This whole unit is about transmitting and

controlling messages to ensure an organism is

healthy and in homeostasis. It is also a nice
review of previous units/lessons.
5.1: Cellular Communication & Hormonal Control
EQ: Why and how do cells communicate?
PART I: Cellular Communication
● Know the purpose and mechanism of cellular communication
● Know the common aspects of all cellular communication
○ Reception, transduction, response
○ Know what a ligand is (and some examples)
■ Understand what can serve as a ligand/signal
○ Understand how ligands begin a relay (do not need to know all the variations)
○ Understand how the same ligand can cause various responses depending on the receptor
○ Understand the cell signalling AMPLIFIES a message = positive feedback
● Understand a few applications of cell signalling (apoptosis, quorum sensing, biofilms, etc)
PART II: Hormonal Control
● The “Theory” circle is a review of Part I (skip if you prepped Part I)
● This presentation is an application of everything in Part I
○ Know a few examples of hormones acting as ligands in a cell signalling pathway. It doesn’t matter which you
choose, just that you understand them thoroughly.

5.2: Nutrition & Osmoregulation (these lessons review SA:V nicely as well as evolution and transport)
EQ: How is nutrition and excretion regulated?
Nutrition​: Important slides are 21-33 (plants), 81-83 (control of animal digestion ), and 87-91 (adaptations to animal digestion).
● First: Plants​ - You do not need to memorize the structure of plants, however think about them in the context of what we
have learned about this year (SA:V ratio, transport, etc). Slides 21-25 explain the importance of root hairs in increasing
SA:V ratio when transporting nutrients. Slides 26-33 explain the importance of bacteria and fungal relationships (know
mycorrhizae) in helping plants acquire nutrients.
● Second: Control​ - You do not need to know the anatomy and physiology of the digestive system. Rather, you need to
understand how feedback plays a role in regulating the digestive system.
○ Slide 81: Control of digestion
○ Slide 82: Control of blood glucose
○ Slide 83: Control of satiety (feeling full)
● Third: Adaptation​ - Think about how the digestive system relates back to natural selection. Think about selective
pressures.
○ Slide 87: Dentition
○ Slide 88: Obesity
○ Slide 89: GI Tract (know microvilli role in SA:V ratio) - relate back to transport!!
○ Slide 90: Ruminants.
Osmoregulation:
● Remind yourself of the difference between solute and solvent :) Think back to unit 2!
● Know the difference between osmoconformers and ​osmoregulators (this is the important one!)
● Understand the mechanism by which osmoregulators regulate the amount of water in their body
○ Retain more solute = retain more water (think back to unit 2 - hypertonic!)
● Know that nitrogenous waste is produced from breaking down proteins/nucleic acids (when?!)
● Know the four steps of excretion:
 ○ Filtration: Removal of fluid/solutes
○ Reabsorption: Re-uptake of water and necessary solutes
○ Secretion: Removal of excess waste (including solute and water)
○ Excretion: Expelling from body
● Understand the diagram on slide 27 (seeing the difference between active and passive transport)
● Understand the ADH and RAAS feedback loops in controlling reabsorption/excretion

5.3: Immunity - this lesson reviews specificity nicely (think back to enzymes, central dogma tRNA)
EQ: How does the immune system function in maintaining homeostasis for the body?
● Know innate immunity basics
○ Know examples of external innate immunity (skin, mucus)
○ Know examples of internal innate immunity (phagocytes, inflammation, toll-like receptors)
○ Understand that innate immunity is ​non-specific
● Know adaptive immunity
○ Understand that adaptive immunity is ​specific
○ Understand that there are two types (humoral and cell-mediated) that both rely on helper-t cells to get started
○ Humoral
■ B cell response
■ Results in making antibodies that respond to ​specific​ antigens on pathogens
■ Phagocytes (non-specific) present antigens to helper-T cells which activate humoral response (B cells)
■ B cells do two things:
● Make plasma cells which in turn make antibodies ​specific​ to the antigen presented
● Make memory cells that constantly circulate and can serve as plasma cells for future infections
with the same antigen
■ B cells bind with helper T cells using the antigen-binding site. The antigen-binding site is highly variable
(has multiple exons that are randomly combined) so there are endless possibilities of antigen-binding
sites available on B-cells (high probability that antigen will match)
● Clonal selection: the antigen-binding site that matches the antigen is “selected” for mitosis and
that is the only B cell that reproduces
● This population of B cells then secretes antibodies. Antibodies can do three things:
○ Opsonization
○ Neutralization
○ Complement activation
■ Know the difference between primary and secondary response (and role of memory cells in this)
○ Cell Mediated
■ T cell response
■ Results in T-cells that are ​specific​ to antigens which then attack antigens directly
■ Phagocytes (non-specific) present antigens to helper-T cells which activate cell mediated response (T
cells)
■ T cells do two things:
● Make cytotoxic T cells which find ​specific ​antigens and trigger death of those cells
● Make memory cells that constantly circulate and can serve as cytotoxic t cells for future
infections with the same antigen
■ Infected cells present the antigen of the pathogen with whom they are infected = MHC
■ Cytotoxic T cells interact with the MHC and then trigger cell death by lysis or apoptosis
○ Understand how three immune disorders work (mechanism)
○ Understand how vaccination works (and how evolution works against this)

5.4: Nervous - great review of membranes and passive transport!

EQ: How is a neuron’s structure related to its function?
● Know the structure of a neuron (nerve cell)
○ Dendrites: receive incoming signals from another neuron via a synapse
■ Understand that inside the neuron is very negatively charged (with lots of K+), while the outside
synapse is very positively charged (with lots of Na+)
● This means that membrane is polarized (has a charge gradient)
 ● There are channels in the neuron membrane that allow ions to pass through (remember
large/charged cannot pass on their own).
○ These channels open when there is a specific voltage OR there is a ligand
○ Axon: Transmit signal (if necessary).
■ A signal is called an action potential when it is being transmitted
■ Action potentials are either all or nothing
● Have three parts: start, propagate, reset
■ Resting potential is the normal polarity across a membrane
■ For an action potential to be generated, then the neuron needs to be “depolarized” or the gradient needs
to be lessened to a specific threshold.
● If the threshold is not met, there is no action potential sent
■ How to depolarize:
● Na+ gates need to open, allowing Na+ to rush inside of the cell (think high-to-low concentration)
● This makes the inside of the cell very positive
○ If it is positive enough, a threshold is reached
■ The neuron NEEDS to reset though, an quickly, so another action potential can be generated if need be.
Here’s how:
● Na+ gates shut (no more Na+ rushing in)
● K+ gates open (K+ rushes out along concentration gradient)
● K+ gates close (there is a slight undershoot, but a Na/K pump restores back to resting potential)
○ Along the axon are voltage-gated ion channels. This means that as the voltage changes next door (becomes
positive), the action potential begins in a new part of the axon (same steps). This allows propagation
(movement) of a signal down an axon.
■ Movement is only in one direction
○ Myelin sheath - increases propagation rate (insulation to a wire)
○ Nodes of Ranvier - holes between myelin sheath where action potential “jumps” = saltatory conduction
○ Synapse: end of the neuron
■ Neurotransmitters are molecules that carry the message across the synapse to another neuron. These
are released from first neuron.
● Neurotransmitters bind to ligand-gated ion channels which release Na+ and start action
potential in next neuron
● If there are molecules that are the same structure as the neurotransmitter then they can bond to
the ligand-gated channels and have the same effect = drugs!

4.5: Transport & Gas Exchange = great review of transport, water potential, concentration gradient, and water polarity
(adhesion, cohesion)
EQ: How is the process of transport accomplished and controlled?
● Please review water potential. Know how it is calculated, know what it is used to predict, know how it is different from
hypertonic/hypotonic
○ Know the importance of both solute potential and pressure potential in calculating water potential
● Plants have a cell wall so they do have a pressure potential
○ Plants control solute potential thereby controlling water potential throughout the plant. This allows plants to
move water throughout the plant.
● Water movement throughout the plant:
○ Roots: Are hypertonic to to the soil (think about what that means for water movement!)
○ Transpiration: continual movement of water from the roots to the shoots and eventually to the atmosphere
■ A major part of the water cycle
■ Relies on water potential gradient throughout the plant
● Highest water potential is at the roots and the lowest water potential is in the atmosphere
○ Plants expend lots of energy maintaining a high water potential at the roots (active
transport of solutes into the roots)
■ Also relies on polarity of water (adhesion of water to xylem and cohesion of water to each other).
○ Understand the role of a stomata = pores in the leaf where excess water leaves for the atmosphere
■ Under tight control
● Control of stomates controls transpiration and gas exchange
 ○ Open = water lost, but gas exchange occurs (necessary for photosynthesis)
○ Closed = no water lost, but gas exchange doesn’t occur
○ Must balance the need for gas exchange with the ability to lose water
● Guard cells control whether a stomata is open or closed
○ Turgid = open = active transport of K+ into guard cells
■ Open when water is freely available (and water can be lost)
○ Flaccid = closed = no active transport of K+ into guard cells
■ Closed in times of water scarcity
○ Know adaptations of plants to prevent water loss
Animals:
● Understand the two circuits on a very BASIC level (pulmonary and systemic)
● Understand the three types of blood vessels (capillaries increase surface area to volume ratio!!)
● Understand the structure of the respiratory system keeping surface area: volume in mind (alveoli!)
○ Notice that alveoli are surrounded by capillaries - this is where gas exchange occurs!
● Understand how oxygen is unloaded from hemoglobin
○ Lower partial pressure of oxygen (meaning there is less oxygen) = higher likelihood that oxygen will get
unloaded
○ Lower pH (due to higher CO2) = higher likelihood that oxygen will get unloaded
○ See the negative feedback of this process
● Understand feedback loop of breathing