Hi, my name is Adriano Persichino. I live in Laval and I've been studying Natural science for 1 year at Montmorency College. My field of study is biology and the glossary that I have made should be very useful for those of you who are thinking of studying biology or for the students that are already in this field. The academic problem that my glossary can help fix is to mainly help with the technical vocabulary for the terms that are essential for exams and for laboratories. In this glossary, there are about 20 different terms that are commonly used in this field of study, especially while studying. In this glossary, for each of the 20 terms, there are definitions, examples, and pictures. The point of this glossary is to show the specific terms that are used in biology that can be difficult to understand for those who are just starting out. The methods that I used to find these words for my glossary are by looking into my biology notes and by searching on the internet. Now, I recommend you all to use this glossary while you're studying or especially if you ever run across some unfamiliar terms.
adaptation
noun
An adaptation is a trait that improves an organism's ability to survive and reproduce in its environment, or the process by which an organism develops such traits.
Example: Hair cell transduction and ADAPTATION. a At rest transduction channels spend approximately 5% of the time open allowing limited Ca 2+ entry.
en: adaptation
allele
noun
One of two or more alternative forms of a gene that arise by mutation and are found at the same place on a chromosome.
Example: There are four alleles of skn-1 found in previous study: skn-1 (zu67), skn-1 (zu129), R skn-1 (zu135), skn-1 (zu138) , with skn-1 (zu67) being the strongest ALLELE.
en: allèle
biodiversity
noun
Biodiversity is the vast variety of all life on Earth, encompassing the diversity of genetic information, species, and ecosystems.
Example: Impact lists include impacts on ecosystems, habitats, species and communities important to BIODIVERSITY.
en: biodiversité
cell
noun
The smallest structural and functional unit of an organism, typically microscopic and consisting of cytoplasm and a nucleus enclosed in a membrane. Microscopic organisms typically consist of a single cell, which is either eukaryotic or prokaryotic.
Example: Other examples of how two proteins with the same function are made in two conformations, one for the organelles and one for the CELL, can be given such as superoxide dimutase in chickens.
en: cellule
chromosome
noun
A chromosome is a thread-like structure within a cell's nucleus that is made of DNA tightly coiled around proteins, containing the organism's genetic information in the form of genes.
Example: The number of repeats and their association with other sequences differs from one CHROMOSOME to another, even between the human chromosomes.
en: chromosome
DNA
noun
A self-replicating material that is present in nearly all living organisms as the main constituent of chromosomes. It is the carrier of genetic information.
Example: Evidence for the theory is relatively strong, particularly the finding that mitochondria and chloroplasts have circular DNA similar in form to that of bacterial DNA, and that they contain prokaryotic type ribosomes.
en: ADN
ecosystem
noun
An ecosystem is a functional unit where all the living organisms (biotic factors), such as plants, animals, and microorganisms, interact with each other and their non-living physical environment (abiotic factors), including soil, water, air, and sunlight, within a specific area.
Example: These two methods are specific to pests of crops and if used in an open ECOSYSTEM, it is possible that they could cause an in balance to non-target species.
en: écosystème
enzyme
noun
A substance produced by a living organism which acts as a catalyst to bring about a specific biochemical reaction.
Example: PIE-1 is removed form the somatic cell lines by an ENZYME, C CUL-2 E3 ubiquitin ligase.
en: enzyme
evolution
noun
The process by which animals, plants, and other living organisms are transformed into different forms by the accumulation of changes over successive generations.
Example: Observations on early hominid postcranial skeletons ., Journal of Human EVOLUTION 21: 439-49.
en: évolution
gene
noun
A unit of heredity which is transferred from a parent to offspring and is held to determine some characteristic of the offspring.
Example: Some molecular biologists refer to the term 'GENE' in the same way as that of a cistron; the genetic material contained on a chromosome between START and END codons.
en: gène
homeostasis
noun
Homeostasis is the process by which a living organism maintains a stable internal environment, or balance, despite changes in its external environment.
Example: Nickel HOMEOSTASIS is required to maintain urease activity and is achieved by the H.pylori nickel-regulation NikR; it acts as a pleiotrophic metal-dependant regulator.
en: homéostasie
meiosis
noun
A type of cell division that results in four daughter cells each with half the number of chromosomes of the parent cell, as in the production of gametes and plant spores.
Example: Eukaryotes reproduce sexually by crossing genetic material with another cell in a process called MEIOSIS, this allows for more rapid evolution as each offspring is genetically different to its parents.
en: méiose
mitosis
noun
A type of cell division that results in two daughter cells each having the same number and kind of chromosomes as the parent nucleus, typical of ordinary tissue growth.
Example: The deleted part will lack a centromere and so will be lost in MITOSIS.
en: mitose
mutation
noun
A mutation is a permanent, fundamental alteration in the DNA sequence of a cell or virus, resulting from errors during DNA replication or damage by environmental factors like radiation or chemicals.
Example: Maternal effect genes are commonly studied by looking at the development of an embryo from a mother carrying a MUTATION in one such gene.
en: mutation
natural selection
phrase
The process whereby organisms better adapted to their environment tend to survive and produce more offspring. The theory of its action was first fully expounded by Charles Darwin and is now believed to be the main process that brings about evolution.
Example: Mendel's theories were perceived incompatible with Darwin's theory of evolution by NATURAL SELECTION at the time.
en: sélection naturelle
organism
noun
An individual animal, plant, or single-celled life form.
Example: Unlike the Crucian carp, the ORGANISM's neuronal activity is suppressed to the maximum to maintain at the appropriate level of ATP needed.
en: organisme
photosynthesis
noun
Photosynthesis is the process used by plants, algae, and some bacteria to convert light energy, usually from sunlight, into chemical energy in the form of sugars.
Example: For PHOTOSYNTHESIS to occur, there needs to be a supply of carbon dioxide, water, and light energy.
en: photosynthèse
protein
noun
A protein is a macromolecule composed of one or more long chains of amino acids, acting as the building blocks of the body.
Example: It has a genome consisting of 97 genes, 62 of which specify proteins. Yet this genome encodes less than 2% of the PROTEIN-coding genes in the bacterium E. coli .
en: protéine
respiration
noun
A process in living organisms involving the production of energy, typically with the intake of oxygen and the release of carbon dioxide from the oxidation of complex organic substances.
Example: Mitochondrion creates energy for cellular activity via aerobic RESPIRATION, from glucose.
en: respiration
species
noun
A group of living organisms consisting of similar individuals capable of exchanging genes or interbreeding. The species is the principal natural taxonomic unit, ranking below a genus and denoted by a Latin binomial, e.g. Homo sapiens.
Example: Many SPECIES will not travel far from hedges (except for SPECIES such as deer and badgers that travel freely across open fields).
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