-
Acid rain
- Rain ( or other precipitation) that is unusually acidic; caused by air pollution in the form of sulfur and nitrogen dioxides.
- (Chapter 16)
-
Acid
- A substance that increases the concentration of hydrogen ions in a solution.
- (Chapter 2)
-
Accessory organs
- Organs including the pancreas, liver and gallbladder, which aid the digestive system.
- (Chapter 16)
-
ABO blood system
- A system for categorizing human blood based on the process or absence of carbohydrates on the surface of red blood cells.
- (Chapter 8)
-
Actin
- A protein found in muscle tissue that, together with myosin, facilitates contraction.
- (Chapter 16)
-
Activation energy
- The amount of energy that reactants in a chemical reaction must absorb before the reaction can start.
- (Chapter 4)
-
Activator
- A protein that serves to enchance the transcription of a gene.
- (Chapter 8)
-
Active site
- Substrate-binding region of an enzyme.
- (Chapter 4)
-
Active transport
- The ATP-requiring movement of substances across a membrane against their concentration gradient.
- (Chapter 3)
-
Adaptation
- Trait that is favored by natural selection and increases an individual's fitness in a particular environment.
- (Chapter 10,11)
-
Adaptive radiation
- Diversification of one or few species into large and very diverse groups of descendant species.
- (Chapter 13)
-
Adenine
- Nitrogenous base in DNA, a purine.
- (Chapter 2,4,5,9)
-
Adenosine diphosphate (ADP)
- A nucleotide composed of adenine, a sugar, and two phosphate groups. Produced by the hydrolysis of the terminal phosphate bond of ATP.
- (Chapter 4)
-
Adenosine triphosphate (ATP)
- A nucleotide composed of adenine, the sugar ribose, and three phosphate groups that can be hydrolyzed to release energy. Form of energy that cells can use.
- (Chapter 2,3,4)
-
Aerobic
- An organism, environment, or cellular process that requires oxygen.
 - (Chapter 4)
-
Aerobic respiration
- Cellular respiration that uses oxygen as the electron acceptor.
- (Chapter 4)
-
Agarose gel
- A jelly-like slab used to separate molecules on the basis of molecular weight.
- (Chapter 8)
-
Algae
- Photosynthetic protists.
- (Chapter 13)
-
Allele frequency
The percentage of the gene copies in a population that are of a particular form, or allele.
-
Allopatric
- Geographic separation of a population of organisms from others of the same species. Usually in reference to speciation.
- (Chapter 12)
-
Alternative hypothesis
- Factor other than the tested hypothesis that may explain observations.
- (Chapter 1)
-
Amenorrhea
- abnormal cessaton of menstrual cycle.
- (Chapter 1)
-
Amino acid
- Monomer subunit of a protein. Contains an amino, a carboxyl, and a unique side group.
- (Chapter 2,3,9)
-
Anaerboic
- An organism, environment, or cellular process that does not require oxygen.
- (Chapter 4)
-
Anaerboic respiration
- A process of energy generation that uses molecules other than oxygen as electron acceptors.
- (Chapter 4)
-
Anaphase
- Stage of mitosis during which microtubules contract and separate sister chromatids.
- (Chapter 6)
-
Anchorage Dependence
- Phenomenon that holds normal cells in place. Cancer cells can lose anchorage dependence and migrate into other tissues or metastasize.
- (Chapter 6)
-
Anecdotal evidence
- Information based on one person's personal experience.
- (Chapter 1)
-
Angiogenesis
- Formation of new blood vessels.
- (Chapter 6)
-
Angiosperm
- Plant in the phyla Angiospermae, which produce seeds borne within fruit.
- (Chapter 13)
-
Animal
- An organism that obtains energy and carbon by ingesting other organisms and is typically motile for at least part of their life cycle.
- (Chapter 13)
-
Animalia
- Kingdom of Eukarya containing organisms that ingest others and are typically motile for part of their life cycle.
- (Chapter 10,13)
-
Annual plants
- Plant that completes its life cycle in a single growing season.
- (Chapter 16)
-
Annual growth rate
- Proportional change in population size over a single year. Growth rate is a function of the birth rate minus the death rate of the population.
- (Chapter 14)
-
Anorexia
- Self-starvation.
- (Chapter 4)
-
Antibiotic
- A chemical that kills or disables bacteria.
- (Chapter 11,13)
-
Antibiotic resistant
- Characteristic of certain bacteria; a physiological characteristic that permits them to survive in the presence of particular antibiotics.
- (Chapter 11)
-
Anticodon
- Region of tRNA that binds to mRNA codon.
- (Chapter 9)
-
Antixidant
- Certain vitamins and other substances that protect the body from damaging effects of free radicals.
- (Chapter 11)
-
Antiparallel
- Feature of DNA double helix in which nucleotides face "up" on one side of helix and "down" on the other.
- (Chapter 9)
-
Aquaporin
- A transport protein in the membrane of a plant or animal cell that facilitates the diffusion of water across the membrane (osmosis).
- (Chapter 3)
-
Aquatic
- Of, or relating to, water.
- (Chapter 16)
-
Archaea
- Domain of prokaryotic organisms made up of species known from extreme environments.
- (Chapter 11)
-
Artifical selection
- Selective breeding of domesticated animals and plants to increase the frequency of desirable traits.
- (Chapter 11)
-
Asexual reproduction
- A type reproduction in which one parent gives rise to genetically identical offspring.
- (Chapter 6,12)
-
Assortative mating
- Tendency for individuals to mate with someone who like themselves.
- (Chapter 12)
-
Atom
- The smallest unit of matter that retains the properties of an element.
- (Chapter 2)
-
Atomic number
- The number of protons in the nucleus of an atom. Unique to each element, this number is designated by a subscript to the left of the symbol for the element.
- (Chapter 2)
-
ATP synthase
- Enzyme found in the mitochondrial membrane that helps synthesize ATP.
- (Chapter 4)
-
Autosome
- Non-sex chromosome, of which there are 22 pairs in humans.
- (Chapters 6,8)
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