Vocabulary Flashcards
Gamete
A gamete is a reproductive cell (sperm or egg) that carries half the genetic material of an organism.
Cell cycle
The cell cycle is the series of stages a cell goes through to grow, replicate DNA, and divide.
Interphase
Interphase is the longest stage of the cell cycle, where the cell grows, replicates DNA, and prepares for division.
Mitosis
Mitosis is the process of cell division that produces two identical daughter cells.
Cytokinesis
Cytokinesis is the final step of cell division, where the cytoplasm splits to form two separate cells.
Spindle fibers
Spindle fibers are protein structures that help separate chromosomes during cell division.
Equatorial plane
The equatorial plane is the central region of a cell where chromosomes align during metaphase.
Prometaphase
Prometaphase is the stage of mitosis where the nuclear envelope breaks down and spindle fibers attach to chromosomes.
Cleavage furrow
A cleavage furrow is the indentation that forms during cytokinesis in animal cells, leading to cell division.
Cell plate
A cell plate is a structure that forms in plant cells during cytokinesis, eventually becoming the new cell wall.
Telomere
A telomere is the protective cap at the end of a chromosome that prevents loss of genetic information during cell division.
Telomerase reverse transcriptase
Telomerase reverse transcriptase is an enzyme that adds repetitive DNA sequences to the ends of telomeres, helping maintain chromosome stability during cell division.
G0 phase
The G0 phase is a resting phase where cells are not actively dividing or preparing to divide.
Cancer
Cancer is uncontrolled cell growth that can form tumors and spread.
p53 gene
The p53 gene helps prevent tumor growth by regulating the cell cycle and inducing cell death when necessary.
Metastasis
Metastasis is the spread of cancer cells from the original tumor to other parts of the body.
Targeted therapy
Targeted therapy is a cancer treatment that targets specific molecules involved in cancer cell growth.
Meiosis
Meiosis is the process of cell division that produces four genetically diverse gametes with half the chromosome number.
Karyotype
A karyotype is an image of an organism’s chromosomes, arranged by size and number.
Reduction division
Reduction division is the type of cell division in meiosis that halves the chromosome number.
Tetrad
A tetrad is a group of four chromatids formed during meiosis by the pairing of homologous chromosomes.
Synapsis
A fusion of chromosome Pairs at the start of meoisis
Gametogenesis
The production of gametes from haploid precursor cells
Nondisjunction
The failure of the chromosomes to separate
Amiocentesis
A prenatal test that takes amniotic fluid from around your body in the uterus
Chorionic villas sampling
Chorionic villus sampling (CVS) is a prenatal test that involves taking a small sample of placental tissue to test for genetic conditions in a fetus.
Enzyme
An enzyme is a protein that speeds up chemical reactions in living organisms.
Nucleotide
A nucleotide is the basic building block of DNA and RNA.
Nitrogenous base
A nitrogenous base is a molecule in DNA and RNA that contains nitrogen and pairs with a complementary base to form the genetic code.
Double helix
A double helix is DNA’s twisted, ladder-like shape.
Antiparallel
Antiparallel describes the opposite directional alignment of DNA strands in a double helix.
Hydrogen bonding
Hydrogen bonding is a weak attraction between a hydrogen atom and an electronegative atom like oxygen or nitrogen.
Hellicase
Helicase is an enzyme that unwinds DNA by breaking hydrogen bonds between strands.
Binding protein
Binding proteins prevent DNA strands from rejoining during replication.
Replication bubble
A replication bubble is a region of DNA where the strands have separated, allowing replication to occur.
Replication fork
A replication fork is the Y-shaped region where DNA is being unwound and replicated.
Primase
Primase is an enzyme that synthesizes a short RNA primer to start DNA replication.
Primer
A primer is a short strand of RNA that provides a starting point for DNA synthesis during replication.
Okazaki fragments
Okazaki fragments are short segments of DNA synthesized on the lagging strand during DNA replication.
Ligase
Ligase joins DNA fragments by forming bonds between them.
Semiconservative replication
Semiconservative replication means each DNA molecule has one old strand and one new strand.
Gene
A gene is a segment of DNA that codes for a specific protein or function.
Transcription in protein synthesis
Transcription is the process where DNA is copied into messenger RNA (mRNA) to carry genetic information for protein synthesis.
Translation in protein synthesis
Translation is the process where mRNA is used to assemble amino acids into a protein at the ribosome.
Rna polymerse
RNA polymerase is an enzyme that synthesizes RNA from a DNA template during transcription.
Promotors
Promoters are specific DNA sequences that signal the start of transcription, guiding RNA polymerase to the correct location.
TATA box
The TATA box is a DNA sequence in promoters that helps position RNA polymerase for transcription.
Protein release factor
A protein release factor is a molecule that stops translation by recognizing a stop codon and releasing the polypeptide.
Ribosome attachment sites (A, P, E)
The A site holds incoming tRNA, the P site holds the growing polypeptide, and the E site is where tRNA exits.
Aminoacyl tRNA synthetase
Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase is an enzyme that attaches the correct amino acid to its tRNA.
Mutagen
A mutagen is an agent that causes DNA mutations.
Frameshift mutation
A frameshift mutation is a DNA change that shifts the reading frame, altering the entire protein sequence.
Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are organic compounds made of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, used for energy and structural support.
Lipids
Lipids are fats, oils, and waxes, used for energy storage, insulation, and cell membrane structure.
Proteins
Proteins are made of amino acids and support various cell functions.
