Test Compilation BIO 102 14

Comprehensive Biology Study Summary

This summary covers key concepts in Biology, including reproduction, plant biology, microbiology, human anatomy and physiology, zoology, and biochemistry, as derived from the provided questions and their associated answers.

I. General Biology & Cell Biology

• A plant cell can be distinguished from an animal cell by its rigid cell wall.
• The plant kingdom is fundamentally eukaryotic.

II. Reproduction

A. Asexual Reproduction

• Asexual reproduction occurs when one organism carries out reproduction.
• Examples of asexual reproduction in plants include vegetative propagation via rhizomes (a modified underground stem) and budding.

B. Sexual Reproduction

• Sexual reproduction typically involves two organisms and the formation of gametes (both male and female).
• In plants, sexual reproduction occurs through the formation of gametes.
• Autogamy is the process by which pollen is transferred from an anther to the stigma of the *same plant*.

C. General Reproduction

• Both sexual and asexual reproduction methods are possible in plants.

III. Plant Biology

A. Growth & Development

• The irreversible increase in size and mass in plants is called growth.
• The part of the plant where growth mainly occurs is the meristem (e.g., apical meristem in root and shoot tips).
• Auxin is the plant hormone primarily responsible for cell elongation.
• Abscisic acid promotes seed dormancy.
• Phototropism in plants refers to growth toward light.

B. Photosynthesis

• Carbon dioxide is required for photosynthesis.
• Sugars and oxygen are end-products of photosynthesis.
• Chlorophyll is usually found in the leaves.

C. Flower Anatomy & Reproduction

• The female reproductive part of a flower is called the pistil.
• The calyx is composed of structures known as sepals.
• The corolla is composed of structures known as petals.
• Pollination involves the transfer of pollen from the anther to the stigma.
• A plant having both male and female flowers on the same plant is said to be monoecious.
• Cross-pollination can occur in various plant types, but monoecious plants can also self-pollinate. Dioecious plants (having male and female flowers on separate plants) *require* cross-pollination.
• The production of different types of spores is known as heterospores.

D. Plant Adaptations

• The waxy cuticle and lignin are compounds crucial for adaptation to dryness.
• In terms of motility, plants are sedentary.

E. Plant Life Cycles

• In plants, the sporophytic phase is diploid.

F. Historical Experiments

• Boysen-Jensen demonstrated that a chemical signal travels from the tip to the growing region in phototropism. He used an agar block or mica to separate the coleoptile tip from its lower part.
• In Darwin's experiment, the tip of the coleoptile was covered to stop phototropism.

IV. Microbiology & Virology

A. Viruses

• Examples of antiviral drugs include Acyclovir, Oseltamivir, Remdesivir, and Antiretrovirals.
• Antibiotics are NOT antiviral drugs.
• A live attenuated vaccine uses a weakened form of the pathogen. Other vaccine types include Inactivated, Subunit, and mRNA vaccines.
• The virus family for Human herpesvirus 1 is Herpesviridae.
• A viral genus example is Simplexvirus.
• In virology, "Species" refers to the specific type of virus (e.g., Human herpesvirus 1).
• The Lytic cycle is characterized by immediate replication and destruction of the host cell.
• A Prophage (Lysogenic) refers to a virus that integrates its DNA into the host genome.

B. Bacteria

• Major phyla in bacteria include groups like Proteobacteria and Firmicutes.
• Binary fission is a method of bacterial reproduction.
• Bacteria can acquire genes from other bacteria through Horizontal Gene Transfer.
• Traditional subdivisions (Phyla/Classes) are part of bacterial classification.

C. Antifungal Agents

• Antifungal agents are drugs used to treat fungal infections.

D. Microorganisms (General)

• Plants are generally NOT considered a major group of microorganisms (unlike viruses, fungi, and bacteria).

V. Human Anatomy & Physiology

A. Respiratory System

• The respiratory system in insects is called the tracheal system.
• The actual location where the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide occurs is the alveoli.
• The upper airway of the lung does NOT include the bronchi (it includes pharynx, nose, sinuses).
• The respiratory system is essential for providing oxygen for cellular functions and removing carbon dioxide, a waste product.

B. Circulatory System

• The coronary circulation provides blood supply to the muscles of the heart.
• Pulmonary circulation is where deoxygenated blood is pumped away from the heart to the lungs.
• Deoxygenated blood is brought to the lungs from the heart by the pulmonary artery.

C. Nutrition

• The end product of protein digestion is amino acid.
• Saprotrophic nutrition involves obtaining food by absorption through the cell or body surface from dead organic material.
• Animals take in food for growth, as raw material for building and tissue replacement, and to provide energy, but NOT for the maintenance of poor health.
• Iron is the mineral salt required for the formation of haem in haemoglobin.
• Carnassial teeth (with sharp cusps for cutting/crushing bones) are formed by the last upper premolar and the first lower molar.
• The liver is not an organ of respiration.

VI. Zoology

• Sponges (Poriferans) are a group of animals that do not have symmetry and do not have locomotory organs.
• Animals with an exoskeleton include snails, grasshoppers, and beetles. Tilapia (fish) do not have an exoskeleton.
• An example of an animal with an endoskeleton is a dog.
• Most animals are triploblastic in their embryonic stages, but Porifera are an exception as they are diploblastic or lack true tissues.
• Hydra uses its tentacles to acquire food.

VII. Biochemistry

• Maltose and lactose are examples of oligosaccharides (specifically disaccharides).
• The most complex class of carbohydrates is polysaccharides.