Spain 2º Bachillerato Biology

Chapters: 6

1. Biomolecules

Organic and inorganic biomolecules · Water and mineral salts · Carbohydrates overview · Monosaccharides · Disaccharides and polysaccharides · Lipids · Proteins · Vitamins and salts as cofactors · Nucleic acids · Biomolecules and health

Biomolecules – A cell is mostly water, plus four big families of carbon compounds: proteins, carbohydrates, lipids and nucleic acids. Grinding tissue in acid separates small molecules (acid-soluble pool) from big ones – proteins, polysaccharides and nucleic acids (acid-insoluble pool). Proteins are chains of amino acids folded into four levels of structure. Polysaccharides are chains of sugars; lipids are fatty acids on glycerol; nucleic acids are chains of nucleotides. Enzymes are protein catalysts that bind a substrate at the active site, lower the activation energy, and are affected by temperature, pH, substrate level and inhibitors.
Water: The Small Molecule That Makes Life Possible – A water molecule (H₂O) is bent and polar: oxygen is slightly negative and the hydrogens slightly positive. Because of this, water molecules stick together with hydrogen bonds. These bonds explain why water dissolves many substances, stores a lot of heat, takes a lot of energy to evaporate, sticks together (cohesion) and to surfaces (adhesion), and why ice floats. Living things also use water as a reactant, for transport and to keep cells firm. Mineral salts dissolved in water supply ions like Na⁺, K⁺, Ca²⁺, Fe²⁺ and phosphate.
Carbohydrates: Classification, Glucose, Disaccharides and Polysaccharides – Carbohydrates are sugars and the big molecules made from sugars. Chemically they are polyhydroxy aldehydes or ketones (many –OH groups plus one C=O), or things that give these on hydrolysis. We sort them by how many sugar units they have: one (monosaccharide), two to ten (oligosaccharide) or many (polysaccharide). Glucose is an aldose with six carbons; fructose is a ketose. Two units join by a glycosidic (–O–) bond to give disaccharides like sucrose, maltose and lactose. Hundreds join to give starch, cellulose and glycogen.
Lipids: Fats, Oils and More – Lipids are biomolecules that do not dissolve in water. The main ones are fats and oils (triglycerides): one glycerol joined to three fatty acids by ester bonds. Saturated fatty acids have straight tails and give solid fats; unsaturated ones have C=C double bonds, bent tails and give liquid oils. Phospholipids build cell membranes and steroids such as cholesterol make hormones.
Proteins and Enzymes: Amino Acids, Peptide Bond, Structure and Denaturation – Proteins are long chains of amino acids. Each amino acid has an amino group (–NH₂), an acid group (–COOH), a hydrogen and a side group R on one carbon. The –COOH of one amino acid joins the –NH₂ of the next, losing water, to make a peptide bond (–CO–NH–). The order of amino acids is the primary structure; coils and sheets are the secondary structure; the full 3D fold is the tertiary structure; several chains together make the quaternary structure. Heat, acid or alcohol can undo the folds (denaturation). Enzymes are mostly proteins that speed up reactions in the body.
Vitamins, Nucleic Acids and Hormones: Types, Roles, DNA and RNA – Vitamins are small organic compounds we need in tiny amounts from food; A, D, E, K dissolve in fat and B, C dissolve in water, and a lack of each causes a known disease. Nucleic acids (DNA and RNA) are long chains of nucleotides. Each nucleotide = a pentose sugar + a phosphate + a nitrogen base. DNA has deoxyribose, bases A, G, C, T and two strands in a double helix, where A pairs with T and G with C. RNA has ribose, U instead of T and usually one strand. Hormones are chemical messengers made by glands, and can be steroids, proteins/peptides or amino acid derivatives.
Healthy Lifestyle: Daily Habits That Keep You Well – A healthy lifestyle is a set of daily habits: a balanced diet from five food groups, enough water, 9–11 hours of sleep for school-age children and about 8–10 for teenagers, at least 60 minutes of activity a day, good posture, safe food handling and avoiding tobacco, alcohol and drugs. These habits lower the risk of lifestyle (non-communicable) diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease and some cancers.

2. Molecular genetics

DNA replication · Gene expression and genetic code · Mutations · Gene regulation · Prokaryotic and eukaryotic genomes

Molecular Basis of Inheritance – DNA is the genetic material in most living things (some viruses use RNA). It is a double helix: two antiparallel strands of nucleotides, A pairs with T by 2 hydrogen bonds and G with C by 3. Long DNA is packed on histones into nucleosomes and then chromatin. DNA copies itself semi-conservatively (Meselson–Stahl). The central dogma says DNA → RNA → protein. Transcription makes RNA from one strand; in eukaryotes the hnRNA is capped, tailed and spliced. The genetic code is a triplet, has 64 codons (61 for amino acids, 3 stops), starts with AUG, is nearly universal and degenerate. Ribosomes translate mRNA into protein with tRNA adaptors. Genes are switched on and off; the lac operon is the classic example. The Human and Rice Genome Projects read whole genomes, and DNA fingerprinting uses repeat DNA (VNTRs) to identify people.
Protein Synthesis: From Gene to Protein – A gene is a stretch of DNA that holds the recipe for one protein. In transcription, the cell copies the gene into messenger RNA (mRNA) inside the nucleus; U replaces T. The mRNA goes to a ribosome in the cytoplasm. In translation, the ribosome reads the mRNA three bases at a time (a codon). Each codon matches one amino acid, carried in by a transfer RNA (tRNA). The amino acids join into a chain that folds into a protein. A change in the DNA (a mutation) can change the protein.
Mutations – A mutation is a sudden, lasting change in the DNA. Gene (point) mutations change one or a few bases: substitution, insertion or deletion. Insertions and deletions shift the reading frame. Chromosome mutations change big pieces or the number of chromosomes. Mutations happen by chance or because of mutagens such as UV light, X-rays and some chemicals. They can be harmful, neutral or useful, and they are the first source of all genetic variation.
Gene Regulation: How Cells Switch Genes On and Off – Every cell carries the same DNA but uses only some genes. Cells control mostly at transcription. In bacteria, the lac operon is a set of genes under one promoter and one operator: a repressor blocks it when there is no lactose; lactose removes the repressor and the genes are read (an inducible operon). In eukaryotes, transcription factors, enhancers and silencers control each gene, and epigenetic marks (DNA methylation, histone packing) can keep genes off without changing the DNA code. Different on/off patterns make different cell types (differentiation).

3. Cell biology

Cell theory · Light and electron microscopy · Plasma membrane · Osmosis in cells · Membrane transport and organelles · Cell cycle regulation · Mitosis and meiosis · Cancer

The Cell: Basic Unit of Life – Every living thing is made of cells. Robert Hooke first saw cells in cork in 1665. Cells are prokaryotic (no true nucleus, like bacteria) or eukaryotic (true nucleus). Plant cells have a cell wall, chloroplasts and a big vacuole; animal cells do not. Each organelle has a job. Water enters and leaves cells by osmosis. Cells make new cells by mitosis (growth) and meiosis (sex cells).
Membrane Transport: How Things Get In and Out of a Cell – The cell membrane is a thin double layer of fat-like molecules with proteins in it. It lets some substances through and stops others (selectively permeable). Diffusion moves particles from high to low concentration with no energy. Facilitated diffusion does the same through protein channels. Osmosis is the diffusion of water through a partially permeable membrane. Active transport uses ATP and a protein pump to move particles from low to high concentration. Very large things enter and leave in bubbles (endocytosis and exocytosis).
Cell Cycle and Cell Division – A cell grows, copies its DNA and splits in a fixed order called the cell cycle: interphase (G1, S, G2) and M phase. In S phase the DNA doubles (2C → 4C) but the chromosome number stays the same. Mitosis (prophase, metaphase, anaphase, telophase) and cytokinesis give two cells identical to the parent – it is an equational division used for growth and repair. Meiosis has two divisions; in meiosis I homologous chromosomes pair, cross over and separate, halving the chromosome number (2n → n). It makes four haploid cells for gametes and creates variation.

4. Metabolism

Concept of metabolism · Anabolism and catabolism · Cellular respiration pathways · Energy yield of metabolism · Anabolic pathways

Respiration: Aerobic, Anaerobic and the Human Lungs – Respiration is the breakdown of food, usually glucose, inside cells to release energy, stored as ATP. With oxygen (aerobic) glucose is fully broken into carbon dioxide and water and gives much energy; without oxygen (anaerobic) it gives little energy and makes ethanol (yeast) or lactic acid (muscles). Our lungs bring oxygen to the blood through millions of alveoli.
ATP: The Energy Currency of the Cell – ATP (adenosine triphosphate) is a nucleotide made of the base adenine, the sugar ribose and three phosphate groups. The enzyme ATP hydrolase splits off the last phosphate using water (hydrolysis): ATP + H₂O → ADP + Pi, releasing about 30 kJ per mole in small, usable amounts. ATP synthase joins ADP and Pi back together by a condensation reaction during respiration and photosynthesis. Cells make and use ATP constantly instead of storing it. One glucose gives roughly 30–32 ATP in aerobic respiration but only 2 in anaerobic respiration.
Life Processes and Photosynthesis – Life processes are the jobs every living body must keep doing to stay alive: nutrition, respiration, transport and excretion. Green plants do nutrition by photosynthesis: using sunlight and chlorophyll, they turn carbon dioxide and water into glucose and give out oxygen.

5. Biotechnology

Genetic engineering techniques · Impact of biotechnology

Biotechnology: Principles and Processes (Recombinant DNA Technology) – Genetic engineering means changing the genes of a living thing on purpose. We cut the gene we want with restriction enzymes (molecular scissors), paste it into a carrier DNA called a vector using DNA ligase (molecular glue), put it into a host cell, pick out the cells that took it, and grow them in big tanks (bioreactors) to collect the product. PCR makes millions of copies of a gene, and gel electrophoresis sorts DNA pieces by size.
Biotechnology and its Applications – The tools of genetic engineering are used in medicine, farming and research. Bacteria make human insulin; yeast makes safe vaccine proteins. Stem cells can become many cell types. Gene therapy puts a correct gene into a patient's cells. GM crops like Bt cotton carry a gene for a protein that kills pests. Transgenic animals carry foreign genes to help study disease or make medicines. Because these are powerful, India controls them through GEAC, and laws guard against biopiracy and unfair patents.

6. Immunology

Concept of immunity · External barriers · Innate and specific immunity · Humoral and cellular immunity · Types of acquired immunity · Phases of infectious disease · Immune system disorders

The Immune System: How Your Body Fights Germs – Germs (pathogens) cause infectious disease. The body has three lines of defence: barriers (skin, mucus, acid), a fast general (innate) response (inflammation, fever, phagocytes) and a slow, specific (adaptive) response (B cells make antibodies, T cells kill infected cells). Memory cells make the second attack fast. Vaccines create memory safely. Immunity can go wrong: allergy, autoimmune disease, immunodeficiency (e.g. HIV).
Human Health and Disease – Health means the body, mind and social life all work well. Diseases can be caused by germs (pathogens) like bacteria, viruses, protozoa, worms and fungi. Our body fights them with two kinds of immunity: innate (we are born with it) and acquired (it learns and remembers). Vaccines use this memory. HIV destroys helper T cells and causes AIDS. Cancer is cells dividing without control. Drugs and alcohol harm the body and mind, especially in teenagers.