Lecture 1 – Biological Science

MR . G ARY AN TON IO C. L I R I O
BS N / BSED. M A JOR I N BI OLOG I CA L S CI E NCE/ M E M / M S BI O ( ON G OI NG)
P OLYT ECHNI C U N I V ERSITY OF T HE P HI L I PPINES - OP E N U N I V ERSITY
ORIENTATION: Biological Science
A. Introduction/ Subject / Instructor
B. Requirements
C. Moodle.
D. Answering Assignment.
E. References
F. Grading System
What is Biology?
It is the study of life.
Branch of science
◦ A way of understanding nature.
A human endeavor
◦ An attempt to understand, explain, integrate and describe the world of living
things.
What is Life?
Living organisms:
◦ Highly organized and complex.
◦ Are composed of one or more cells.
◦ Contain a blueprint of their
characteristics.
◦ Acquire and use energy.
◦ Carry out and control numerous
reactions.
What is Life?
Living organisms:
◦ Grow. Insert F01_03b
◦ Maintain constant internal
environment.
◦ Produce offspring.
◦ Respond to environmental changes.
◦ May evolve.
Biology is a Branch of Science
Both an activity and body of knowledge.
A way of understanding the natural world.
◦ Scientists make predictions and test those predictions.
Major Themes in Biology
Evolution by Natural Selection
Inheritance
Cells
Biological Classification
Bioenergetics
Homeostasis
Ecosystems
How is Biology studied?
Insert F01-06
Scientific Method
Begins with observations about our
surroundings.

Next, ask questions about the

phenomena we are observing.
Characteristics of Living
Things
What is biology?
The study of living things
All living things share certain characteristics
1. Made of 1 or more cells
Unicellular (one cell)
- ex. Bacteria
Multicellular (many cells)
- ex. Animals, plants
2. Need energy to survive
Autotrophs - get energy
from sun
Heterotrophs - get
energy by consuming
nutrients from their
environment
3. Respond to stimuli in their environment
Stimuli - factors in the environment
that living things react to
(ex. Light, temperature, sound,
etc.)
4. All living things reproduce
Sexual - two sex cells
required (sperm and
egg)
Asexual - only one
parent cell is needed
5. Grow and develop
Each cell divides to make new cells
(cell division) – results in growth
Some cells become specialized and
perform different jobs than others
(differentiation)
6. Maintain homeostasis
Homeostasis – a relatively stable
internal environment (within a
certain range)
- (ex. Human body temperature
(approximately 98.6 degrees F))
7. Have a universal genetic code
All living things have DNA
DNA passes on genetic information from one
generation to the next
8. Adapt and evolve over time
Evolution - gradual change in a
population of organisms over time
Individuals DO NOT evolve
And because of these characteristics…
 Life Processes
Life processes allow cells to respond to
stimuli, maintain homeostasis,
reproduce, metabolize, and adapt. Non-
living things CANNOT carry out these
processes.
Nutrition
• The use of nutrients by an organism.
• Nutrients are obtained through food except in the case of
green plants. Where do they obtain their nutrients?
Digestion
• The process that beaks large food molecules
into forms that can be used by the cell.
• Mechanical and chemical digestion break down
food for absorption.
• All foods we eat are eventually broken down into
the sugar glucose (C6H12O6) and carried to cells
by blood. Once in the cell glucose molecules are
broken down into H2O and CO2 in the presence
of oxygen and energy is released for our cells to
use. This happens in a cell’s mitochondria.
 Absorption
• The ability of a cell to take in nutrients, water, gases, and
other substances from its surroundings.
 Transport
• The movement of nutrients, water, gases, and other
substances into and out of the cell.
• Transport can be active (molecules carry or “piggy back”
other molecules into and out of a cell; energy is required)
or passive (osmosis and diffusion; no energy is required).
 Respiration
• The release of energy from chemical breakdown of
compound within the cell.
• Oxygen must be present for respiration to occur.

• O2 + C6H12O6  CO2 + H2O + NRG*

* energy
 Secretion and Excretion
• Secretion… • Excretion…
• The release of substances • The ability of the cell to rid
from a cell. itself of waste products.
 Reproduction
• The process of fission in which one cell divides to form
two new identical new cells.
• In regular body cells, this process is called mitosis.
• In sex cells (sperm – male; egg – female), this process is
called meiosis.
 Photosynthesis
• The cellular process in which a plant makes food from
water and carbon dioxide, using energy from the sun.
Review
• For organisms to be considered living, they must have
cells, sensitivity to stimuli, grow, maintain homeostasis,
reproduce, obtain/transform/use energy, and adapt.
• Living organisms carry out the life processes of nutrition,
digestion, absorption, transport, secretion, excretion,
respiration, reproduction, and (in the case of green plants)
photosynthesis.
6 Kingdom system

eukaryotes

prokaryotes
Kingdom Monera
 Microscopic, unicellular
 Simple prokaryotic organisms
E.coli bacteria
 Have a cell wall (Escherichia coli )
Found in humans
 Heterotrophic or autotrophic
 Reproduce asexually
 Binary fission
 Lacks nucleus & membrane
bound organelles
 Live nearly everywhere
(Eg. E.coli)
Streptococci
Makes yoghurt
Kingdom Monera
 Split into two
 Archaebacteria
 Once thought to be similar to eubacteria
 Maybe the first living cells
 Live in extremely harsh environments
 Oxygen-free environments
 Very salty environments
 Produce methane gas
 Live in hotsprings/volcanoes/artic

 Eubacteria
 True bacteria
 Bacteria that we see around us
-grows FAST!
-may produce toxins
-kill plants by blocking
light
A bloom of cyanobacteria
Lake in New Zealand
Kingdom Protista
(Protist = first cell)
 Most uni-cellular eukaryotic organisms
 Has nuclear membrane
 Heterotrophic or autotrophic or both
 Reproduces asexually and sexually
 Live in aquatic or moist habitats
 Any organism that isn’t a plant,
animal or fungus Paramecium

 Eg. Simple algae, protozoan

Kingdom Fungi
 Most are multi-cellular eukaryotic organisms
 Heterotrophs (ie. grows on wood)
 Cell wall without cellulose (that’s why it’s soft)
 Reproduce sexually and asexually
 Most are terrestrial
 Eg. mushrooms, bread molds, mildew
Kingdom Plantae
 All are multi-cellular eukaryotic organisms
 Autotrophs (PS)
 Reproduce sexually and asexually
 Most are terrestrial
 Cell wall with cellulose = tough
 Eg. seaweed, mosses, ferns, conifers, flowering plants
Kingdom Animalia
 All are multi-cellular eukaryotic organisms
 Most reproduce sexually (Some asexually)
 Live in terrestrial and aquatic habitats
 Eg. Sponges, worms, lobsters, sea stars, humans
FYI (Binomial Nomenclature)
HUMANS
KINGDOM: Animalia
PHYLUM: Chordata
(SUBPHYLUM: Vertebrata)
(SUPERCLASS: Gnathostomata)
CLASS: Mammalia
ORDER: Primata
SUBORDER: Haplorhini
FAMILY: Hominidae
GENUS: Homo
SPECIES: Homo sapiens
Atom
◦The smallest unit of an
element that posses all the
characteristics of the
element
Molecules
◦Two or more atoms
bonded together
◦Lipids
◦sugar
Cells
◦The basic unit of life
◦Unicellular – single
celled organisms
◦Multi cellular – many
celled organisms
Tissues –
◦Groups of cells that carry
out a specific function
◦Examples
◦ Epithelial cells – skin cells line
the esophagus
◦ ?
Organs - Several types of
tissues that interact to
perform a specific
function
◦Examples
◦ Esophagus
◦?
Biology
Body System - group of
organs that work together
to perform a set of
related tasks
◦Examples
◦ Digestive system
◦?
Organism / Species -
anything that posses all of
the characteristics of life,
– organisms that are able
to reproduce together
Population – all the
organisms of the same
specie living in the same
place at the same time
◦Example
◦ All the bunnies living in the same
bunny burrow
◦?
Community – all the different
populations loving in the same
place at the same time.
Example: All of the bunnies, deer
and squirrels in the same field
?
Ecosystem all the living
organisms and their
environment
◦ Example: the bunnies, deer,
squirrels and the trees, water ,
mountains and sun
◦?
Biosphere
• Whole living layer around the globe
• Includes abiotic features

http://people.hofstra.edu/geotrans/eng/ch8en/conc8en/envisys.html
Why Study Biology?

Two important reasons for studying Biology:

◦ Biology is relevant to our everyday experience
◦ Medical advances
◦ Addressing needs of growing human population
◦ Challenges of decreasing rate of biodiversity
◦ Biotechnology advances
Why Study Biology?
◦Biology can be
Figure 1-1c
controversial
◦Examples:
◦ Dealing with endangered species?
◦ Use of human fetal tissue in
biomedical research?
◦ Safety of irradiated foods?
Why Study Biological Science?
I. Understanding Our Bodies
II. Treating Disease
III. Proper Nutrition
IV. Understanding Our Environment
V. Conservationism
VI. Using Natural Resources
VII.Harvesting Food
VIII.It’s Literally Everywhere
Do you have Any Question?