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DON MARIANO MARCOS MEMORIAL STATE UNIVERSITY

NORTH LA UNION CAMPUS


Bacnotan, La Union
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Secondary Laboratory School
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

LECTURE NOTES IN GENERAL BIOLOGY I

Lesson 1: THE SCIENCE OF BIOLOGY


BIOLOGY
 derived from the ancient Greek bio (‘‘life’’) and –logy (‘‘study of ’’)
 study of life
Aristotle-Father of Biology

BRANCHES OF BIOLOGY
Branches of biology dealing with animals:
 Entomology — The study of insects.
 Ethology — The study of animal behavior.
 Herpetology — The study of reptiles and amphibians.
 Ichthyology — The study of fish.
 Mammalogy — The study of mammals.
 Ornithology — The study of birds.
 Primatology — The study of primates.
 Veterinary Science — Animal medicine.
 Zoology — The study of animals.

Branches of biology relevant to the study of evolution:


 Biogeography — The study of the geographic distributions of living organisms.
 Developmental Biology — The study of the processes by which an organism changes from
a zygote into a mature, multicellular individual.
 Evolutionary Biology — The branch of biology concerned with the modes of origin of new forms of
life.
 Ichnology — The scientific study of the traces of animal activity, such as footprints, burrows, trails,
and borings.
 Morphology — The branch of biology concerned with the form and structure of living organisms.
 Paleontology — The study of prehistoric life by means of fossils.

Environmental disciplines:
 Astrobiology — The branch of biology concerned with the effects of outer space on living
organisms and with the search for extraterrestrial life.
 Bioclimatology — The study of the influence of climate on living organisms.
 Chronobiology — The study of time-dependent phenomena in living organisms.
 Conservation Biology — The branches of biology concerned with habitat preservation, the
prevention of extinction, and conservation of biodiversity.
 Cryobiology — The study of the effects of low temperatures on living organisms.
 Ecology — The study of the interaction of organisms with each other and with their environment.
 Geobiology — A science that combines geology and biology to study the interactions of organisms
with their environment.

Chemistry-based branches of biology:


 Biochemistry — The study of life at the chemical level, in particular the chemistry
of proteins, carbohydrates, andnucleic acids.
 Bioengineering — A hybrid field of scientific research that uses the principles of biology and the
techniques of engineering to produce useful products.
 Molecular Biology — The branch of biology that studies the formation, structure, and function
of macromolecules found in living organisms, particularly nucleic acids and proteins.

Branches of biology dealing with microorganisms and microscopic structure:


 Cytology — The study of living cells, in particular, their physiological properties,
structures, organelles, and method of division.
 Histology — The study of the microscopic structure of cellular tissue.
 Microbiology — The branch of biology that studiesmicroorganisms and their effects on other
organisms.
 Protistology — The study of protists.
Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 1
Medical branches of biology:
 Anatomy — The study of the macroscopic structure of multicellular organisms.
 Embryology — The study of embryos.
 Endocrinology — The study of the endocrine glands.
 Esthesiology — The scientific study of sensation.
 Genetics — The study of heredity, especially the mechanisms of hereditary transmission and
variation of inherited characteristics.
 Immunology  The study of the structure and function of the immune system, innate and acquired
immunity, the bodily distinction of self from nonself, and laboratory techniques involving the
interaction of antigens with specific antibodies.
 Koniology  The study of dust in relation to its effects on health.
 Mastology — The scientific study of the breasts.
 Medicine — The art and study of the prevention, cure, and alleviation of disease, and the care of
the injured.
 Neurology — The branch of biology that studies thenervous system and its diseases.
 Parasitology — The study of parasites.
 Pathology — The study of the nature of disease and its causes, processes, development, and
consequences.
 Physiology The study of the physical function of living organisms.
 Psychology — The study of human behavior.
 Splanchnology  The study of the internal organs.
 Surgery — The branch of medicine dealing with operative procedures.
 Toxicology — The study of toxins.
 Urology — The study and treatment of disorders of the urogenital organs.
 Virology — The study of viruses.

Miscellaneous branches of biology:


 Agriculture — The science of crop and livestock production.
 Bioinformatics — The use of computers to manage and analyze biological data.
 Biomathematics — An interdisciplinary field of study that attempts to model biological processes
using mathematical techniques.
 Biophysics — An interdisciplinary science that applies the theories and methods of physics to
biological questions.
 Botany — The study of plants.
 Marine Biology — The study of marine organisms.
 Mycology — The study of fungi.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 2


DON MARIANO MARCOS MEMORIAL STATE UNIVERSITY
NORTH LA UNION CAMPUS
Bacnotan, La Union
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Secondary Laboratory School
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

LECTURE NOTES IN GENERAL BIOLOGY I

Lesson 2: PROPERTIES OF LIFE


A. Organization
1. Organization of living systems begins with the cell; cells are made of molecules that contain atoms.
2. Cells combine to form a tissue (e.g., nervous tissue).
3. Different tissues combine to make up organs (e.g., the brain).
4. Organs work together as organ systems (e.g., the brain, spinal cord, etc.)
5. Multicellular organisms may have many organ systems.
6. A species in a particular area (e.g., gray squirrels, an oak forest) constitutes a population.
7. The populations inhabiting an area at the same time make up a community.
8. A community plus its physical environment constitutes an ecosystem.
9. Each level of organization has emergent properties beyond the sum of the parts.

B. Nutrition and Homeostasis


1. Maintaining organization and carrying on life requires outside sources of energy.
2. Food provides nutrient molecules used as building blocks or for energy.
3. Energy is the capacity to do work; it takes work to maintain organization of the cell and organism.
4. Metabolism is all chemical reactions that occur in a cell.
5. Ultimate source of energy for nearly all life on earth is the sun through photosynthesis.
6. Organisms must remain homeostatic or keep themselves stable in temperature, moisture level,
acidity, etc. by physiology and behavior.

C. Sensitivity
1. Response often results in movements of plant or animal.
2. Ability to respond helps organism survive.
3. Responses to environment altogether constitute behavior of organism.
 Phototropism- growth response of plants to light coming from one direction
 Thigmotropism- the movement or change in orientation of a plant's growth as a reaction to touch.
 Gravitropism- growth response to gravity
 Hydrotropism- growth of roots toward soil moisture is called
 Heliotropism, or “solar tracking,”- the process by which plants’ organs track the relative position
of the sun across the sky, much like a radio telescope tracks stars or satellites.

D. Reproduction
1. Reproduction is the ability of an organism to copy itself.
2. Bacteria, protozoa, etc. simply split into two.
3. Multicellular organisms may pair sperm with egg; resulting in an immature individual, which develops
to become the adult.
4. Organisms develop as result of blueprint of instructions encoded in their genes.
5. Genes are made of long molecules of DNA that specify how the organism is ordered.

E. Adaptation
1. Adaptations are modifications that make an organism suited to its way of life.
2. Natural selection is process by which species become modified over time.
a. A species is a group of interbreeding individuals.
b. In natural selection, members may inherit a genetic change that makes them better suited to
a particular environment.
c. Consequently, these members are more likely to produce more surviving offspring.
3. Descent with modification
a. All living things share the same basic characteristics: cells, DNA, etc.
b. This unity suggests all organisms descended from common ancestor -- the first cell.
c. Adaptations to different ways of life explain diversity of life-forms.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 3


DON MARIANO MARCOS MEMORIAL STATE UNIVERSITY
NORTH LA UNION CAMPUS
Bacnotan, La Union
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Secondary Laboratory School
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

LECTURE NOTES IN GENERAL BIOLOGY I

Lesson 3: CELL THEORY


Brief History of the Discovery of the Cell and the Cell Theory
 In the 1600s, Anton van Leeuwenhoek first observed living cells, which he termed “animalcules,”
or little animals.
 In 1665, Robert Hooke, an English Scientist used a microscope he had built to examine a thin slice
of cork, a nonliving tissue found in the bark of certain trees. He observed a honeycomb of tiny,
empty (because the cells were dead) compartments naming the shapes he saw in cork cellulae
(Latin, “small rooms”).
 By the 1800s, microscopes had been improved, allowing scientists to make other important
observations. First, Robert Brown, a Scottish scientist, discovered that cells had an important inner
compartment, the nucleus.
 In 1838, Matthias Schleiden, a German Botanist, developed the first statement of the cell theory
stated that all plants “are aggregates of fully individualized, independent, separate beings, namely
the cells themselves.”
 In 1839, Theodor Schwann, a German Zoologist, reported that all animal tissues also consist of
individual cells.
 . Then, Rudolf Virchow figured out that the nucleus controls the cell’s activities and declared cells
come only from preexisting cells.

The cell theory, in its modern form, includes the following three principles:
1. All living things are made of cells.
2. The cell is the smallest unit of living things.
3. All cells come from preexisting cells.

There was a major roadblock to a good understanding of cellular anatomy and physiology, however,
for another 100 years after the Modern Cell Theory was stated. The chief problem was that not enough
magnifying power and clarity of the cell interior could be obtained by using a compound light microscope. In
this type of microscope, several or ‘‘compound’’ glass lenses help focus light and magnify viewed objects.
With the compound microscope, not much more than the rounded cell nucleus (‘‘kernel’’), cytoplasm, and
thin cell membrane can be identified.
A critical improvement came with the introduction of the electron microscope during the 1950s.
Instead of just magnifying an object a few hundred times (like the compound light microscope did), the new
electron microscope focused a beam of minute electrons. With modern instruments, this produces a huge
increase (up to 1000 times) in magnification. As a result, organelles and large molecules such as DNA and
proteins can now be directly seen within the cell.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 4


DON MARIANO MARCOS MEMORIAL STATE UNIVERSITY
NORTH LA UNION CAMPUS
Bacnotan, La Union
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Secondary Laboratory School
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

LECTURE NOTES IN GENERAL BIOLOGY I

Lesson 3: CELL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTIONS

PLASMA MEMBRANE / CELL MEMBRANE


Plasma membrane encloses and separates the cell from its environment. It selectively permeable,
which means it controls what can enter or exit the cell and vital to the process of homeostasis, or the
maintenance of a stable, steady internal environment. In plant cells, the plasma membrane is itself enclosed
by a rigid cell wall, built largely of the carbohydrate polymer, cellulose.

Components of the Plasma Membrane


 Phospholipids are molecules that are similar in structure to fat molecules. Like fat molecules, part
of the phospholipids — the hydrophobic tails — doesn’t mix well with water. Phospholipids also have
a hydrophilic head that is attracted to water. (Hydro means “water,” phile means “love,” and phobia
means “fear,” so hydrophilic literally means “water-loving” and hydrophobic literally means “water-
fearing.”) At body temperature, phospholipids have the consistency of thick vegetable oil, which
allows plasma membranes to be flexible and fluid Phospholipids make up almost 50 percent of the
plasma membrane.
 Proteins are stuck in the membrane and associated with the edges of the membrane. Proteins
make up almost 50 percent of the plasma membrane.
 Sterols are also embedded in plasma membranes. The type of sterol depends on the type of cell.
Animal cells have cholesterol in their plasma membranes. Sterols are present in small amounts in
the plasma membrane. Cholesterol makes the membrane more stable and prevents it from
solidifying when your body temperature is low that keeps you from literally freezing when you’re
“freezing”.
 Carbohydrates are attached to receptors on the outside of the plasma membrane. They’re present
in small amounts in the plasma membrane. Carbohydrate chains attach to the outer surface of the
plasma membrane on each cell. When carbohydrates attach to the phospholipids, they form
glycolipids (and when they attach to the proteins, they form glycoproteins). Your DNA determines
which specific carbohydrates attach to your cells, affecting characteristics such as your blood type.

Fluid Mosaic Model


The structure and behavior of the plasma
membrane are described by a theory called the fluid
mosaic model of the plasma membrane, which
basically says that membranes are made of several
components and that these components can move
within the membrane.
The widely accepted Davson-Danielli model,
proposed in 1935, portrayed the membrane as a
sandwich: a phospholipid bilayer between two layers
of globular protein. The model suggests, then their
nonpolar portions would separate the polar portions of
the phospholipids from water, causing the bilayer to
dissolve. In 1972, S. Singer and G. Nicolson revised the model in
a simple but profound way: they proposed that the globular proteins are inserte dinto the lipid bilayer, with
their nonpolar segments in contact with the nonpolar interior of the bilayer and their polar portions
protruding out from the membrane surface. In this model, called the fluid mosaic model,a mosaic of proteins
float in the fluid lipid bilayer like boats on a pond

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 5


NUCLEUS
Nucleus acts as the information center houses and protects the cell’s Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA),
which contains all of the instructions necessary for the cell to function. It is largest and most easily seen
organelle within a eukaryotic cell is the nucleus(Latin, “kernel” or “nut”), first described by the botanist
Robert Brown in 1831. Most eukaryotic cells possess a single nucleus, although the cells of fungi and some
other groups may have several too many nuclei. Mammalian erythrocytes (red blood cells) lose their nuclei
when they mature. Many nuclei exhibit a dark-staining zone called the nucleolus, which is a region where
intensive synthesis of ribosomal RNA is taking place.In eukaryotic cells, DNA is contained within a chamber
called a nucleus that is separated from the cytoplasm by a membrane called the nuclear envelope (also
known as the nuclear membrane). In the nucleus of cells that aren’t multiplying, the DNA is wound around
proteins and loosely spread out in the nucleus. When DNA is in this form, it’s called chromatin. However,
right before a cell divides, the chromatin coils up tightly into chromosomes. Human cells have 46
chromosomes, each one of which is a separate piece of DNA.

Structure of the Nucleus


a. Nuclear Envelop- made up of of two phospholipids bilayer membranes that encloses the nucleus.
The outer membrane of the nuclear envelope is continuous with the cytoplasm’s interior membrane
system, called the endoplasmic reticulum.
b. Nuclear Pores Scattered over the surface of the nuclear envelope, like craters on the moon, are
shallow depressions Rather than being empty, nuclear pores are filled with proteins that act as
molecular channels, permitting certain molecules to pass
into and out of the nucleus.
Components of Nuclear Pores
 RNA molecules and ribosomal subunits that
are made in the nucleus must exit to the
cytoplasm.
 Proteins that are made in the cytoplasm but
needed for certain processes, such as copying
the DNA, must cross into the nucleus. Proteins
that are to be moved into or out of the nucleus
have specific chemical tags on them that act like
zip codes, telling the importins and exportins
which way to move the protein with the tag. The
movement of molecules into and out of the cell
requires the input of energy from the cell in the

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 6


form of adenosine triphosphate (ATP).
 Nucleotides, building blocks for DNA and RNA, must cross into the nucleus so that the cell
can make new DNA and RNA molecules.

c. DNA in the form of chromosomes or chromatin: When a cell is about to divide to make a copy of
itself, it copies its DNA and bundles the DNA up tightly so that the cell can move the DNA around
more easily. The tightly bundled DNA molecules are visible through a microscope as little structures
in the nucleus called chromosomes. Most of the time, however, when a cell is just functioning and
not about to divide, the DNA is very
loose within the nucleus, like a bunch
of long spaghetti noodles. When the
DNA is in this form, it is called
chromatin.
d. Nucleoli where ribosomes are made:
Information in the DNA needs to be
read in order to make the small and
large subunits needed to build
ribosomes. The cell builds the
ribosomal subunits in areas of the
nucleus called nucleoli. Then, the cell
ships the subunits out of the nucleus to
the cytoplasm, where they join together
for protein synthesis. When you stain
cells and look at them under the
microscope, nucleoli look like large
spots within the nucleus.

CYTOSKELETON
This a network of protein filaments that extend throughout the cytoplasm giving shape and structure
to the cell, assisting in the transport of materials, and enabling cell motility (as in, self-directed movement).

a. Centrioles
They small protein structures that
appear during cell division, are found in the
cells of animals, but not plantsIn animal cells
and most protists, centrosome contains two
centrioles lying at right angles to each other.
Plant and fungal cells have equivalent of a
centrosome but it does not contain centrioles.

b. Cilia and Flagella.


Cilia are short, usually numerous
hairlike projections that can move in an
undulating fashion (e.g., Paramecium, lining of
human upper respiratory tract).Cilia are found
on cells that make up the surfaces of tissues,
such as cells in the respiratory and genital
tracts of humans, where the cilia beat to move
fluid and materials along the surface. For
example, in the human respiratory tract, the
beating of cilia moves mucus upward where
you can cough it out of the body.
Flagella are longer, usually fewer,
whip-like projections that move in whip-like
fashion (e.g., sperm cells). Both have similar
construction, but differ from prokaryotic
flagella.

Three Types of Cytoskeletal Fibers


1. Microfilaments are made of the protein actin.
Microfilaments are the proteins that make
muscle cells contract, help pinch animal cells in two during cell division, allow cells like amoebae to
crawl, and act as railroad tracks for organelles in some types of cells.
2. Microtubules are made of the protein tubulin. Microtubules are the proteins inside of ciliaand
flagella. They move chromosomes during cell division and act as railroad tracks for the movement
of vesicles and some organelles.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 7


3. Intermediate filaments are made of various proteins. They often act as reinforcing proteins. For
example, the protein lamin that strengthens the nuclear membrane is an intermediate filament.
Likewise, the keratin that strengthens your skin cells and makes them resistant to damage is an
intermediate filament.

Motor proteins
Actin microfilaments and microtubules are long, cable-like proteins. They partner with motor
proteins, proteins that use ATP to “walk” along the cables by repeatedly binding, changing shape, and
releasing. Thus, the motor proteins use chemical energy to do cellular work in the form of movement.
Several motor proteins work with microfilaments and microtubules:
 Myosin often acts as a partner to actin. For example, when myosin walks along actin microfilaments
in muscle cells, it causes the actin microfilament to slide. The sliding of actin microfilaments is what
causes muscle contraction. Myosin also attaches to cellular components, such as chloroplasts in
plant cells, and then walks along microfilaments. The movement of the motor proteins causes the
cellular components to flow around the cell in a process called cytoplasmic streaming.
 Dynein partners with microtubules inside of cilia and eukaryotic flagella. When dynein walks along
microtubules on one side of a cilium or flagellum, it causes the microtubules to bend. The bending of
different parts of cilia and flagella makes them flick back and forth like little whips.
 Kinesinis another partner with microtubules. One end of the kinesin molecule attaches to vesicles,
while the other end walks along the microtubules. The movement of kinesin causes the vesicles to
slide along the microtubules like freight cars on a railroad track

ENDOPLASMIC RETICULUM
The endoplasmic reticulum is a set of folded membranes that
that connects the nucleus to the cytoplasm of the cell. Endo means
“inside,” and reticulum refers to the netlike appearance of the ER, so
endoplasmic reticulum basically means “a netlike shape inside the
cytoplasm
a. Rough Endoplasmic Reticulum (RER) is called rough
because it’s studded with ribosomes. Ribosomes that begin to
make a protein that has a special destination, such as a
particular organelle or membrane, will attach themselves to
the rough endoplasmic reticulum while they make the protein.
As the protein is made, it’s pushed into the middle of the rough
ER, which is called the lumen. Once inside the lumen, the
protein is folded and tagged with carbohydrates. It will then travel to the Golgi apparatus for further
processing.
b. Smooth Endoplasmic Reticulum(SER) does not have any attached ribosomes. It makes lipids —
for example, phospholipids for cell membranes. Enzymes of the smooth ER are important in the
synthesis of lipids, including oils, phospholipids, and steroids. It is involved in the metabolism of
lipids (fats) and detoxifies the cell of drugs and poison. In the liver, the enzymes of the smooth ER
are involved in the detoxification of drugs including amphetamines, morphine, codeine, and
phenobarbital.

GOLGI APPARATUS
These are stack of flattened membrane sacs that looks a little bit like a
stack of pancakes. The Golgi apparatus is the delivery system of the
eukaryotic cell. It collects, packages, modifies, and distributes molecules that
are synthesized at one location within the cell and used at another. It assists in
the distribution of lipids and in the production of organelles called lysosomes.
These structures are named for Camillo Golgi, the 19th-century physician who
first identified them.

LYSOSOMES
Lysosomes are a membrane bound of hydrolytic enzymes that an animal cell uses to digest
(hydrolyze) macromolecules.The internal space of a lysosome is very acidic (has low pH), which aids in the
digestive process. Worn out or faulty cellular parts, large chunks of nutrients and unwanted invaders like
viruses and bacteria all meet their end within lysosomes. All these materials are broken down into smaller
components that can be recycled according to the needs of the cell
Lysosomal enzymes work best in the acidic environment found in lysosomes. If a lysosome breaks
open or leaks its contents, the released enzymes are not very active because the cytosol has a neutral pH.
However, excessive leakage from a large number of lysosomes can destroy a cell by self-digestion.
Hydrolytic enzymes and lysosomal membrane are made by rough ER and then transferred to the Golgi
apparatus for further processing. The proteins of the inner surface of the lysosomal membrane and the
digestive enzymes themselves are spared from destruction because of their three-dimensional shapes that
protect vulnerable bonds from enzymatic attack.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 8


Lysosomes carry out intracellular digestion in a variety of circumstances. Amoebas and many other
protists eat by engulfing smaller organisms or food particles, a process called phagocytosis(from the Gree
k phagein, to eat, and kytos, vessel, referring here to the cell). The food vacuole formed in this way then
fuses with a lysosome, whose enzymes digest the food. Digestion products, including simple sugars, amino
acids, and other monomers, pass into the cytosol and become nutrients for the cell. Some human cells also
carry out phagocytosis. Among them are macrophages, a type of white blood cell that helps defend the
body by engulfing and destroying bacteria and other invaders.
Autophagy is the process where Lysosomes also use their hydrolytic enzymes to recycle the cell’s
own organic material. During autophagy, a damaged organelle or small amount of cytosol becomes
surrounded by a double membrane (of unknown origin), and a lysosome fuses with the outer membrane of
this vesicle. The lysosomal enzymes dismantle the enclosed material, and the organic monomers are
returned to the cytosol for reuse. With the help of lysosomes, the cell continually renews itself. A human
liver cell, for example, recycles half of its macromolecules each week.The cells of people with inherited
lysosomal storage diseases lack a functioning hydrolytic enzyme normally present in lysosomes. The
lysosomes become engorged with indigestible substrates, which begin to interfere with other cellular
activities.
In Tay-Sachs disease, for example, a lipid-digesting enzyme is missing or inactive, and the brain
becomes impaired by an accumulation of lipids in the cells. Fortunately, lysosomal storage diseases are
rare in the general population.

VACUOLES
Vacuoles are large vesicles derived from the endoplasmic reticulum
and Golgi apparatus. Thus, vacuoles are an integral part of a cell’s
endomembrane system. Like all cellular membranes, the vacuolar membrane
is selective in transporting solutes; as a result, the solution inside a vacuole
differs in composition from the cytosol
Vacuoles perform a variety of functions in different kinds of cells.
Food vacuoles, formed by phagocytosis, “cell eating”. Contractile vacuoles
are prominent in many freshwater. Protists have that pump excess water out
of the cell, thereby maintaining a suitable concentration of ions and molecules
inside the cell.
In plants and fungi, certain vacuoles carry out enzymatic hydrolysis, a
function shared by lysosomes in animal cells. (In fact, some biologists
consider these hydrolytic vacuoles to be a type of lysosome.) In plants,
smaller vacuoles can hold reserves of important organic compounds, such as
the proteins stockpiled in the storage cells in seeds.
Vacuoles may also help protect the plant against herbivores by storing compounds that are
poisonous or unpalatable to animals. Some plant vacuoles contain pigments, such as the red and blue
pigments of petals that help attract pollinating insects to flowers.
Mature plant cells generally contain a large central vacuole which develops by the coalescence of
smaller vacuoles. The solution inside the central vacuole, called cell sap, is the plant cell’s main repository
of inorganic ions, including potassium and chloride. The central vacuole plays a major role in the growth of
plant cells, which enlarge as the vacuole absorbs water, enabling the cell to become larger with a minimal
investment in new cytoplasm. The cytosol often occupies only a thin layer between the central vacuole and
the plasma membrane, so the ratio of plasma membrane surface to
cytosolic volume is sufficient, even for a large plant cell.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 9


MICROBODIES
a. Glyoxysome is a special type of microbody in plants that contains
enzymes that convert fats into carbohydrates.
b. Peroxisome contains enzymes that catalyze the removal of
electrons and associated hydrogen atoms. They are spherical
organelles that may contain a large diamond-shaped crystal
composed of protein. It contains digestive and detoxifying enzymes
that produce hydrogen peroxide as a byproduct. Hydrogen peroxide
is dangerous to cells because of its violent chemical reactivity. In
liver cells break down toxins, such as the ethanol from alcoholic
beverages. They often help break down lipids, such as fatty acids.

RIBOSOMES
Ribosomes small structures found in the
cytoplasm of cells that make proteins. They are made of
RNA and protein parts, and consist of a large and a small
subunit.The instructions for proteins are copied from the
DNA into a new molecule called messenger
RNA(mRNA). The mRNA leaves the nucleus and carries
the instructions to the ribosomes out in the cytoplasm of
the cell. The ribosomes then organize the mRNA and
other molecules that are needed to build
proteins
. Ribosome size is measured in Svedberg units (S),
a unit that describes how fast particles fall out of solution during centrifugation. As a centrifuge spins things
around really fast, larger, more dense particles fall to the bottom of the centrifuge tube (“spin out” of
solution) faster than smaller, less dense particles. So, centrifugation, and Svedberg units, can tell you the
relative size of particles, such as prokaryotic and eukaryotic ribosomes:
 Prokaryotic ribosomes are smaller than eukaryotic ribosomes. They are called 70Sribosomes
because complete ribosomal spin out at 70S. If you spin the ribosomal subunits separately, the
large subunit spins out at 50S, and the small subunit spins out at 30S. Only in biology does
50+30=70! This answer is because when the two subunits join together to make a completed
ribosome, they pack together into a tight package.
 Eukaryotic ribosomes are larger than prokaryotic ribosomesand spin out at 80S. The large
subunit alone spins out at 60S, and the small subunit at 40S. More strange biological math:
60+40=80! Again, the two subunits pack together to form the complete ribosome. In eukaryotic cells,
ribosomes that are located in different places in the cell have slightly different functions:
In eukaryotic cells, ribosomes that are located in different places in the cell have slightly different functions:
 Free ribosomesare located in the cytoplasm of the cell. They synthesize proteins that are found in
the cytoplasm, nuclear proteins, mitochondrial proteins, and proteins found in other organelles not
derived from the endomembrane system
 Membrane-bound ribosomes attach themselves to the membrane of the rough endoplasmic
reticulum, which is located inside cells. They synthesize membrane proteins, proteins found in the
endomembrane system, and proteins destined for export from the cell.

CYTOPLASM
The fluid inside a cell, called the cytoplasm where all the organelles are embedded and is very
different from the fluid found outside the cell. (Cyto means “cell,” and plasm means “shape.” So, cytoplasm
literally means “cell shape,” which is fitting because the plasma membrane is what defines cell shape.)
Animal cells are supported by a fluid protein-and-carbohydrate matrix called the extracellular
matrix.(Extra means “outside,” so extracellular literally means “outside the cell.”) Plant cells are supported
by a more solid structure, called a cell wall, that is made of the carbohydrate cellulose.

CELL WALL
The cell wall is an extracellular structure of plant cells that distinguishes them from animal cells .The
wall protects the plant cell, maintains its shape, and prevents excessive uptake of water. On the level of the
whole plant, the strong walls of specialized cells hold the plant up against the force of gravity. Prokaryotes,
fungi, and some protists also have cell walls.
 The cell walls of plants and algae are made of cellulose. If the plant is a woody plant, lignin is also
present.
 Fungal cell walls are made of chitin

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 10


MITOCHONDRION
Mitochondria (singular, mitochondrion) are the power house of the cell. It involves in converting the
energy stored in “food” molecules (like sugars and fats)
into energy in the form of ATP, which can be readily used
by the cell.
Structure of Mitochondria
a. Intermembrane space- between the two
membranes of the
b. Matrix-inside the mitochondrion
c. Inner Membrane- is the one folded back and
forth membrane that create more area for
energy extraction called Cristae (singular,
crista).
d. Outer Membrane- outer membrane separates
the interior of the mitochondrion from the
cytoplasm of the cell.
The process mitochondria use to transfer the
energy in foods to ATP is called cellular respiration. What
occurs during cellular respiration is like what occurs when
a campfire burns, just on a much smaller scale. In a
campfire, wood burns, consuming oxygen and transferring
energy (heat and light) and matter (carbon dioxide and
water) to the environment. In a mitochondrion, food molecules break down, consuming oxygen and
transferring energy to cells (to
be stored in ATP) and the environment (as heat)
Mitochondria have their own DNA; this DNA contains several genes that produce proteins essential
to the mitochondrion’s role in oxidative metabolism. All of these genes are copied into RNA and used to
make proteins within the mitochondrion. In this process, the mitochondria employ small RNA molecules and
ribosomal components that the mitochondrial DNA also encodes. However, most of the genes that produce
the enzymes used in oxidative metabolism are located in the nucleus.
The mitochondria themselves divide in two, doubling in number, and these are partitioned between
the new cells. Most of the components required for mitochondrial division are encoded by genes in the
nucleus and translated into proteins by cytoplasmic ribosomes. Mitochondrial replication is, therefore,
impossible without nuclear participation, and mitochondria thus cannot be grown in a cell-free culture

CHLOROPLAST
Chloroplasts are organelles found solely in plants and algae. Chloroplasts give an obvious
advantage on the organisms that possess them: they can
manufacture their own food. It contains green pigment
chlorophyll that can absorb sunlight and gives most plants their
green color which is responsible in the food making process of
plants (photosynthesis). The chloroplast body is enclosed
within two membranes that resemble those of mitochondria.
They are larger and more complex than mitochondria.
Structure of the Chloroplast
a. Grana (singular, granum)- stack of thylakoids
b. Thylakoids- are the light-capturing photosynthetic
pigments
c. Stroma- fluid matrix that surrounds the thylakoid

Chloroplasts contain DNA, but many of the genes that


specify chloro plast components are also located in the
nucleus. Some of the elements used in the photosynthetic
process, including the specific protein components necessary
to accomplish the reaction, are synthesized entirely within the
chloroplast.
Other DNA-containing organelles in plants are called
leucoplasts, which lack pigment and a complex internal
structure. In root cells and some other plant cells, leucoplasts may serve as starch storage sites. A
leucoplast that stores starch (amylose) is sometimes termed an amyloplast. These organelles—
chloroplasts, leucoplasts, and amyloplasts—are collectively called plastids. All plastids come from the
division of existing plastids.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 11


Endosymbiont Theory/ Theory of Endosymbiosis
 Proposes that some of today’s eukaryotic organelles
evolved by a symbiosis in which one species of
prokaryote was engulfed by and lived inside another
species of prokaryote that was a precursor to
eukaryotes
 The engulfed prokaryotes provided their hosts with
certain advantages associated with their special
metabolic abilities.
 Two key eukaryotic organelles are believed to be the
descendants of these endosymbiotic prokaryotes:
mitochondria, which are thought to have originated as
bacteria capable of carrying out oxidative metabolism; and chloroplasts, which apparently arose
from photosynthetic bacteria.
Evidences:
a. Both mitochondria and chloroplasts are surrounded by two membranes; the inner membrane
probably evolved from the plasma membrane of the engulfed bacterium, while the outer
membrane is probably derived from the plasma membrane or endoplasmic reticulum of the
host cell.
b. Mitochondria are about the same size as most bacteria, and the cristae formed by their inner
membranes resemble the folded membranes in various groups of bacteria.
c. Mitochondrial ribosomes are also similar to bacterial ribosomes in size and structure. Both
mitochondria and chloroplasts contain circular molecules of DNA similar to those in bacteria.
Finally, mitochondria divide by simple fission, splitting in two just as bacterial cells do, and
they apparently replicate and partition their DNA in much the same way as bacteria.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 12


DON MARIANO MARCOS MEMORIAL STATE UNIVERSITY
NORTH LA UNION CAMPUS
Bacnotan, La Union
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Secondary Laboratory School
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

LECTURE NOTES IN GENERAL BIOLOGY I

Lesson 4: PROKARYOTIC VS. EUKARYOTIC CELLS


• Basic features of all cells:
 Plasma membrane
 Semifluid substance called cytosol
 Chromosomes (carry genes)
 Ribosomes (make proteins)

• Prokaryotic cells
The root pro means before and karyon means seed, so prokaryotes are before seed cells because
they don’t have a nucleus. They are typically much smaller than eukaryotic cells.
Prokaryotic cells are characterized by having
 No nucleus
 DNA in an unbound region called the nucleoid
 No membrane-bound organelles
 Cytoplasm bound by the plasma membrane

• Eukaryotic cells
The root eu means true and karyon means seed, so eukaryotic cells are true seeded cells because
the nucleus looks a little bit like a seed inside the cell. Eukaryotic cells are typically much larger than
prokaryotic cells, on average about ten times larger.
Eukaryotic cells are characterized by having
 DNA in a nucleus that is bounded by a membranous nuclear envelope
 Membrane-bound organelles
 Cytoplasm in the region between the plasma membrane and nucleus

Eukaryotic Cell Prokaryotic Cell


Nucleus Present Absent
Number of chromosomes More than one One--but not true chromosome:
Plasmids
Cell Type Usually multicellular Usually unicellular (some
cyanobacteria may be multicellular)
True Membrane bound Nucleus Present Absent
Example Animals and Plants Bacteria and Archaea
Genetic Recombination Meiosis and fusion of Partial, undirectional transfers DNA
gametes
Lysosomes and peroxisomes Present Absent
Microtubules Present Absent or rare
Endoplasmic reticulum Present Absent
Mitochondria Present Absent
Cytoskeleton Present May be absent
DNA wrapping on proteins. Eukaryotes wrap their DNA Multiple proteins act together to fold
around proteins called and condense prokaryotic DNA.
histones. Folded DNA is then organized into
a variety of conformations that are
supercoiled and wound around
tetramers of the HU protein.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 13


Eukaryotic Cell Prokaryotic Cell
Ribosomes Larger Smaller
Vesicles Present Present
Golgi apparatus Present Absent
Chloroplasts Present (in plants) Absent; chlorophyll scattered in the
cytoplasm
Flagella Microscopic in size; Submicroscopic in size, composed
membrane bound; usually of only one fiber
arranged as nine doublets
surrounding two singlets
Permeability of Nuclear Selective not present
Membrane
Plasma membrane with steroid Yes Usually no
Cell wall Only in plant cells and fungi Usually chemically complexed
(chemically simpler)
Vacuoles Present Present
Cell size 10-100um 1-10um

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 14


DON MARIANO MARCOS MEMORIAL STATE UNIVERSITY
NORTH LA UNION CAMPUS
Bacnotan, La Union
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Secondary Laboratory School
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

LECTURE NOTES IN GENERAL BIOLOGY I

Lesson 5: PLANT AND ANIMAL CELLS

Plant Cell

Animal Cell

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 15


Primary Differences Between Plant and Animal Cells
Plant cells have to perform two functions not required of animal cells:
 Produce their own food (which they do in a process called photosynthesis).
 Support their own weight (which animals usually do by means of a skeleton).

The structures possessed by plant cells for performing these two functions create the primary differences
between plant and animals cells. These structures are:
 Cell Wall: a wall on the outside of the membrane, which, in combination with the vacuole (as
described below), helps the cell maintain its shape and rigidity.
 Plastids: used in photosynthesis to convert sunlight, carbon dioxide and water into food. The most
well-known plastids are chloroplasts, which contain the chlorophyll that gives many plants their
green hue.
 Large Vacuole: while animal cells may have many tiny vacuoles, a plant cell usually has a single
large vacuole, which serves as a storage tank for food, water, waste products and other materials.
The vacuole has an important structural function, as well. When filled with water, the vacuole exerts
internal pressure against the cell wall, which helps keep the cell rigid. A plant that is wilting has
vacuoles that are no longer filled with water.

Animal cells contain organelles known as centrioles, which are not present in plant cells. Centrioles, which
help move chromosomes during cell division, are generally only visible when an animal cell is actually
dividing.
PLANT VS ANIMAL CELL
Features Animal Cell Plant Cell

Cell wall Absent Present (formed of cellulose)


Shape Round (irregular shape) Rectangular (fixed shape)
Vacuole One or more small vacuoles One, large central vacuole taking
(much smaller than plant cells). up 90% of cell volume.
Centrioles Present in all animal cells Only present in lower plant
forms.
Chloroplast Animal cells don't have Plant cells have chloroplasts
chloroplasts. because they make their own
food.
Cytoplasm Present Present
Ribosomes Present Present
Mitochondria Present Present
Plastids Absent Present
Endoplasmic Present Present
Reticulum (Smooth
and Rough)
Golgi Apparatus Present Present
Plasma Membrane Only cell membrane Cell wall and a cell membrane
Microtubules/ Present Present
Microfilaments
Flagella May be found in some cells May be found in some cells
Lysosomes Lysosomes occur in cytoplasm. Lysosomes usually not evident.
Nucleus Present Present
Usually found in the center Found on one side

Cilia Present Most plant cells do not contain


cilia.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 16


DON MARIANO MARCOS MEMORIAL STATE UNIVERSITY
NORTH LA UNION CAMPUS
Bacnotan, La Union
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Secondary Laboratory School
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

LECTURE NOTES IN GENERAL BIOLOGY I

Lesson 6: TRANSPORT MECHANISM

1. PASSIVE TRANSPORT
-the movement of substances through membranes without using energy
A. Diffusion- the movement of a substance from an area of higher concentration to one of lower
concentration (down a gradient), and occurs on its own without the input of energy. Think of a drop
of ink spreading throughout a glass of water, and you’ll understand diffusion. Many waste materials
exit the cell through diffusion because that is their natural direction of movement as they build up
within the cell.
B. Osmosis- is simply the diffusion of water through selectively permeable membrane. Solutions with
higher amounts of dissolved substances have lower concentrations of water, and water will diffuse
across membranes in order to minimize the difference in concentration.
a. Hypotonic solution: Solute concentration is less than that inside the cell; cell gains water
b. Isotonic solution: Solute concentration is the same as that inside the cell; no net water
movement across the plasma membrane
c. Hypertonic solution: Solute concentration is greater than that inside the cell; cell loses water

C. Facilitated diffusion- Most kinds of materials can’t easily diffuse across the plasma membrane
unless an opening is provided for them. Cells can support and control the diffusion of these
materials by means of membrane proteins. Specific membrane proteins allow passage across the
membrane to specific ions or molecules, but not to others. This pickiness is a big source of the
selective permeability of the plasma membrane. As long as the appropriate membrane protein is
present and open, a given ion or molecule can diffuse through the protein, across the membrane,
along its concentration gradient. Although facilitated diffusion requires a protein tunnel through the
membrane, it is still diffusion, and requires no added energy. An example is the transport of glucose
and chloride in and out of cells where a carrier protein changes its shape when a molecule attaches
to it.

2. ACTIVE TRANSPORT
- a molecular transport that require energy in the form of ATP and involves carrier
proteins
- it I n important thing in maintaining a range of ion concentrations inside the cell
A. Sodium-potassium pump- moves sodium out of the cell and potassium into it. A high concentration
of potassium ion inside the cell and high sodium concentration outside the cell are therefore
maintained. These ion gradients help nerve cells generate nerve signals. They are also important in
the absorption of nutrients and in muscle contraction.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 17


3. BULK TRANSPORT OF MATERIALS INTO AND OUT OF THE CELL
A. Endocytosis- the cell engulfs particles into a pouch formed by the infolding of the cell membrane.
The resulting pouch is then pinched off from the plasma membrane and forms a vesicle inside the
cell which then fuses with a lysosome that will break and digest the particles before they are
released to the cytoplasm.
a. Phagocytosis- “cell eating”, the cell engulfs solid particles into much larger vesicles. In
humans, the white blood cells specialize in phagocyctosis.
b. Pinocytosis- “cell-drinking”, similar to phagocytosis except that the cell engulfs droplets of
fluid instead of solid particles. This is one mechanism by which cells maintain water balance.
c. Receptor-mediated endocytosis- specific molecules are ingested into the cell. The plasma
membrane folds inward forming pit lined with receptor proteins. These proteins will bind only
to a specific type of molecules. Cells in the liver removes excess cholesterol from the blood
by this transport mechanism.

B. Exocytosis- the reverse of endocytosis. Wastes and cell products inside the cell are packaged in
Golgi complex which then fuse with cell membrane to be transported out of the cell.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 18


DON MARIANO MARCOS MEMORIAL STATE UNIVERSITY
NORTH LA UNION CAMPUS
Bacnotan, La Union
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Secondary Laboratory School
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

LECTURE NOTES IN GENERAL BIOLOGY I

Lesson 7: CELLULAR REPRODUCTION/ CELL DIVISION


Cell Division enables a multi-cellular organisms to grow and reach the adult size, replaces a worn-out or
damaged cells and keeps the total number of cells in and adult organism relatively constant

Cell Cycle
-the series of stages in the life of a cell
-the preparatory stage
1. Interphase- the longest phase in the cell cycle

• G1 (gap phase 1) is the primary growth phase of the


cell. The term gap phase refers to its filling the gap
between cytokinesis and DNA synthesis. It is
characterized by the increase in the supply of proteins,
in the number of cellular organelles (particularly
mitochondria and ribosomes), and in the size of the
cell.
• S (synthesis) is characterized mainly by DNA synthesis
or replication. The cell makes copy of its chromosomes
which are composed of the DNA as well as the
proteins attached to them.
• G2 (gap phase 2) is the second growth phase, and preparation for separation of the newly replicated
genome. This phase fills the gap between DNA synthesis and the beginning of mitosis. During this
phase, mitochondria and other organelles replicate, and microtubules begin to assemble at a
spindle.
2. Mitosis is the phase of the cell cycle in which the spindle apparatus assembles, binds to the
chromosomes, and moves the sister chromatids apart. Mitosis is the essential step in the separation of
the two daughter genomes. It is traditionally subdivided into four stages: prophase, metaphase,
anaphase, and telophase.
3. Cytokinesis is the phase of the cell cycle when the cytoplasm divides, creating two daughter cells.

How Prokaryotic Cells Divide


A. Prokaryotic cells (bacteria) lack a nucleus and other membranous organelles.
B. The Prokaryotic Chromosome
1. Prokaryotic chromosome contains DNA and associated proteins, but much less protein than
eukaryotic chromosomes.
2. Chromosome consists of nucleoid (an irregularly-shaped region, electron-dense, and not enclosed
by a membrane).
3. Chromosome, when stretched out, is a circular loop attached to the inside of the plasma membrane;
about 1000 times the length of the cell.
C. Binary Fission
1. Binary fission of prokaryotic cells produces two genetically identical daughter cells by division
(fission).
2. Before cell division, DNA is replicated so two chromosomes are attached inside plasma membrane.
3. Following DNA replication, the two chromosomes separate as a cell lengthens and pulls them apart.
4. When cell is approximately twice its original length, the plasma membrane grows inward, a new cell
wall forms dividing the cell into two approximately equal daughter cells.
5. Generation times of Escherichia coli is 20 minutes; most bacteria need up to one hour to a day.

How Eukaryotic Cells Divide


A. Eukaryotic Chromosomes
1. DNA in chromosomes of eukaryotic cells is associated with proteins; histone proteins organize
chromosomes.
2. When cell is not undergoing division, DNA in nucleus is a tangled mass of threads called chromatin.
3. At cell division, chromatin becomes highly coiled and condensed and now visible as chromosomes.
4. Each species has a characteristic number of chromosomes.
a. Diploid (2n) number includes two sets of chromosomes of each type.
Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 19
• Found in all the non-sex cells of an organism’s body (with a few exceptions).
• Examples include humans (46), crayfish (200), etc.
b. Haploid (n) number contains one of each kind of chromosome.
• In the life cycle of many animals, only sperm and egg cells have the haploid number.
• Examples included humans (23), crayfish (100), etc.
5. Cell division in eukaryotes involves nuclear division and cytokinesis (division of the cytoplasm).
a. Somatic (body) cells undergo mitosis for development, growth, and repair.
• This nuclear division leaves the chromosome number constant.
• A 2n nucleus replicates and divides to provide daughter nuclei that are also 2n.
b. A chromosome begins cell division with two sister chromatids.
• Sister chromatids are two strands of genetically identical chromosomes.
• At the beginning of cell division, they are attached at a centromere.
• The centromere is a region of constriction on a chromosome where sister chromatids
are attached.

MITOSIS
Mitosis in Animal Cells
• Mitosis (karyokinesis) is divided into four phases: prophase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase.
1. Prophase
• The chromatin fibers become more tightly coiled, condensing into discrete
chromosomes observable with a light microscope.
• The nucleoli disappear.
• Each duplicated chromosome appears as two identical sister chromatids joined at their
centromeres and, in some species, all along their arms by cohesins (sister chromatid
cohesion).
• The mitotic spindle (named for its shape) begins to form. It is composed of the centrosomes
and the microtubules that extend from them. The radial arrays of shorter microtubules that
extend from the centrosomes are called asters (“stars”).
• The centrosomes move away from each other, propelled partly by the lengthening
microtubules between them
2. Metaphase
• The centrosomes are now at opposite poles of the cell.
• The chromosomes convene at the metaphase plate, a plane that is equidistant between the
spindle’s two poles. The chromosomes’ centromeres lie at the metaphase plate.
• For each chromosome, the kinetochores of the sister chromatids are attached to kinetochore
microtubules coming from opposite poles
3. Anaphase
• Two sister chromatids of each duplicated chromosome separate at centromere.
• Daughter chromosomes, each with a centromere and single chromatid, move to opposite
poles.
4. Telophase
• Spindle disappears.
• Chromosomes decondense and return to chromatin; the nuclear envelope reforms and
nucleoli reappear.
• Cytokinesis is nearly complete.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 20


Mitosis in Plant Cells
• Plant meristematic tissue in tips of roots and shoots of stems retains ability to divide throughout life.
• Stages are exactly same as in animal cells.
• Although plant cells have a centrosome and spindle, there are no centrioles and asters do not form.

Cytokinesis in Plant and Animal Cells

In Plant Cells
• The rigid cell wall that surrounds plant cells does not permit cytokinesis by furrowing.
• Golgi apparatus produces vesicles that move to the midpoint between the daughter nuclei.
• Vesicles fuse forming cell plate; their membranes complete plasma memberanes of daughter cells.
• Vesicles also release molecules that signal the formation of plant cell walls.
• Walls are strengthened by the addition of cellulose fibrils.
In Animal Cells
• Cleavage furrow indents the plasma membrane between the two daughter nuclei at a midpoint;
progressively divides cytoplasm during cell division.
• Cytoplasmic cleavage begins as anaphase draws to a close.
• Cleavage furrow deepens as band of actin filaments constricts between the two daughter cells.
• Narrow bridge exists between daughter cells during telophase; constriction separates cytoplasm.

MEOSIS
• Meiosis is nuclear division reducing chromosome number from diploid (2n) to haploid (n) number.
• Haploid (n) number is half the diploid number of chromosomes.
• Requires gamete formation and then fusion of gametes to form a zygote.
• A zygote always has a full or diploid (2n) number of chromosomes.
• If gametes contained same number of chromosomes as body cells, doubling would soon fill cells.

Meiosis I
 Prophase I begins like prophase of mitosis. The nucleolus disappears, chromatin condenses into
chromosomes, the nuclear envelope breaks down, and the spindle apparatus develops. Unlike
mitosis, however, once the chromosomes are condensed, homologous chromosomes pair, a
process called synapsis. These pairs of homologous chromosomes are variously referred to as
tetrads(a group of four chromatids) or bivalents. During synapsis, corresponding regions along
nonsister chromatids form close associations called chiasmata(singular, chiasma). Chiasmata are
sites where genetic material is exchanged between nonsister homologous chromatids, a process
called crossing over. A tetrad together with chiasmata and crossover events is referred to as a
synaptonemal complex.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 21


 Metaphase I begin when homologous pairs of chromosomes are spread across the metaphase
plate. Microtubules extending from one pole are attached to the kinetochore of one member of each
homologous pair. Microtubules from the other pole are connected to the second member of each
homologous pair.
 Anaphase I begins when homologues within tetrads uncouple as they are pulled to opposite poles.
 Telophase I, begins when the chromosomes have reached their respective poles, and a nuclear
membrane develops around them. Note that each pole will form a new nucleus that will have half the
number of chromosomes, but each chromosome will contain two chromatids. Since daughter nuclei
will have half the number of chromosomes, cells that they eventually form will be haploid.
Meiosis II
 In Prophase II, the nuclear envelope disappears and the spindle develops. There are no chiasmata
and no crossing over of genetic material as in prophase I.
 In Metaphase II, the chromosomes align singly on the metaphase plate (not in tetrads as in
metaphase I). Single alignment of chromosomes is exactly what happens in mitosis except that now
there is only half the number of chromosomes.
 Anaphase II begins as each chromosome is pulled apart into two chromatids by the microtubules of
the spindle apparatus. The chromatids (now chromosomes) migrate to their respective poles. Again,
this is exactly what happens in mitosis except that now there is only half the number of
chromosomes.
 In telophase II, the nuclear envelope reappears at each pole and cytokinesis occurs. The end result
of meiosis is four haploid cells (chromosome makeup of each daughter cell designated by n). Each
cell contains half the number of chromosomes, and each chromosome consists of only one
chromatid. Later in interphase, a second chromatid in each chromosome is replicated, but the cell
will still have only half the number of chromosomes.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 22


MITOSIS vs MEIOSIS

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 23


DON MARIANO MARCOS MEMORIAL STATE UNIVERSITY
NORTH LA UNION CAMPUS
Bacnotan, La Union
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Secondary Laboratory School
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

LECTURE NOTES IN GENERAL BIOLOGY I

Lesson 8: BIOLOGICAL MOLECULES


CARBOHYDRATES
– are compounds containing carbon, hydrogen and oxygen in the ratio 1:2:1
– supply the heat and energy for many cellular processes

Monosaccharides
-are simple sugars with a carbon backbone of three to seven carbon atoms.
 Best known sugars have six carbons (hexoses).
Glucose and fructose isomers have same formula (C6H12O6) but differ in structure.
 Glucose sometimes referred to as blood sugar, dextrose and grape sugar is commonly found
in blood of animals; is immediate energy source to cells.
 Fructose is commonly found in fruit.
 Galactose is commonly found in milk
 Ribose and deoxyribose are five-carbon sugars (pentoses); contribute to the backbones of RNA and
DNA respectively.
Disaccharides
-contain two monosaccharides joined by condensation
-referred as the double sugars with the molecular formula C12H22O11
-formation of two monosaccharide units involves the removal of a water molecule called
dehydration synthesis
2C6H12O6  C12H22O11 + H2O
 glucose + fructose = sucrose(common table sugar)
 glucose + galactose = lactose(the sugar in milk)
 glucose + glucose = maltose
 Saccharin a synthetic sweetening substance is much sweeter than any sugar

Polysaccharides
-are composed of a large number of monosaccharide units
 Starch is straight chain of glucose molecules with few side branches. It is found in plants and animal
cell membrane. The starch molecule is made up of hundreds of glucose molecules joined together to
form long chains. Starch is an important storage substance in the plastids of plant cells. Plastids are
important organelles in plant cells. They are the sites where molecules like starch are made and
stored. One familiar example of a plastid is the chloroplast.
 Glycogen is highly branched polymer of glucose with many side branches; called "animal starch," it
is storage carbohydrate of animals. They are excess glucose units stored in the liver and muscles.
Once the need for energy in the body arises, glycogen can be easily withdrawn from the liver and
readily converted to glucose fuels for the cells.
 Cellulose is glucose bonded to form microfibrils; primary constituent of plant cell walls.
 Cotton is nearly pure cellulose.
 Cellulose is not easily digested due to the strong linkage between glucose molecules.
 Grazing animals can digest cellulose due to special stomachs and bacteria.
 Chitin is polymer of glucose with amino acid attached to each; it is primary constituent of crabs and
related animals like lobsters and insects.

LIPIDS
– are composed of carbon, hydrogen , and oxygen but contain much less oxygen in proportion to
carbon and hydrogen than those found in carbohydrates
– are a class of substances that are insoluble in water (and other polar solvents) but are soluble in
nonpolar substances (like ether or chloroform).

 Fats- most common lipids


Saturated fats- fats that are solid at ordinary temperatures
ex. butter, lard, and animal fats
Unsaturated fats- fats that are liquid at ordinary temperatures
ex. corn oil, olive oil, and other vegetable oil

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 24


 Phospholipids- found in the cell membrane
 Waxes- protective covering that retards water loss in plants, and maintains animal skin and fur.
 Steroids- it include cholesterol (a component of cell membranes) and certain hormones, including
testosterone and estrogen.

PROTEINS
– the most diverse in structure and function among organic compounds
– amino acids are the building blocks of proteins
 Structural proteins such as keratin in the hair and horns of animals, collagen in connective tissues,
and silk in spider webs.
 Storage proteins such as casein in milk, ovalbumin in egg whites, and zein in corn seeds.
 Transport proteins such as those in the membranes of cells that transport materials into and out of
cells and as oxygen-carrying hemoglobin in red blood cells.
 Defensive proteins such as the antibodies that provide protection against foreign substances that
enter the bodies of animals.
 Enzymes that regulate the rate of chemical reactions.

NUCLEIC ACID
– are biomolecules that serve as the blueprints for proteins that ultimately control the chemical
processes in a cell
DNA is a polymer of nucleotides. A DNA nucleotide consists of three parts—a nitrogen base, a five-carbon
sugar called deoxyribose, and a phosphate group. There are four DNA nucleotides, each with one of the
four nitrogen bases, as follows:
1. Adenine—a double-ring base (purine)
2. Thymine—a single-ring base (pyrimidine)
3. Cytosine—a single-ring base (pyrimidine)
4. Guanine—a double-ring base (purine)
RNA differs from DNA in the following ways.
 The sugar in the nucleotides that make an RNA molecule is ribose, not deoxyribose as it is in
DNA.
 The thymine nucleotide does not occur in RNA. It is replaced by uracil. When pairing of bases
occurs in RNA, uracil (instead of thymine) pairs with adenine.
 RNA is usually single-stranded and does not form a double helix as it does in DNA

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 25


DON MARIANO MARCOS MEMORIAL STATE UNIVERSITY
NORTH LA UNION CAMPUS
Bacnotan, La Union
COLLEGE OF EDUCATION
Secondary Laboratory School
Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics

LECTURE NOTES IN GENERAL BIOLOGY I

Lesson 9: ENERGY TRANSFORMATION


PHOTOSYNTHESIS
• Photosynthesis is the process that converts solar energy into chemical energy
• Directly or indirectly, photosynthesis nourishes almost the entire living world
• Autotrophs sustain themselves without eating anything derived from other organisms
• Autotrophs are the producers of the biosphere, producing organic molecules from CO2 and other
inorganic molecules
• Almost all plants are photoautotrophs, using the energy of sunlight to make organic molecules from
H2O and CO2
• Photosynthesis occurs in plants, algae, certain other protists, and some prokaryotes
• These organisms feed not only themselves but also most of the living world
• Heterotrophs obtain their organic material from other organisms
• Heterotrophs are the consumers of the biosphere
• Almost all heterotrophs, including humans, depend on photoautotrophs for food and O2

Photosynthesis takes place in three stages:


1. capturing energy from sunlight;
2. using the energy to make ATP and to reduce the compound NADP+, an electron carrier, to NADPH;
and using the ATP and NADPH to power the
3. synthesis of organic molecules from CO2in the air

The first two stages require light and are commonly called the light-dependent reactions. The third
stage, the formation of organic molecules from CO2, is called carbon fixation. This process takes place via a
cyclic series of reactions. As long as ATP and NADPH are available, the carbon fixation reactions can occur
either in the presence or in the absence of light, and so these reactions are also called the light-independent
reactions/ Calvin Cycle.
The following simple equation summary:

6 CO2 + 12 H2O + light → C6H12O6+ 6 H2O + 6 O2

Chloroplasts: The Sites of Photosynthesis in Plants


 All green parts of a plant, including green stems and unripened fruit, have chloroplasts, but the
leaves are the major sites of photosynthesis in most plants.
 Their green color is from chlorophyll, the green pigment within chloroplasts
 Light energy absorbed by chlorophyll drives the synthesis of organic molecules in the chloroplast
 CO2 enters and O2 exits the leaf through microscopic pores called stomata
 Chloroplasts are found mainly in cells of the mesophyll, the interior tissue of the leaf
 A typical mesophyll cell has 30–40 chloroplasts
 The chlorophyll is in the membranes of thylakoids (connected sacs in the chloroplast); thylakoids
may be stacked in columns called grana
 Chloroplasts also contain stroma, a dense fluid

The Splitting of Water


• Chloroplasts split H2O into hydrogen and oxygen, incorporating the electrons of hydrogen into sugar
molecules

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 26


Photosynthesis as a Redox Process
• Photosynthesis is a redox process in which H2O is oxidized and CO2 is reduced

The Nature of Sunlight


• Light is a form of electromagnetic energy, also called electromagnetic radiation
• Like other electromagnetic energy, light travels in rhythmic waves
• Wavelength is the distance between crests of waves
• Wavelength determines the type of electromagnetic energy
• The electromagnetic spectrum is the entire range of electromagnetic energy, or radiation
• Visible light consists of wavelengths (including those that drive photosynthesis) that produce colors
we can see
• Light also behaves as though it consists of discrete particles, called photons

Photosynthetic Pigments: The Light Receptors


• Pigments are substances that absorb visible light
• Different pigments absorb different wavelengths
• Wavelengths that are not absorbed are reflected or transmitted
• Leaves appear green because chlorophyll reflects and transmits green light
• A spectrophotometer measures a pigment’s ability to absorb various wavelengths
• This machine sends light through pigments and measures the fraction of light transmitted at each
wavelength
• The absorption spectrum of chlorophyll a suggests that violet-blue and red light work best for
photosynthesis
• An action spectrum profiles the relative effectiveness of different wavelengths of radiation in driving
a process
• There are several kinds of chlorophyll, including chlorophyll a and b.
Chlorophyll is green because it reflects green light, not absorbs it. It looks green because the green
light it reflects is the light we see. Similarly, carotenoids look orange or yellow because they reflect
those colors.

A Photosystem: A Reaction-Center Complex Associated with Light-Harvesting Complexes


• A photosystem consists of a reaction-center complex (a type of protein complex) surrounded by
light-harvesting complexes
• The light-harvesting complexes (pigment molecules bound to proteins) funnel the energy of
photons to the reaction center
• A primary electron acceptor in the reaction center accepts an excited electron from chlorophyll a
• Solar-powered transfer of an electron from a chlorophyll a molecule to the primary electron acceptor
is the first step of the light reactions
• There are two types of photosystems in the thylakoid membrane
• Photosystem II (PS II) functions first (the numbers reflect order of discovery) and is best at
absorbing a wavelength of 680 nm
• The reaction-center chlorophyll a of PS II is called P680
• Photosystem I (PS I) is best at absorbing a wavelength of 700 nm
• The reaction-center chlorophyll a of PS I is called P700

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 27


Noncyclic Photophosphorylation
Photophosphorylation is the process of making ATP from ADP and Pi (phosphorylation) using
energy derived from light (photo). Noncyclic photophosphorylation begins with PS II and follows these
steps:
1. Photosystem II. Electrons trapped by P680in photosystem II are energized by light. In the above
figure, two electrons are shown “moving” up, signifying an increase in their energy.
2. Primary electron acceptor. Two energized electrons are passed to a molecule called the primary
electron acceptor. This electron acceptor is called “primary” because it is the first in a chain of
electron acceptors.
3. Electron transport chain. Electrons pass through an electron transport chain. This chain consists of
proteins that pass electrons from one carrier protein to the next. Some carrier proteins, like
ferredoxinand cytochrome, include nonprotein parts containing iron. The electron transport chains in
photosynthesis are analogous to those in oxidative phosphorylation.
4. Phosphorylation. As the two electrons move “down” the electron transport chain, they lose energy.
The energy lost by the electrons as they pass along the electron transport chain is used to
phosphorylate, on average, about 1.5 ATP molecules.
5. Photosystem I.The electron transport chain terminates with PS I (with P700). Here the electrons are
again energized by sunlight and passed to a primary electron acceptor (different from the one
associated with PS II). NADPH.The two electrons pass through a short electron transport chain. At
the end of the chain, the two electrons combine with NADP+ and H+ to form NADPH. NADPH is a
coenzyme. Like NADH in respiration, NADPH is an energy-rich molecule. (You can keep the two
coenzymes NADH and NADPH associated with the correct processes by using the P in NADPH as a
reminder of the P in photosynthesis. The P in NADPH, however, actually represents phosphorus.)
6. Splitting of Water. The two electrons that originated in PS II are now incorporated into NADPH. The
loss of these two electrons from PS II is replaced when H2O is split into two electrons, 2 H+ and
½ O2. A manganese containing protein complex catalyzes the reaction. The two electrons from H2O
replace the lost electrons from PS II, one of the H+ provides the H in NADPH, and the ½ O2
contributes to the oxygen gas that is released

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 28


In summary, photophosphorylation takes the energy in light and the electrons in H2O to make the
energy-rich molecules ATP and NADPH. Because the reactions require light, they are often called the light-
dependent reactions or, simply, light reactions.
The following equation informally summarizes the process:
H2O + ADP + Pi + NADP++ light →ATP + NADPH + O2+ H+

Cyclic Photophosphorylation
A second photophosphorylation sequence occurs when the electrons energized in PS I are
“recycled.” In this sequence, energized electrons from PS I join with protein carriers and generate ATP as
they pass along the electron transport chain. In contrast to noncyclic photophosphorylation where electrons
become incorporated into NADPH, electrons in cyclic photophosphorylation return to PS I. Here they can be
energized again to participate in cyclic or noncyclic photophosphorylation. Cyclic photophosphorylation
occurs simultaneously with noncyclic photophosphorylation to generate additional ATP. Two electrons
passing through cyclic photophosphorylation generate, on average, about 1 ATP.

Calvin Cycle
The Calvin cycle “fixes” CO2. That is, it takes chemically unreactive, inorganic CO2 and incorporates
it into an organic molecule that can be used in biological systems. The biosynthetic pathway involves over a
dozen products. The function of the pathway is to produce a single molecule of glucose (C6H12O6). In order
to accomplish this, the Calvin cycle must repeat six times, and use 6 CO2 molecules.
1. Carboxylation: 6 CO2 combine with 6 RuBP to produce 12 PGA.The enzyme ribulose
bisphosphate carboxylase/ oxygenase, or rubisco, catalyzes the merging of CO2 and RuBP (ribulose
bisphosphate). The Calvin cycle is referred to as C3photosynthesisbecause the first product formed,
PGA (phosphoglycerate), contains three carbon atoms. Other names are the Calvin-Benson cycle
and the carbon reduction cycle.
2. Reduction: 12 ATP and 12 NADPH are used to convert 12 PGA to 12 G3P.The energy in the ATP
and NADPH molecules is incorporated into G3P (glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate or PGAL), thus making
G3P a very energy-rich molecule. ADP, Pi, and NADP+ are released and then re-energized in
noncyclic photophosphorylation.
3. Regeneration: 6 ATP are used to convert 10 G3P to 6 RuBP. Regenerating the 6 RuBP originally
used to combine with 6 CO2 allows the cycle to repeat.
4. Carbohydrate synthesis. Note that 12 G3P were created in step 2, but only 10 were used in step 3.
What happened to the remaining two? These two remaining G3P are used to build glucose, a
common energy-storing molecule. Other monosaccharides like fructose and maltose can also be
formed. In addition, glucose molecules can be combined to form disaccharides like sucrose and
polysaccharides like starch and cellulose.

You should recognize that no light is directly used in the Calvin cycle. Thus, these reactions are
often called the light independent reactions or even the dark reactions. But be careful—the process
cannot occur in the absence of light. This is because it is dependent upon the energy from ATP and
NADPH, and these two energy-rich molecules can be created only during photophosphorylation, which can
occur only in light.
In summary, the Calvin cycle takes CO2from the atmosphere and the energy in ATP and NADPH to
create a glucose molecule. Of course, the energy in ATP and NADPH represents energy from the sun
captured during photophosphorylation.

The Calvin cycle can be informally summarized as follows:


6CO2+ 18ATP + 12NADPH + H+→18ADP + 18Pi +12NADP++ 1 glucose

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 29


CELLULAR RESPIRATION
Cellular respiration is an ATP-generating process that occurs within cells. Energy is extracted from
energy-rich glucose to form ATP from ADP and Pi. The chemical equation describing this process is

C6H12O6+ 6 O2→6 CO2+ 6 H2O + energy

Cellular respiration in the presence of O2 is called aerobic respiration. Aerobic respiration is divided into
three components: glycolysis, the Krebs cycle, and oxidative phosphorylation.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 30


Glycolysis
Glycolysis is the decomposition (lysis) of glucose(glyco) to pyruvate(or pyruvic acid). Nine
intermediate products are formed, and, of course, each one is catalyzed by an enzyme. In six of the steps,
magnesium ions (Mg2+) are cofactors that promote enzyme activity.
1. 2 ATP are added. The first several steps require the input of energy. This changes glucose in
preparation for subsequent steps.
2. 2 NADH are produced. NADH, a coenzyme, forms when NAD+ combines with two energy-rich
electrons and H+ (obtained from an intermediate molecule during the breakdown of glucose). As a
result, NADH is an energy rich molecule.
3. 4 ATP are produced.
4. 2 pyruvate are formed.

In summary, glycolysis takes 1 glucose and turns it into 2 pyruvate, 2 NADH, and a net of 2 ATP
(made 4 ATP, but used 2 ATP). The process occurs in the cytosol.

The Krebs Cycle


The Krebs cycle details what happens to pyruvate, the end product of glycolysis. Although the Krebs
cycle is described for 1 pyruvate, remember that glycolysis produces 2 pyruvate. In the above figure, the
“×2” next to the pyruvate and the Krebs cycle is a reminder to multiply the products of this cycle by 2 to
account for the products of a single glucose.
1. Pyruvate to acetyl CoA. In a step leading up to the actual Krebs cycle, pyruvate combines with
coenzyme A (CoA) to produce acetyl CoA. In that reaction, 1 NADH and 1 CO2 are also produced.
2. Krebs Cycle: 3 NADH, 1 FADH2, 1 ATP, CO2. The Krebs cycle begins when acetyl CoA combines
with OAA (oxaloacetate) to form citrate. There are seven intermediate products. Along the way,
3NADH and 1 FADH2 are made, and CO2 is released. FADH2, like NADH, is a coenzyme, accepting
electrons during a reaction. Because the first product made from acetyl CoA is the 3-carbon citrate
(citric acid), the Krebs cycle is also known as the citric acid cycle or the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle.

The CO2 produced by the Krebs cycle is the CO2 animals exhale when they breathe

Oxidative Phosphorylation
Oxidative phosphorylationis the process of extracting ATP from NADH and FADH2. Electrons from
NADH and FADH2 pass along an electron transport chain. The chain consists of proteins that pass these
electrons from one carrier protein to the next. Some carrier proteins, such as the cytochromes, include
nonprotein parts containing iron. Along each step of the chain, the electrons give up energy used to
phosphorylate ADP to ATP. NADH provides electrons that have enough energy to generate about 3 ATP,
while FADH2 generates about 2 ATP.
The final electron acceptor of the electron transport chain is oxygen.The ½ O2 accepts the two
electrons and, together with 2 H+, forms water.

Anaerobic Respiration
What if oxygen is not present? If oxygen is not present, no electron acceptor exists to accept the
electrons at the end of the electron transport chain. If this occurs, then NADH accumulates. After all the
NAD+ has been converted to NADH, the Krebs cycle and glycolysis both stop (both need NAD+ to accept
electrons). When this happens, no new ATP is produced, and the cell soon dies.
Anaerobic respiration is a method cells use to escape this fate. Two common metabolic
pathways, alcohol and lactic acid fermentation, are slightly different, but the objective of both processes is to

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 31


replenish NAD+ so that glycolysis can proceed once again. Anaerobic respiration occurs in the cytosol
alongside glycolysis.

Alcohol Fermentation
Alcohol fermentation (or sometimes, just fermentation) occurs in plants, fungi (such as yeasts), and
bacteria. The steps, illustrated in the above figure, are as follows:
1. Pyruvate to acetaldehyde. For each pyruvate, 1 CO2 and 1 acetaldehyde are produced. The CO2
formed is the source of carbonation in fermented drinks like beer and champagne.
2. Acetaldehyde to ethanol. The important part of this step is that the energy in NADH is used to drive
this reaction, releasing NAD+. For each acetaldehyde, 1 ethanol is made and 1 NAD+ is produced.
The ethanol (ethyl alcohol) produced here is the source of alcohol in beer and wine.

It is important that you recognize the objective of this pathway. At first glance, you should wonder
why the energy in an energy-rich molecule like NADH is removed and put into the formation of ethanol,
essentially a waste product that eventually kills the yeast (and other organisms) that produce it. The goal of
this pathway, however, does not really concern ethanol, but the task of freeing NAD+ to allow glycolysis to
continue. Recall that in the absence of O2, all the NAD+ is bottled up in NADH. This is because oxidative
phosphorylation cannot accept the electrons of NADH without oxygen. The purpose of the fermentation
pathway, then, is to release some NAD+ for use by glycolysis. The reward for this effort is 2 ATP from
glycolysis for each 2 converted pyruvate. This is not much, but it’s better than the alternative—0 ATP.

Lactic Acid Fermentation


Only one step occurs in lactic acid fermentation. A pyruvate is converted to lactate (or lactic acid)
and in the process, NADH gives up its electrons to form NAD+. As in alcohol fermentation, the NAD+ can
now be used for glycolysis. In humans and other mammals, most lactate is transported to the liver where it
is converted back to glucose when surplus ATP is available.

Storage molecules
Several molecules act as storage facilities. Here’s a list of the ones you need to know:
 ATP (adenosine triphosphate.): ATP is the most useful form of energy within cells. Oodles of
enzymes use ATP to do their catalytic thing. Most typically, energy is released from ATP by means
of a hydrolysis reaction between the second and third of three phosphate groups attached to
adenosine. This hydrolysis results in adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and a free phosphate group.
ATP is regenerated simply by performing the reverse reaction (dehydration).
 NADH (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide): Used during cellular respiration, NADH is the
reduced form of a redox pair. The oxidized form of NADH is NAD+. NAD+ accepts electrons during
glycolysis and the Krebs cycle. NADH gives up electrons during oxidative phosphorylation and both
types of anaerobic respiration.
 NADPH (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate): NADPH is just like NADH with an
added phosphate. The extra “P” in the abbreviation stands for phosphate, but you might as well think
of it as standing for “plant” or “photosynthesis,” because that’s where NADPH is used. The oxidized
form of NADPH, NADP+, accepts electrons during the light-dependent reactions of photosynthesis.
The reduced form, NADPH, gives up those electrons during the Calvin-Benson cycle.
 FADH2(flavin adenine dinucleotide): FADH2is similar to NADH/NADPH in overall structure, so it is
unsurprising that it has a similar function: to shuttle electrons from one place to another. The
oxidized form, FAD, accepts electrons during the Krebs cycle. The reduced form, FADH2, feeds
those electrons into the electron transport chain of oxidative phosphorylation.

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 32


Homologous Pairs of Chromosomes
1. In a diploid body cell, chromosomes occur as pairs.
a. Each set of chromosomes is a homologous pair; each member is a homologous
chromosome or homologue.
b. Homologues look alike; they have same length and centromere position; have similar
banding pattern when stained.
c. A location on one homologue contains the same types of gene which occurs at the same
locus on other homologue.
2. Chromosomes duplicate just before nuclear division.
a. Duplication produces two identical parts called sister chromatids, held together at
centromere.
b. Non-sister chromatids do not share the same centromere.
3. One member of each homologous pair is inherited from either male or female parent; one member
of each homologous pair is placed in each sperm or egg.

Overview of Meiosis
1. Meiosis I is the nuclear division at the first meiotic division.
a. Prior to meiosis I, DNA replication occurs and each chromosome has two sister chromatids.
b. During meiosis I, homologous chromosomes come together and line up (cause unknown)
in synapsis.
c. During synapsis, the two sets of paired chromosomes lay alongside each other as
bivalents or a tetrad.
d. Crossing over is an exchange of homologous segments between non-sister chromatids of
bivalent during meiosis I; results in genetic recombinations.
e. After crossing over occurs, sister chromatids of a chromosome are no longer identical.
2. Meiosis II
a. No replication of DNA is needed between meiosis I and II because chromosomes were
already doubled.
b. During meiosis II, centromeres divide; daughter chromosomes derived as sister chromatids
separate.
c. Chromosomes in the four daughter cells have only one chromatid.
d. Counting the number of centromeres verifies that parent cells were diploid, each daughter
cell is haploid.
e. In the animal life cycle, daughter cells become gametes that fuse during fertilization; this
restores the diploid number in body cells.

Gametogenesis-the process by which gametes or reproductive cells are formed by meiotic division
A. Spermatogenesis- sperm cell formation
Spermatogenesis begins at puberty within the seminiferous tubules of the testes. Cells called
spermatogonia divide by mitosis repeatedly to produce primary spermatocytes that begin meiosis.
Meiosis I produces two secondary spermatocytes,which, at the end of meiosis II, become four
spermatids. Sertoli cellsin the seminiferous tubules provide nourishment to the spermatids as they
differentiate into mature sperm. The sperm complete their development in the epididymis, where
they are stored until needed.

B. Oogenesis- ovum/ egg cell formation


Fetal cells called oogonia divide by mitosis to produce primary oocytes, which then begin meiosis.
All primary oocytes, however, progress only to prophase I. They remain at this stage until puberty, at
which time one primary oocyte during each menstrual cycle (averaging 28 days) continues its
development through the remainder of meiosis I. Development occurs within an envelope of
encircling cells called a follicle, which protects and nourishes the developing oocyte. During the
remainder of meiosis I, cytoplasm is concentrated in only one of the daughter cells (unequal
cytokinesis). Thus, at the end of meiosis I, one daughter cell is the secondary oocyte containing
most of the cytoplasm and the other daughter cell is a polar bodywith very little cytoplasm. The polar

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body may continue with meiosis II and divide into two daughter polar bodies, but they ultimately
disintegrate. Concentrating the cytoplasm in one viable secondary oocyte (and at the end of meiosis
II, one egg) assures that adequate amounts of stored food, as well as mitochondria, ribosomes, and
other cytoplasmic organelles, will be available for the developing embryo. In contrast, the sperm
contributes very little cytoplasm at fertilization.

Lab
Cell Division Mitosis
Sperm Cell
Photosynthesis
Biomolecules

Linear Electron Flow


• During the light reactions, there are two possible routes for electron flow: cyclic and linear
• Linear electron flow, the primary pathway, involves both photosystems and produces ATP and
NADPH using light energy
• A photon hits a pigment and its energy is passed among pigment molecules until it excites P680
• An excited electron from P680 is transferred to the primary electron acceptor
• P680+ (P680 that is missing an electron) is a very strong oxidizing agent
• H2O is split by enzymes, and the electrons are transferred from the hydrogen atoms to P680+, thus
reducing it to P680
• O2 is released as a by-product of this reaction
• Each electron “falls” down an electron transport chain from the primary electron acceptor of PS II to
PS I
• Energy released by the fall drives the creation of a proton gradient across the thylakoid membrane
• Diffusion of H+ (protons) across the membrane drives ATP synthesis
• In PS I (like PS II), transferred light energy excites P700, which loses an electron to an electron
acceptor
• P700+ (P700 that is missing an electron) accepts an electron passed down from PS II via the
electron transport chain
• Each electron “falls” down an electron transport chain from the primary electron acceptor of PS I to
the protein ferredoxin (Fd)
• The electrons are then transferred to NADP+ and reduce it to NADPH
• The electrons of NADPH are available for the reactions of the Calvin cycle

Cyclic Electron Flow


• Cyclic electron flow uses only photosystem I and produces ATP, but not NADPH
• Cyclic electron flow generates surplus ATP, satisfying the higher demand in the Calvin cycle
• Some organisms such as purple sulfur bacteria have PS I but not PS II
• Cyclic electron flow is thought to have evolved before linear electron flow
• Cyclic electron flow may protect cells from light-induced damage
• ATP and NADPH are produced on the side facing the stroma, where the Calvin cycle takes place
• In summary, light reactions generate ATP and increase the potential energy of electrons by moving
them from H2O to NADPH

The Calvin cycle uses ATP and NADPH to convert CO2 to sugar
• The Calvin cycle, like the citric acid cycle, regenerates its starting material after molecules enter and
leave the cycle
• The cycle builds sugar from smaller molecules by using ATP and the reducing power of electrons
carried by NADPH
• Carbon enters the cycle as CO2 and leaves as a sugar named glyceraldehyde-3-phospate (G3P)
• For net synthesis of 1 G3P, the cycle must take place three times, fixing 3 molecules of CO2
• The Calvin cycle has three phases:
• Carbon fixation (catalyzed by rubisco)
• Reduction
• Regeneration of the CO2 acceptor (RuBP)

Lecture Notes in General Biology 1 Prepared by: Lester E. Orpilla Page 34

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