoctists. They are multicellular or single-celled and have complex cellular structures.
What are the characteristics of plants?
Plants are multicellular organisms with chloroplasts, capable of photosynthesis. Their cells have cellulose cell walls and they store carbohydrates as starch or sucrose.
Examples include flowering plants like maize and herbaceous legumes like peas or beans.
What are the characteristics of animals?
Animals are multicellular organisms without chloroplasts, incapable of photosynthesis. They have no cell walls, usually exhibit nervous coordination, and can move. They often store carbohydrates as glycogen.
Examples include mammals like humans and insects like houseflies and mosquitoes.
What are the characteristics of fungi?
Fungi cannot perform photosynthesis and are typically organized into a mycelium made of hyphae. Their cells have walls made of chitin and they feed through saprotrophic nutrition. They may store carbohydrates as glycogen.
Examples include Mucor and yeast.
What are protoctists?
Protoctists are microscopic single-celled organisms. Some resemble animal cells, while others have chloroplasts like plants.
An example is Plasmodium, which causes malaria.
What are the characteristics of bacteria?
Bacteria are microscopic single-celled organisms with a cell wall, cell membrane, cytoplasm, and plasmids. They lack a nucleus and have a circular chromosome of DNA. Some can photosynthesize, while most feed on other organisms.
Examples include Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Pneumococcus.
What is a pathogen?
A pathogen is an organism that causes disease. Pathogens can include fungi, bacteria, protoctists, or viruses.
What are the characteristics of viruses?
Viruses are not considered living organisms. They are small, parasitic particles that reproduce only inside living cells and infect all types of living organisms. They have a protein coat and contain either DNA or RNA.
Examples include the tobacco mosaic virus, influenza virus, and HIV.
