Lesson 1 LIFE SCIENCE

The Study of Life

>Biology unravels the story that started at least 3.8 billion years, back in an aquatic environment devoid
of life. The first living cell came about as a result of ancient events wherein lifeless matter became
organized into an entity capable of capturing and using energy and a raw material, sensing, and
responding to the environment, and reproducing its own kind. Provided with kinetic materials that can
change, the first living organisms evolved from one generation to the next, resulting to the present
diversity of microorganisms, plants, and animals.
>Biology literally means “the study of life” it comes from two Greek word bios meaning life and logos
meaning reason or study. Biology is the science that deals with structures, functions, and relationships
of living organisms and their environment. It is a broad field and maybe studied at various levels-
molecular, cellular, organismal, population, community or ecosystems.

Three Major Division of Biological Science

>Microbiology- the study of living organisms.
>Botany- the study of plants.
>Zoology- the study of animals.

The three division of biological science can be subdivided into the following branches:
>Taxonomy- naming and classifying organisms.
>Cytology- structures and functions of the cells.
>Embryology- formation and development of organisms.
>Anatomy- structures and parts of organisms.
>Physiology- functions of living organisms and their parts.
>Biochemistry- biochemical composition of living things.
>Genetics- the heredity and variation.
>Evolution- origin and differentiation of various organisms.
>Ecology- relationships of organisms with their environment.

New Sub disciplines in Biology

>Molecular Biology- molecules that make up the cells of living organisms.
>Genomics- genetic materials (genome) of organisms.
>Proteomics- protein in living organisms.
>Immunology- immune system and immunity.
>Bioinformatics- biological data using computer programs.

Early belief about the origin of life

>Centuries ago people were puzzled about how life originated on Earth. One belief that governed their
thinking is the theory of Spontaneous Generation of Abiogenesis. Spontaneous Generation the idea is
that life could appear from a non-living material. As time went by, scientists questioned this belief and
began to explore an opposing idea, the idea of Biogenesis, which states that life originate from
pre-existing life
Several Experiments about life origin
>Redi’s Experiment- proposed by an Italian physician Francesco Redi (1668)
>Needham’s Experiment- proposed by an English priest named Joh Needham (1748)
>Spallanzani’s Experiment- proposed by an Italian scientist named Lazaro Spallanzani (1767)
>Pasteur’s Experiment- proposed by Louis Pasteur (1861)

Current Belief about the Origin of Life

>Divine Creation
>Spontaneous Origin
>Panspermia

Lesson 2
Unifying themes about life
-We are surrounded by living and non-living organisms, but sometimes it is not easy to decide which
ones are living and which ones are not. Living organisms on earth share common characteristics or
properties typically not founds in an inanimate thing.

Characteristics of living organisms

>Metabolism- pertains to all processes, reactions, and energy changes happening inside the body of an
organisms. These chemical reactions that powers organism’s life processes and provide the raw
materials are performed in sequence and are regulated. The metabolic process includes three activities,
these are nutrient uptake, nutrient processing, and waste elimination.
>Mobility or Motility- it pertain to the ability of an organism to move from one place to another.
>Irritability or sensitivity- tropism or response (the reaction of an organism to stimulus)
it is the ability of an organism to respond appropriately against a stimulus
>Adaptation- it refers to the ability of an organisms to adjust to its environment or to adjust to the
changed in the environment.
>Evolution- process of gradual development by which different kinds of living organisms are thought to
have developed and diversified.
>Growth- it is an increased in size and volume by converting food to become a part of body cells. Living
organisms exhibit growth from within the cells in the process called intussusception. Among
multicellular organism’s growth involves more complex processes of cell differentiation and formation of
new organs called organogenesis.
>Reproduction- ability of organisms to create an offspring. It is also the process by which genetic
information is passed from one generation to another as organisms produce off-spring that resemble
their parents.

Organization of life
Hierarchical levels of biological organization follows this pattern
-Atom
-Molecule
-Cell Organelle
-Cell
-Tissue
-Organ
-Organ system
-Organism
-Population
-Community
-Ecosystem
-Biome

21st Century biology bird’s eye view

>Biotechnology- is define as the applications of biological concepts and systems to make products
beneficial to man. It uses the basic molecules of life to make new products. It is currently being used in
many areas such as business, agriculture, bioremediation, food processing, energy production, medicine,
and pharmaceuticals.

Video Lesson 3 THE CELL AND ITS ENERGY

>Cell- it is the basic unit of life, building blocks of life.
>Scientists study the concept of energy flow within the living systems through a subfield called
bioenergetics. Specifically, energetics deals with the intake, processing, and expenditure of energy
within the body. Energy is provided by the nutrients received via digestive system. Complex molecules
from food, specifically complex carbohydrates, are broken down into simple sugars such as glucose. In
the cellular level the synthesis and breakdown of complex molecules occur through chemical reactions
that releases energy or require energy to occur. This is the reason why food must be consumed so that
the cells are replenished and supply with the nutrients. All these chemical reactions taking place inside
the cells are collectively called metabolism.
>The Producers- in a food chain are the plants (autotrophs), which take the water and minerals from the
soil and carbon dioxide from the air. I photosynthesis, solar energy is captured by plant leaves to convert
water and carbon dioxide to sugar and oxygen. The consumers (heterotrophs) on the other hand, eat
plants and other animals. To produce energy from sugar (glucose) through cellular respiration, they
must take in oxygen. Respiration is the result to the release of carbon dioxide and return of wastes
(undigested materials) to the environment. Small animals, fungi, bacteria decompose wastes, and
remains of dead organisms. These decomposers act as recyclers of soil nutrients that plants can use up
again, ensuring the cycle of matter in the ecosystem.
>Energy, on the other hand, flows in one direction and transforms from one form to another. It flows
through the ecosystem as plants absorb light energy to be converted into chemical energy in a form of
sugar. When animals are eaten other organisms, the chemical energy is passed onto their bodies. In the
process of energy conversion, some energy is converted as heat. Therefore, the flow of matter and
energy in organisms require unending interactions from the sun’s one way flow of energy through the
ecosystem and cycling of nutrients among, producers, consumers, and decomposers.

SPECIALIZED CELL ORGANELLES

>Living organisms may be composed of one or more cells. Whether it is plant, an animal, or microbial
cell, all organisms’ functions using the chemical energy found in food in form of carbohydrate molecules,
which can be traced from the process of photosynthesis. Autotrophs that use sunlight and carbon from
carbon dioxide to synthesize chemical energy in the form of carbohydrates are called photoautotrophs.
Though plants are common photoautotrophs, some bacteria and algae perform photosynthesis. In fact,
the world’s largest oxygen producers are the marine algae living in the ocean. On the other hand, those
who are not capable of performing photosynthesis are called heterotrophs, such as humans and
animals. These organisms require obtaining energy from food by consuming other organisms.
>Inside the cells of animals, humans, and plants there are specialized organelles that function in the
harvesting of energy. The mitochondria are small specialized cellular organelles that produce energy
from food by breaking down carbon-containing molecules and releasing energy pockets in the form of
ATP. These double-membrane, spherical organelles are popularly known as the powerhouse of the cell.
The mitochondria provide the chemical fuels that power the cell to do certain processes such as moving
cell and its parts and copying DNA. It is also capable in synthesizing proteins and dividing in half,
independent of the cell’s normal cell division. Aside from having mitochondria plants have organelles
specifically capable of harvesting light. Plant cells possess different plastids that can harvest solar
energy, store nutrients, and manufacture nutrient molecules. The most common type of plastid is the
chloroplast, which is responsible in trapping light energy in a chemical form. Chloroplasts share common
characteristics with mitochondria. Both have an outer and inner membrane, contain their own DNA
molecules, and make some of their own proteins. However, chloroplasts contain green pigment called
chlorophyll in their innermost membrane.

Lesson 4 PHOTOSYNTHESIS
-It is the process by which plants and some organisms use sunlight to synthesize food from carbon
dioxide and water. Photosynthesis in plants generally involves the green pigment chlorophyll and
generates oxygen byproduct.
-Converts light energy into chemical energy stored in sugar molecules (glucose). This chemical energy is
then release when certain organisms eats plants. In addition, photosynthesis releases oxygen that is
essential to humans and animals.
-Requires sunlight, carbon dioxide and water the materials needed in the chemical reaction. Once the
process is complete, plants release oxygen and carbohydrates known as glucose, a component for
energy production.
-Photosynthesis takes place in plant leaves, which contain many cell layers. Specifically, photosynthesis
occurs in middle layer called mesophyll that contains tiny opening called stomata, where gases enter
and exit the leaves. Inside on the mesophyll cells, photosynthesis occurs in chloroplasts. Chloroplasts
have double inner and outer membrane. Within it are a tiny disc-shaped structures stacked on top of
each other called the thylakoids. The thylakoid membrane is enclosed within a thylakoid space. A stack
thylakoid is called granum, which is surrounded by space called stroma. Embedded inside the thylakoids
are green pigment called chlorophyll that absorbs light.
-Photosynthesis occurs in two stages: The light-dependent and light-independent reaction. The light-
dependent stage happens in the thylakoid membrane of chloroplast, where the chlorophyll pigment
absorbs the light energy from the sun and converts into chemical energy together with water. Oxygen is
also released as byproduct. The light-independent stage, also known as Calvin Cycle, occurs in the
stroma of chloroplast.

Light-dependent Stage
-The series of biochemical reactions in photosynthesis that require light energy that is captured by light-
absorbing pigments (such as chlorophyll) to be converted into chemical energy in the form of ATP
(adenosine triphosphate) and NADPH (nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate).
-The light-dependent reactions use light energy to make two molecules needed for the next stage of
photosynthesis: the energy storage molecule ATP and the reduced electron carrier NADPH. In plants, the
light reactions take place in the thylakoid membraned of organelles called chloroplasts.
-The series of biochemical reactions in photosynthesis that do not require light to proceed, and
ultimately produce organic molecules from carbon dioxide.
-The light-independent reactions o Calvin Cycle, the energized electrons from the light-dependent
reactions provide the energy to form carbohydrates from carbon dioxide molecules. The light-
independent reactions are sometimes called the Calvin Cycle because of the cyclical nature of the
process.
-The light-independent reactions of the Calvin Cycle can be organized intro three basic stages: fixation,
reduction, and regeneration.

Aerobic Pathway
-is a set of metabolic reactions and processes that take place in the cells of organisms to convert
chemical energy from oxygen molecules or nutrients into adenosine triphosphate (ATP), and then
release waste products.
-The process of cell catabolism in which cells turn food into usable energy in the form of ATP. In the
process glucose is broken down in the presence of molecular oxygen into six molecules of carbon
dioxide, and much of the energy released is preserved by turning ADP and free phosphate into ATP.
-It is also known as CELLULAR RESPIRATION, that is consists of three stages Glycolysis, Krebs’ Cycle, and
Electron Transport Chain.
-Glycolysis- is the enzymatic breakdown of a carbohydrate (such as glucose) by way of phosphate
derivatives with the production of pyruvic or lactic acid and energy stored in high-energy phosphate
bonds of ATP.
-Krebs Cycle- is the second of three stages of cellular respiration, in which glucose, fatty acids and
certain amino acids, the so called fuel molecules, are oxidized (see figure). The oxidation of these
molecules is primarily used to transform the energy contained in these molecules into ATP.
-Electron Transport chain- is a cluster of proteins that transfer electrons through a membrane within
mitochondria to form a gradient of protons that drives the creation of adenosine triphosphate (ATP).

ATP is used by the cells as the energy for metabolic processes for cellular functions.

Anaerobic Pathway
-utilizes pyruvate, the final product of glycolysis. Without the functioning ETC there are an excess of
NADH and pyruvate. Pyruvate is subsequently reduced to lactate (lactic acid) by NADH, leaving NAD
after the reduction. This reaction is catalyzed by the enzyme lactate dehydrogenase.
-glycolysis is the breakdown of glucose that occurs in the absence of oxygen. It occurs in the cytoplasm
of cells, and results in the formation of lactic acid (in the case of animals). This mode of respiration is
effective when sudden bursts of energy are required over a short period of time.
-under anaerobic conditions, the absence of oxygen, pyruvic and can be routed by the organism into one
of three pathways: lactic acid fermentation, alcohol fermentation, or cellular (anaerobic) respiration.
Alcohol fermentation is the formation of alcohol from sugar.
Lesson 5 REPRODUCTION
Reproduction – the act or process of reproducing specifically: the process by which plants and animals
give rise to offspring and which fundamentally consists of the segregation of a portion of the parental
body by a sexual or an asexual process and its subsequent growth and differentiation into a new
individual.
-Reproduction (or procreation or breeding) is the biological process by which new individual organisms –
“offspring are produced from their “parents”. There are two forms of reproduction: asexual and sexual.

-Asexual Reproduction – is a type of reproduction that does not involve the fusion of gametes or change
in the number of chromosomes. The offspring that arise by asexual reproduction from a single cell or
from a multicellular organism inherit the genes of that parent
-Asexual Reproduction – involves a single parent. It results in offspring that are genetically identical to
each other and to the parent. All prokaryotes and some eukaryotes reproduce this way. There are
several different methods of asexual reproduction. They include binary fission, fragmentation, and
budding.

Sexual Reproduction
-the production of new living organisms by combining genetic information from two individuals of
different types (sexes). In most higher organisms, one sex (male) produces a small motile gamete which
travels to fuse with a larger stationary gamete produced by the other (female).
-is a type of reproduction that involves a complex life cycle in which a gamete (such as a sperm or egg
cell) with a single set of chromosomes (haploid) combines with another to produce an organism
composed of cells with two sets of chromosomes (diploid).
-is the process in which new organisms are created by combining the genetic information from two
individuals of different sexes. The genetic information is carried on chromosomes within the nucleus of
specialized sex cells called gametes.

Asexual Reproduction is plants

>Vegetative reproduction – a type of reproduction in plants from vegetative parts or specialized
reproductive structures. Structure of plants that produce vegetatively come mostly from modified
stems, such as runners, tubers, corns, and rhizomes.
>Artificial Plant Propagation – is a type of plant reproduction that involves human intervention. The
most common types of artificial vegetative reproductive techniques include cutting, layering, grafting,
suckering, and tissue culturing.

Sexual Reproduction in plants

>Sexual reproduction in flowering plants involves the production of male and female gametes, the
transfer of the male gametes to the female ovules in a process called pollination. After pollination
occurs, fertilization happens and the ovules grow into seed within a fruit.
>Pollination – the transfer of pollen to a stigma, ovule, flower, or plant to allow fertilization. It is the act
of transferring pollen grains from the male another of a flower to the female stigma. The goal of every
living organism, including plants, is to create offspring for the next generation. One of the ways that
plants can produce offspring is by making seeds.
>Fertilization – the process of fusion of the female gamete, the ovum or egg and the male gamete
produced in the pollen tube by the pollen grain. The process of fertilization in plants occurs when
gametes in haploid conditions meet to create a zygote which is diploid.

Asexual Reproduction in animals

-produces offspring that are genetically identical to the parent because the offspring are all close of the
original parent. Animals may reproduce asexually though fission, budding, fragmentation, or
parthenogenesis.
-Animals that reproduce asexually include planarians, many annelid worms including polychaetas and
some oligochaetes, turbellarians and sea stars. Many fungi and plants reproduce asexually. Some plants
have specialized structures for reproduction via fragmentation, such as gemmate in liverworts.
-This type of reproduction is commonly found among protists, cnidarians, and some complex animals.

Sexual Reproduction in animals

-Process where a haploid sperm unites with a haploid egg cell to foam a diploid zygote. After birth or
hatching, the animal develops into a mature adult capable of reproduction. Some invertebrates
reproduce by self-fertilization, in which animal’s sperm fertilizes its own eggs.
-In animals, males and females have different reproductive organs. The reproductive parts in animals
produce gametes that fuse and form a zygote. The zygote develops into a new similar species. The type
of reproduction through the fusion of male and female gametes is known as sexual reproduction.
-Sexual reproduction in animals occurs in three fundamental steps
a. Gametogenesis: production of gametes
b. Spawning or mating: bringing gametes together
c. Fertilization: fusion of gametes

Types of Fertilization
External Fertilization – a reproduction that occur outside of the body, it is also known as informal
fertilization, animals that practice this type of fertilization are called oviparous organisms. It is
characterized by the release of both sperm and eggs into an external environment; sperm will fertilize
the egg outside of the organism, as seen in spawning.
Internal Fertilization – is the union of an egg cell with a sperm during sexual reproduction inside the
female body. For internal fertilization to happen there need to be a method for the male to introduce
the sperm into the female’s reproductive tract. It is characterized by sperm fertilizing the egg within the
female; the three methods include; oviparity (egg laid outside female body), ovoviviparity (egg held
within female), and viviparity (development within female followed by live birth).