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cell life processes
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Cell | The smallest structural and functional unit of an organism. (The basic building blocks of a living thing). |
| Prokaryote | A unicellular organism that has no membrane bound nucleus. Eg. Bacteria. |
| Eukaryote | An organism that is made up of cells that have a nucleus and other membrane bound organelles. Eg. plants and animals. |
| Organelle | A structure within a cell that has a specialised function. (Like organs in the human body). |
| Chloroplast | The organelle which is the site of photosynthesis. Found in plants and other photosynthetic organisms. |
| Starch Granule | An energy storage unit found in plants. (Starch is made up of lots of glucose molecules joined together). |
| Mitochondria | The organelle where respiration occurs. (Respiration is the process where energy is released from glucose/food). |
| Endoplasmic Reticulum | A network of membranes found throughout the cytoplasm which are involved in the transport of materials. |
| Nucleus | The organelle that controls cell activity. Contains the DNA. |
| Ribosome | The site of protein synthesis. Found in the cytoplasm or attached to the RER. |
| Golgi Apparatus | Receives proteins and lipids from the endoplasmic reticulum. It modifies, sorts and packs them into sealed droplets called vesicles. |
| Cytoplasm | Jelly-like fluid that fills the cell. Gives the cell shape and is the site of many chemical reactions. |
| Plasma Membrane | A thin, flexible layer around the cell. It regulates what goes in and out of the cell. |
| Cell Wall | A semi-rigid layer surrounding a plant cell. Provides strength and support for the cell. |
| Large Central Vacuole | An organelle that provides storage, support and shape for a plant cell. (small vacuoles are found in animal cells and are used for storage). |
| Lysosome | An organelle that removes wastes. Contains digestive enzymes. |
| Cristae | The folded inner membrane of a mitochondrion. Increases the surface area so that more reactions can occur. |
| Respiration | The process where energy is released from glucose(food). |
| Glycolysis | Releases energy from glucose by splitting the molecule up. |
| Anaerobic Respiration | Respiration without oxygen. |
| Fermentation | A type of anaerobic respiration that occurs in plant cells and some microorganisms (bacteria and yeast). |
| Aerobic Respiration | Respiration with oxygen. |
| ATP | Adenosine Triphosphate. An energy storage molecule. |
| Photosynthesis | The process where plants use the energy from sunlight to make glucose (an energy source) from carbon dioxide and water. |
| Glucose | A simple sugar. An energy source found in food, particularly carbohydrates. |
| Starch | An energy source that contains many glucose molecules joined together. |
| The Light Dependant Phase | Photolysis. The first phase of photosynthesis. The energy from light is used to split water (H2O) into hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O2). |
| The Light Independent Phase | Carbon Fixation. The second phase of photosynthesis. Carbon dioxide and hydrogen are used to make glucose. |
| Chlorophyll | A green pigment found in chloroplasts that absorbs light. Essential for photosynthesis. |
| Phospholipid bilayer | A membrane made of 2 layers of phospholipid molecules. Hydrophilic (water 'loving') heads on the outside, hydrophobic (water 'hating') tails on the inside. |
| Semi-permeable membrane | A membrane that lets some molecules through and keeps others out. |
| Fluid mosaic model | The plasma membrane contains proteins that are randomly dispersed and can move around in the phospholipid bilayer. |
| Concentration Gradient | The difference in the concentration of a substance in one area compared with another. (eg. across a membrane). |
| Passive transport | Cellular transport that does not require energy (ATP). Moves molecules down the concentration gradient. Eg. Diffusion, Osmosis, Facilitated diffusion. |
| Active transport | Cellular transport that requires energy (ATP). Moves molecules against/up the concentration gradient. Eg. Carrier proteins, Cytosis (Phagocytosis, Pinocytosis) |
| Diffusion | The movement of small molecules from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration. |
| Osmosis | The movement of water molecules from an area of high water concentration to an area of low water concentration. |
| Facilitated Diffusion | The movement of larger molecules from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration using a transport protein. |
| Phagocytosis | The process of engulfing and ingesting particles into the cell (Cell 'eating'.). Involves a section of the plasma membrane forming a vesicle around the particles. |
| Pinocytosis | The process of taking fluid into the cell (Cell 'drinking'). Involves a section of the plasma membrane forming a vesicle around the fluid. |
| Carrier Proteins | Proteins found in the lipid bilayer that allow the transport of small particles against their concentration gradient. ATP is required. |
| Hypotonic | A solution with a higher concentration of water molecules and lower concentration of solute molecules. |
| Hypertonic | A solution with a lower concentration of water molecules and higher concentration of solute molecules. |
| Isotonic | A Solution with the same concentration of solutes as another. |
| Turgid | A cell that is swollen due to a high water content. High pressure. |
| Flaccid | A cell that is limp due to loss of water. Low pressure. |
| Plasmolysis | When the plasma membrane separates from the cell wall of a plant cell as a result of low turgor pressure and water loss. |
| Lysis | When a cell bursts due to water gain and high pressure. |
| Protein | A molecule made up of amino acids. (Proteins have a large range of important functions in a cell eg. structure, transport, enzymes etc.) |
| Denature | When the bonds that give a protein its shape are broken (due to temperature or pH). As a result, the protein loses its shape and therefore cannot carry out its function. |
| Enzyme | A protein involved in biochemical reactions. A biological catalyst. |
| Active site | The area on an enzyme where the substrate binds during a reaction. The active site is specific to the substrate. |
| Substrate | The substance acted upon by an enzyme. |
| Anabolic | An enzyme controlled reaction that builds molecules. |
| Catabolic | An enzyme controlled reaction that breaks down molecules. |
| Lock and Key Model | The shape of the substrate and the active site match each other exactly. |
| Induced Fit Model | The shape of the substrate and active site are not exactly matched. Enzymes are flexible and will adjust their shape to fit the substrate during a reaction. |
| Activation Energy | The minimum amount of energy needed to make a reaction occur. |
| Particle Theory | All matter is made up of particles (atoms, ions, molecules) that are in constant motion. (The particles move faster as temperature increases). |
| Collision Theory | In order for a reaction to occur, reactants must collide with sufficient force and in the correct orientation. |
| Optimum Temperature | The temperature at which an enzyme's reaction rate is fastest. |
| Cofactor | A substance which binds to the active site of an enzyme and helps the reaction to occur. |
| Inhibitor | A substance which binds to/distorts the active site of an enzyme and prevents the reaction from occuring. |
| Catalyst | A substance that increases the rate of a reaction without being permanently changed itself. |
| DNA | Deoxyribonucleic acid. A double helix shaped molecule that carries the genetic code. Found in the nucleus. |
| Nucleotide | The repeating unit that makes up DNA. |
| Base Pairing Rule | Adenine pairs with Thymine, Cytosine pairs with Guanine. |
| Semiconservative | One strand of a new DNA molecule comes from the parent molecule while the other is newly synthesised. |
| DNA Replication | The process where exact copies of the DNA are produced.(Occurs before cell division to ensure that daughter cells will have a complete copy of the genetic information). |
| Okazaki Fragment | The fragments that result from the synthesis of DNA on the lagging strand. Occur because DNA polymerase can only move in a 5' to 3' direction. |
| DNA Helicase | The enzyme that unwinds/unzips the DNA. |
| DNA Polymerase | The enzyme that binds the nucleotides together to form a new DNA strand. |
| DNA Ligase | The enzyme that binds the Okazaki fragments together. |
| Mitosis | Cell division for growth and repair. Produces somatic(body) cells. |
| The Cell Cycle | The series of events that occur in a cell leading up to cell division. |
| Chromosome | A section of DNA. (Humans have 46). |
| Daughter Cell | New cells produced by cell division (mitosis/meiosis). |