Sickle Cell Anaemia

Sickle Cell Anaemia is abnormal condition of the blood when the red blood cells become crescent shaped
in low oxygen concentration (external). This change in shape can blocked blood vessels, causes less
oxygen to be transported which inhibits respiration (making energy) cause jaundice, fatigue and.

HbN – Normal blood

HbS – sickle cell disease
HbN Hbs – carriers/traits

Exercise: What is the chance of a child having sickle cell disease if both parents are carriers of the sickle
gene?
Parental phenotypes: carriers x carriers
Parental genotypes: HbN Hbs x HbN Hbs
Gametes:
HbN HbS
HbN HbN HbN HbN Hbs

Hbs HbN Hbs Hbs Hbs

There is a 1 in 4 chance that the child might have sickle cell.

Test Cross/Back Cross

Test Cross is used to determine whether a dominant phenotype is homozygous dominant or heterozygous.
If the animal being tested is homozygous dominant, all the offspring will be of the dominant phenotype
only after being crossed with homozygous recessive for the trait. If the animal being tested is
heterozygous, the offspring will be of both the dominant and recessive phenotype.

Biology
February 28, 2022
Natural Selection

Antibiotics can fight infections caused by bacteria. The bacteria that possess the ability to break down the
antibiotic so that it is not harmed is considered to be resistant. This bacterium continues to reproduce in
the heat.

Speciation
A species is a group of individuals with similar characteristics and have the ability to interbreed,
producing fertile offspring. Speciation is the formation of a new species arising from pre-existing species
due to environmental changes.

Allopatric Speciation- This occurs when a population is geographically isolated.

Sympatric Speciation- This occurs when a population shares the same geographic location.

Read Pages 299- 302 in Bio Textbook.

Biology
March 7, 2022
Fruit Dispersal

Dispersal is the process in which seeds from a flower are transported to new locations in order to pollinize

Biology
March 14, 2022
Long Bones
All long bones have a general is a bone that is longer than its is wide, they function as
levers for our movements. Example: humerus, femur, radius, ulna, tibia, fibula, phalanges
metatarsals.

At the upper end of the humerus, a ball shaped head can be identified. It articulates with
glenoid cavity of the scapula to form a ball and socket joint. Near the head are two
projections separated by a groove, the projections are for muscle attachment (biceps). At
the lower end, there is groove called the trochlea which articulates with the ulna to form
a hinge joint. Above the trochlea is hole (not present in humans) that allows nerves and
blood vessels to pass through.

The Ulna
The ulna is larger than the radius. A notch at one end of the ulna articulates with the
humerus. Beyond the elbow, there is an olecranon process which restricts the backward
movement of the forearm. The radius is flattened and slightly curved.

The Femur
At the upper end of the femur is a large round head that articulates with the pelvic girdle
to form a ball and socket joint. Three projections are near the head to provide muscle
attachments. At the lower end, there are two curved surfaces separated by a groove into
which the patella fits. The curved surfaces articulate with the tibia to form a hinge joint.

The Tibia and Fibula

At the upper end of the tibia, are two slight depressions for articulation at the knee joint.
At the lower end of the tibia are articulation surfaces for the ankle bones. The fibula is a
thin bone which fuses with the tibia in some animals

The Vertebral Column

The vertebral column consists of 33 individual bones in babies and 24 in adults. There are
4 regions of the vertebral column.
 Cervical
Thoracic
Lumbar
Sacrum and coccyx

Cervical
There are 7 bones in this section. These bones are small and slim to allow flexibility. I
this section, a general cervical vertebrae, atlas and axis.

Thoracic Vertebrae
There are 12 bones in this section. They have a long backward pointing neural spines.
The ribs articulate with their transverse processes.

Lumbar
There are 5 bones in this section. Lumbars are large and sturdy for the attachment of
muscles of the lower back.

Sacrum
This is made of several bones fused together. This creates a strong structure for support.
Each vertebral has the following parts:
Centrum – this is cylindrical bone for support
Neural canal – a hole through which the spinal cord passed
Neural spine – a single dorsal projection for muscle attachment
Neural arch – a bony structure which encloses and protects the spinal cord
Transverse processes – two lateral projections for muscle attachment
Articulating surfaces/ Facets – there is one pair after the anterior end and another
at the posterior end.
Biology
March 14, 2022
Joints
Joints are formed when two bones meet. There are two types of joints:
Immovable (Fibrous) – this occurs when bones are fused together such as sacrum,
pelvis, skull
Moveable (Synovial) – These are bones that allow movement. They are separated
by cartilage. They are separated into two categories.
 Slightly moveable – these joints may include pivots and gliding joints and they
can be found in your wrists, fingers, toes, vertebrae.
  Fully moveable – these have bones separated by synovial fluid, the fluid
lubricates the joints when the bones move and the bons are held together by
ligaments. (such as elbows and knees [hinge joints] shoulders and hip [ball and
socket])\

Reproduction in Plants
Reproduction in man
Contraception

Biology
April 4, 2022
Irritability
The ability to respond to changes in the environment/ stimuli is irritability or sensitivity.
Invertebrates such as millipedes, earthworms and woodlice need certain conditions to
survive.

They respond to variation s in

 Light intensity
 Temperature
 Moisture
Invertebrates respond by moving towards a cooler temperature, moist and stay away from
bright light.
These conditions are to ensure that they don’t dehydrate and stay hidden from predators

Biology
April 5, 2022
Sense Organs
The Eye

Response To The Pupil In The Light

In Bright Light In Dim Light

Radial muscles of the iris relax Radial muscles in the iris contract
Circular muscles of the iris contract Circular muscles in the iris relax
Less light enters through the More light enters the eye through the
contracted pupil dilated pupil
The Nervous System
The nervous is broken down into two parts:
Central Nervous System (CNS) – This is made up of the brain, spinal cord and inter-
neurons (relay). It is involved with interpreting stimulus and deciding actions t taken
(response).
Peripheral Nervous System (PNS) – this is made up of the nerves that join all parts of the
body to the CNS. The PNS is broken down into two categories
ͼ Autonomic – controls self-regulated action of internal organs and glands
ͼ Somatic – this controls voluntary movements of skeletal muscles

The nervus system is made up of nerve cell known as neurones. Neurones are the basic
structural and functional unit of the nervous system.

The three types of neurones we need are :

1. The sensory neurone
2. The motor neurone
3. The inter-neurone/relay neurone

Structure Of The Neurone

The Dendrons
The cell body contains nucleus, nucleolus, lysosomes, mitochondria and large amounts of
endoplasmic reticulum

The Axon
The axons are nerve fibres that conduct impulses away from the cell body.
 The myelinated sheath are
interrupted at regular intervals of
about 1 mm by nodes on Ranvier.

The synapse
A synapse is a junction between two neurones across which electrical signals pss. The
human body contains up to 500 trillion synapses.

When a nerve involves impulse at the end of one neurone it triggers the release of
neurotransmitters.

Receptors and Effectors

Receptors are a group of cells or organs that detect changes in the internal or external
environment. The stimuli cause a change that are converted to electrical or nerve
impulses which are carried by the sensory nerve cells to the CNS.

Effectors are muscles or glands that respond to the change in the environment. The
messages that are sent to the CNS are interpreted an do the impulses are sent to the
organs which produce a response.
Biology
April 5, 2022
Sense Organs

Reflex Actions
A reflex is a rapid and automatic response to a stimulus. It does not require conscious
control as you do NT think it. Examples of reflex actions include the knee jerk, sneezing,
the pupil reflex and blinking. The pathway between the receptor and the effector is
known as the reflex arc.

There are two kinds of reflexes

1. Spinal reflexes - These are nerve impulses that pass through the spinal cord and do
not go to the brain (eg. The knee jerk response)
2. Cranial reflexes – These are reflexes in the head region (eg. Blinking and the
response of the pupil to light.)

The Brain
The brain is the most important part of the body.It is divided in three parts:
 Cerebrum
 Cerebellum
 Medulla

Cerebrum
 This is the largest part of the brain.
 The thin outer layer consists of densely packed relay neurons, cell bodies of motor
neurons and synapse and the endings of sensory neurons.
 This layer is called the cerebral cortex which divides the brain into two
hemispheres.
 The thick inner white matter is made up of nerve fibres.
 It controls all the involuntary actions.
 It is the centre of sensory awareness: memory, reasoning and judgement,
intelligence, speech and learning.

Cerebellum
 This is located beneath the posterior end of the cerebrum.
 It receives information from the ear and muscles about posture and balance.
 It controls actions such as walking and running.

Medulla
 It is situated below the cerebellum and merges with the spinal cord.
 It controls unconscious processes such as regulation of body temperature,
breathing, blood pressure and heart rate.
 It is also associated with swallowing, yawning, coughing, vomiting, the activities
of the sweat glands, muscles of the gut, blood vessels and heart.