Bio 110

Spring 2015

Dr. Healey

Week 1 (Laura):
Vocabulary:
1. Experimental & control group
The groups being tested
2. Cell
The smallest unit of structural, functioning biological unit
3. Mitochondria
Where glucose is turned into more immediate source of energy; powerhouse
4. Plasma membrane
The barrier that seperates the internal structure from the outside environment
5. Nucleus
Holds the DNA of the call
6. Cytosol
(the fluid part of the cell, not including the organelles)
7. Cytoplasm
(everything inside the plasma membrane except the nucleus)
8. Cytoskeleton
Fiber network of protein within the cutosol
9. ATP
The product of glucose going into the mitochrondria
10. Retina
Part of eye that takes in absorbed like
11. Cone Cell (e.g. 3 types in humans: SWS, MWS, LWS)
Cone cells that are excited at certain wavelengths of light, small, medium, large
12. Photoreceptor
Cells that contribute to sight
13. Opsin
Protein that get excited at certain wavelength
14. Color blindness
The lack of certain opsion protein
15. Protein
A chain of amino acids
16. Amino Acid
The smallest unit that comprises the protein
17. Enzyme
Protein that lowers the activation energy needed for a chemical reaction

Study guide:
1. What are the characteristics of living things?
Homeostasis, reproduction, growth/development, cell
2. What are the Domains of life?
Bacteria, archae, eukaryotes

Bio 110

Spring 2015

Dr. Healey

3. What are the steps of the scientific process?

Observe, hypoethesize, test, analyze
4. What is a control group in an experiment and why do we need it? How is it different from and
similar to a control group (i.e. what distinguishes the two)?
The control group in an experiment is the group which has no variable being tested on it.
While both groups are tested on, only other group is directly changed by scientists.
5. What does the cell theory, as developed in the 1800s, state?
The properties of calls
6. What are the functions of the cytoskeleton, mitochondria, and plasma membrane?
7. How many types of cone cells are there? How do they differ?
There are 3 types of cone cells. They differ in the type of light wavelengths that excites them
8. Relating to cone cells, what is the difference between color blind and non-color blind people? Are
color blind people trichromatic?
Non colorblind have all three types of opsin proteins in their cells. Color blind people may
lack one orm ore of these. Color blind people are not trichromatic
9. Explain how light waves reflected by objects are turned into an image our brain perceives.
The light hit our retnas and go into the cone cells. The light wavelengths excite specific opsin
prteins which leads to a a cascade of chemicals in which the brain receives signals.
10. What are the building blocks of proteins? Why is the shape of proteins important? What are the types
of protein structure that we can analyze? (Well discuss these last two points more in the next
lectures.)
Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins. The shape of proteins matter because it affects how
the proteins are physically expressed. The types of protein structure that we can analyze are

Bio 110

Spring 2015

Dr. Healey

Week 2 (Lauren):
Vocabulary
1. Biosynthesis
The chemical change of a substance into something the body can use immedaitely
2. Transmembrane protein
Prptein that can travel to 2 or more organelles
3. Transcription
The creation of mRNA from a DNA templates
4. Translation
The creation of amino acid chains from the mRNA
5. DNA
Deoxyribose acid, the genetic material that contains how proteins are expressed
6. Messenger RNA (mRNA)
The strand that is read to make proteins,
7. RNA polymerase
Systhesizes the protein on top during translation, moves from 5 to 3 direction
8. Ribosome
Location of protein systhesis, RNA polymerase and mRNA around do their work here
9. Polymer; monomer
Long chains of monomers, monomer is a single small molecule
10. Protein, polypeptide, amino acid
Chain of one of more popypetide, polypeptide is a chain of one or more amino acid; amino
acids are the building block of the cells.
11. Nucleic acid, nucleotide
Polymers of nucleotides, organic molecules that are subunits of DNA and RNA; made of
phosphate group, ring of sugar, and nitrogenous base
12. Ribose (sugar in RNA); deoxyribose (sugar in DNA)
13. Bases: A, T, U, G, C four letter genetic code
14. Double helix
The structure of DNA, 2 entwining loops
15. Gene
The sequence of DNA that repsents one trait
16. Chromosome
A tight package of DNA found in the nucleus of eukaryotes
17. Genome
Genetic material of an organism

Study Guide:
1.
What does expression mean in terms of cells and their genetic material?
The way the protein systhesize from the process of transcrptions and translation

Bio 110

Spring 2015

Dr. Healey

2.
What are the differences between DNA and RNA?
DNA
3.
What is transcription? Where does it occur? Why is it crucial for a cells functioning?
Transcription in nucleus,
4.
What is translation? Where does it occur? Why is it crucial for a cells functioning?
5.
What are the three parts of a nucleotide? Which form the backbone of DNA?
deoxyribose + nitrogenous base + phosphate group, sugar phosphate is the backbone
6.
Which bases pair with one another in DNA? In RNA?
CG, AT / CG, AU
7.
What is a double helix and why does it matter that DNA forms a double helix?
More compacts
8.
What were James Watson and Francis Cricks contributions to biology?
Theorized dna
9.
What were Rosalind Franklins contributions to biology?
She got that picture of a DNA as its double helix

Week 3 (Laura):
Vocabulary:
1.
Organelle
A compartment within the cell
2.
Codon

Bio 110

Spring 2015

Dr. Healey

3-base that encodes an amino acid

3.
Start codon
Aug, tells the RNA polyamerase to begin transciption
4.
Stop codon
Tells the RNApolyamerase to stop transcriptions
5.
Reading frame
The sequence of mRNA that is read
6.
transfer RNA (tRNA)
carries the amino acids into the ribosome so they can be used for synthesis.
7.
(Blood sugar) Homeostasis
Insulin is release when blood sugars levels are high, glucagonis released when blood sugars level
are low
8.
Actin (a protein example mentioned in the animation)
9.
Insulin (an important example), glucagon
Insulin secreted by cells when sugar levels are high, so liver absorbs sugar.
Glucagon secreted when sugar levels are so liver release sugars
10.
Beta cells in the pancreas
Makes insulin
11.
Diabetes type 1, diabetes type 2
Utoimmunedisease that makes immune system attack beta cells, metabolic disease that makes
sugaabsoption and release harder.
12.
Endomembrane system
13.

Nucleus, Nuclear envelope, Nuclear pore, chromatin

14.

Cytosol (the fluid part of the cell, not including the organelles)

15.

Cytoplasm (everything inside the plasma membrane except the nucleus)

16.

Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER): smooth ER and rough ER

17.

Golgi apparatus

18.

Vesicles, incl. secretory vesicles

19.

Phospholipid bilayer (that forms any kind of membrane in the cell)

20.
Fluid mosaic model (what you saw in the animation - the membrane is not stiff and
has lots of things in it that help it function as a selective barrier)
Study guide:
All about translation:
1.
What is the role of tRNA in translation? Where is it located?
2.
What is a reading frame? How does it relate to the start codon? What role does the
stop codon play in translation?

Bio 110

Spring 2015

Dr. Healey

What happens at the end of translation (depends on whether the polypeptide is finished in the
cytoplasm or goes into the rough ER) and organelles & structures that are part of the endomembrane
system:
3.
Describe the similarities and differences between type 1 and type 2 diabetes, make
sure to mention insulin and beta cells.
4.
What is a membrane? What is the endomembrane system? What organelle(s) does
it consist of?
5.
What is the function of the rough ER? The smooth ER? Where are they located in
relation to the nucleus and each other?
6.
Why is the Golgi apparatus sometimes referred to as the post office of the cell (i.e.
what is its function)? What role do vesicles play in this? Watch the relevant animations again
7.
Use two different proteins to illustrate how the cell makes proteins that stay in the cell
or that are released (secreted) from the cell.
8.
During the production of insulin in a cell, does insulin need to go to the rough ER?
Why or why not? Does insulin go through the Golgi apparatus? Why or why not? What happens
next? Be able to apply your understanding to other proteins.

Week 4 (Lauren):
Vocabulary:
1.
Tumor
2.

cancer

3.

malignant, benign

4.

metastasis

5.

diploid

Bio 110

Spring 2015

Dr. Healey

6.

chromosome

7.

cell division, daughter cell, cell cycle

8.

mitotic phase, mitosis, cytokinesis

9.

interphase, G1, S, G2

10.

checkpoint

11.

p53

12.

tumor suppressor gene/protein

13.

BRCA1 gene

14.

proto-oncogenes, oncogenes 11

15.

mutation, somatic mutation (acquired), germ-line mutation (inherited)

Study guide:
1.
Why do cells divide?
2.

How does the cell organize DNA during cell division?

3.

What are the two main stages of the cell cycle?

4.

What happens at each phase during the cell cycle?

5.

How many pairs of chromosomes would a human cell have at the end of G2 phase?

6.

What are the checkpoints in the cell cycle?

7.

Why does the cell need to have these checkpoints?

8.

How does p53 work to control the cell cycle?

9.

What happens when p53 is non-functional (when a tumor suppressor gene mutates)?

Bio 110

Spring 2015

Dr. Healey

10.

Is one mutation enough to cause cancer? Why or why not?

11.

Can children get cancer? Why is cancer usually a disease found in older persons?

12.
Explain three (out of the six) hallmarks of cancer. As Dr. Healey said in lecture, you
do not need to memorize these hallmarks but we discussed several of them at different points in a
couple of lectures and you should understand at least three of them (some are different facets of
the same issue).
13.
Understand the difference between proto-oncogenes and tumor-suppressor genes
they have very different roles in the normal cell cycle and in cancer.
14.
Understand the role of BRCA1 in breast cancer (we didnt go into the molecular
details of what BRCA1 does).