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Biology 'Cheat Sheet'
Biology 'Cheat Sheet'
The aim of this pack is simple — we wanted to condense the A-level Biology course into a few super condensed
pages. Now you have a concise summary of the entire course that focuses on the most important definitions, key
terms, diagrams and concepts.
We’ve spent weeks working with top designers, academic writers and illustrators to ensure this is the best cheatsheet
out there. Our promise to you is you won’t find anything better. The cheatsheet pack has been built off the AQA
specification to ensure no important information is missed — below is a table which summarises how our cheatsheets
map to the AQA specification.
We hope you enjoy using it and wish you the best of luck in your A-levels.
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CARBOHYDRATES, LIPIDS & PROTEINS
SUMMARY SHEET
Monomers & Polymers Lipids Biochemical Tests
• Monomers are individual molecules that make up a polymer. • Fatty acids can be: Molecule Reagent Positive result
• Polymers are long chains that are composed of many individual ◦ Saturated – there are no double C=C bonds and the molecule
Reducing Benedict’s reagent → Heat Red/orange
monomers that have been bonded together in a repeating has as many hydrogen atoms as possible.
sugars precipitate
pattern. ◦ Unsaturated – there is at least one double C=C bond,
therefore the molecule contains fewer hydrogen atoms than Starch Iodine in potassium iodide Blue/black
• Condensation Reactions occurs when two molecules combine to
is maximally possible. solution
form a more complex molecule with the removal of water.
• A triglyceride molecule is formed by joining one molecule Non-reducing Hydrochloric acid → Heat Red/orange
of glycerol to three fatty acids through three condensation sugars Sodium hydrogencarbonate precipitate
reactions, forming ester bonds. Benedict’s reagent → Heat
• Triglycerides have key roles in Proteins Sodium hydroxide Purple
respiration and energy storage Copper (II) sulphate
due to its insolubility and high Lipids Ethanol Cloudy white
• Hydrolysis Reactions occurs when larger molecules are broken carbon to hydrogen ratio. Water → Shake
down into smaller molecules with the addition of water. • Phospholipids replace one of the fatty acid chains in
triglycerides with a phosphate molecule.
• The non-polar hydrophobic tails Enzymes
and the polar hydrophilic heads • Enzymes are biological catalysts that speeds up the rate of reaction
of phospholipids allow them to and remains unchanged and reusable at the end of the reaction.
form phospholipid bilayers. • They lower the activation energy of the reaction.
• The lock and key model proposed that each substrate is a key
that only fits a specific lock or enzyme. The alternative induced fit
Carbohydrates model has been proposed (below)
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GAS EXCHANGE, DIGESTION & MASS TRANSPORT
SUMMARY SHEET
Gas Exchange Surface Area to Volume Ratio Digestion
• Single celled organisms can exchange oxygen and carbon • The greater the size of an organism, the • During digestion, large biological molecules are hydrolysed to
dioxide directly through their plasma membrane via diffusion. smaller its surface area: volume ratio smaller molecules that can be absorbed across cell membranes
• Larger organisms therefore require • Digestion enzymes in mammals includes:
• Insects exchange gas in their tracheal system. Air enters via specialised exchange surfaces and
spiracles, travels through trachea and tracheoles, delivering transport mechanisms to meet their Enzyme Substrate Product(s)
oxygen directly to every tissue. metabolic requirements Amylase Starch Maltose
• Gas exchange in fish occur • Specalised exchange surfaces have: Membrane- Maltase Maltose Glucose molecules
via gills. The orientation a large surface area, thin barriers and bound Sucrase Sucrose Glucose & fructose
associated transport systems to maintain disaccharidases Lactase Lactose Glucose & galactose
of the gill filaments Monoglyceride & fatty
and lamellae ensures a steep diffusion gradient. Lipase Lipids
• Also, organisms with a higher metabolic rate require more acids
that the water flowing Hydrolyse peptide Produce several
nutrients and produce more waste, therefore require a Endopeptidases (pepsin,
over them moves in the specialised exchange surface bonds in the middle polypeptide chains
trypsin & chymotrypsin)
opposite direction to the flow of blood through the capillaries region of proteins
(countercurrent flow), maintaining a diffusion gradient. Hydrolyse peptide Release single amino
• Gas exchange in dicotyledonous plants occurs in the leaves.
The stomata can open to allow
Mass Transport in Animals Exopeptidases bonds on terminal acids and dipeptides
amino acids
• Red blood cells transport oxygen using the protein haemoglobin Membrane-bound Single amino acids
gases diffuse in and out of the Dipeptides
dipeptidases
leaf. The mesophyll cells have
• The ileum is the final section of the small intestine where both
a large surface area for rapid hydrolysis and absorption occurs.
diffusion. • Haemoglobin is made up of four polypeptide chains, each • Bile salts made by the liver, emulsify lipids in order to increase
• Gas exchange can lead to containing a prosthetic haem group. Each haem group binds the surface area of the lipids, for greater access to lipases.
water loss. Plants can control one oxygen molecule • Micelles are the products of lipase digestion that remain in association
the opening of their stomata • Binding of the first O2 molecule with the bile salts to form structures. The micelles travel to the ileum
to limit this, and xerophytes may have additional adaptations causes a conformational change in the where, upon contact with the surface of ileum epithelium cells, they
haemoglobin, making the haem groups are broken down. This releases the non-polar monoglyceride and fatty
such as: hairs, waxy cuticle, small leaves, sunken stomata, more accessible to oxygen.
rolled leaves. Insects can also control water loss but controlling acids, which diffuse straight into the epithelial cell.
• The final oxygen struggles to bind due • Inside, they move to the endoplasmic reticulum where they are
open and closing of their spiracles, hair around spiracles and a to probability combined forming triglycerides.
waterproof, waxy cuticle. • Bohr affect - haemoglobin’s oxygen • They move to the Golgi apparatus where cholesterol is added forming
binding affinity is inversely related chylomicrons
to the concentration of carbon dioxide, causing the oxygen • Chylomicrons leave epithelial cells by exocytosis and move into lacteals.
Human Gas Exchange System dissociation curve to shift
• Animals with high metabolic rates have curves shifted to the right
• Amino acids and carbohydrates are absorbed via co-transportation
with sodium.
• In humans, gas exchange occurs via the lungs promoting oxygen disassociation due to a low oxygen affinity
• The alveolar epithelium is • Animals living in a low partial pressure of oxygen are shifted
adapted for gas exchange by
having a large surface area,
to the left promoting oxygen
association due to a high oxygen
Mass Transport in Plants
good blood supply, thin walls & affinity • The xylem transports water & mineral ions up the plant against
elastic fibres which help recoil • The cardiac cycle is the gravity
• Ventilation is the process of sequence of events that occur • Water evaporates from the leaves creating tension
breathing in (inspiration) and within one full beat of the heart. (transpiration), and the cohesive nature of water moves the
out (expiration). • Circulatory system: whole column of water up the xylem (cohesion-tension theory)
• Inspiration: external intercostal muscles Arteries & Arterioles Capillaries - area of metabolic • The rate of transpiration is affected by: light, temperature,
transports blood away from the heart substance exchange humidity & wind.
contract, rib cage moves up & out, diaphragm • The phloem transports assimilates from sources to sinks via
contracts, volume of the thorax is increased, translocation
pressure in the thorax decreases so the • Sucrose is actively transported into
atmospheric pressure is greater than the the companion cells and moves
pulmonary pressure and air is forced into the lungs. via diffusion into the sieve tube
• Expiration: internal intercostal muscles contract, ribs move Veins and Venules Tissue fluid followed by the the osmosis of water.
down and inwards, diaphragm relaxes, volume of the thorax transports blood towards from the heart Assimilates move from area of high to
is decreased, pulmonary pressure is greater than atmospheric low pressure (mass flow). At the sink
the solutes are removed, water leaving
pressure, air is forced out of the lungs by osmosis.
• To track the movement of sugars
Tissue fluid formation: through the phloem, scientists’
Arteriole: Hydrostatic pressure > water potential radioactive isotopes are used in tracer
Venule: Hydrostatic pressure < water potential experiments with radioactive isotopes
Remaining fluid returns to circulation via the • Ringing - removal of the bark and
lymphatics system phloem, theoretically prevents
translocation to the sinks below the ring
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GENETIC INFORMATION, PROTEIN SYNTHESIS, CLASSIFICATION & BIODIVERSITY
SUMMARY SHEET
Genetic Information Causes of Genetic Variation Protein Synthesis
• In prokaryotic cells, DNA molecules are short, circular and not • Variation can arise due to mutation. • Structure of tRNA & mRNA:
associated with histones. • Gene mutations are changes to the base sequence or quantity of • Transcription is the process of
• In eukaryotes, the nucleus contains very long, linear DNA DNA within a gene or section of DNA. making messenger RNA from
molecules associated with histones, called histones. Together a Type of gene a DNA template.
Description • RNA polymerase breaks the
DNA molecule and its associated proteins form a chromosome. mutation
• The mitochondria and chloroplasts of eukaryotic cells also When a nucleotide is changed to a different nucleotide.
hydrogen bonds between
contain DNA which, like the DNA of prokaryotes, is short, circular Substitution As the genetic code is degenerate, this may not change the DNA helix, free RNA
nucleotides base pair with the exposed DNA template strand.
and not associated with histones. which amino acid is coded
• RNA polymerase catalyses the condensation reactions forming
• The genome is the full set of DNA found in an organism. Insertion/ Addition/removal of one or more nucleotides into the
phosphodiester bonds between the bound nucleotides
• The proteome is the full range of proteins that can be Deletion DNA sequence. May result in a frameshift
• In prokaryotes, transcription results directly in the production of
synthesised from the genome. • Mutagenic agents can increase the rate of gene mutation. mRNA from DNA.
• A gene is a section of DNA that code for polypeptides and • Chromosome mutations are changes to the structure or number • In eukaryotes, transcription results in the production of pre-
functional RNA and are located at a fixed locus on a DNA molecule. of whole chromosomes. E.g. failure of chromosomes to separate mRNA; this is then spliced to form mRNA.
• A sequence of three DNA bases, called a triplet, produces mRNA. in meiosis (non-disjunction). • Translation is the process of making proteins by forming a specific
Three RNA bases, called a codon code for a specific amino acid. • Meiosis is also a cause of sequence of amino acids based on coded instructions in mRNA.
The genetic code is universal, non-overlapping and degenerate. variation, as it produces • mRNA attaches to a ribosome on the rough endoplasmic
• In eukaryotes, sections of the nuclear DNA do not code for 4 daughter cells that are reticulum, tRNA carries the corresponding
polypeptides (introns). Exons are sections of DNA that code for genetically different from amino acid to each codon on the mRNA
amino acid sequences. each other. one at a time, with an enzyme catalysing
• In meiosis 1, homologous chromosomes are separated from each the formation of a peptide bond between
other, with one chromosome from each pair going into one of amino acids using ATP, until a stop codon is
Biodiversity the two daughter cells. In the second meiotic division, the sister
chromatids from each chromosome are separated.
reached and the peptide is released, folding
into its tertiary structure. tRNA has an
• Biodiversity is the variety of organisms in an area. It can be • Variation results from independent segregation of chromosomes anticodon which is complimentary to the mRNA codon
considered on a local or global scale. and crossing over during meiosis 1. Also, independent
• Species richness is a measure of the number of different species segregation during meiosis 2 as well as , random fertilisation of
in a community.
• An index of diversity measure biodiversity taking into account
the haploid gametes. Classification
species richness and the number of individuals in each species. • The Biological Species Concept- a species contains all organisms
• Index of diversity = (N(N – 1))/(Σn(n-1)) Genetic Diversity & Adaptation that are capable of breeding together to produce living, fertile
offspring.
◦ N = total number of organisms of all species
◦ n = total number of organisms of each species • Alleles are different forms of the same gene. • Courtship and mating behaviour are a vital part of species
• Farming techniques reduce biodiversity. E.g. monoculture, use of • Genetic diversity is the number of different survival. Courtship behaviour enables individuals to: recognise
herbicide & pesticides, hedgerow removal and woodland clearance. alleles of genes in a population. same species members & identify mate capable of breeding.
• Conservationists protect biodiversity with methods such as: • Genetic diversity is a factor enabling natural selection to occur. • Classification is the process of sorting living things into groups.
giving endangered species legal protection, creating protected • Natural selection is a mechanism of evolution by which • Classification hierarchy comprises the taxa: domain, kingdom,
area & The Environmental Stewardship Scheme. individuals better adapted to their environment tend to survive, phylum, class, order, family, genus and species.
• A balance between conservation and agriculture is needed. reproduce successfully and pass on their alleles.
• In the process of natural selection: random mutation can result
in new alleles of a gene, many mutations are harmful but, in
Investigating Diversity certain environments, the new allele of a gene might benefit
its possessor, leading to increased reproductive success.
• Genetic diversity within or between species can be compared by The advantageous allele is inherited by members of the next
looking at: generation. As a result, over many generations, the new allele
◦ The frequency of measurable/observable characteristics increases in frequency in the population. • Classifications are constantly updated as new methods are
◦ The base sequence of DNA • Direction selection is a selective force that favours individuals discovered to infer relationships e.g. DNA sequencing, amino acid
◦ The base sequence of mRNA with an extreme form of a trait and selects against phenotypes at sequencing or immunological comparisons.
◦ The amino acid sequence of proteins the other extreme. E.g. antibiotic resistance. Powerful antibiotics • The binomial naming system names species by their genus and
• Gene technology has caused a shift in methods of investigating apply a very strong selection force favouring individuals species name.
genetic diversity from solely looking at observable characteristics possessing resistance alleles. • Phylogeny is the study of evolutionary relationships between
• Variation is caused by genetics & environmental factors. • Stabilizing selection is a selective force that favours the phenotypes organisms.
• Variation can be investigated quantitatively within a species by closest to the mean value of a trait. E.g. Human birth weight. Babies • In a phylogenetic diagram, branch
collecting random samples (to reduce bias), calculating a mean that tend to the extremes of birth weight have higher mortality rates. tips represent species at the end
value and the standard deviation of the data collected. Then • Disruptive selection is a selective force that favours both extreme of their specific lineage, branching
interpreting mean values and their standard deviations. phenotypes. E.g. fur colour in a species where the landscape points represent common ancestors
◦ Means may vary, showing variation between populations contains both black and white rocks, where grey fur provides a & The closer the branches, the closer
◦ A large standard deviation indicates a large amount of disadvantage. It can lead to speciation. the evolutionary relationship.
variation within a population • Adaptations may be anatomical, physiological or behavioural.
Deletion Removal of one or more nucleotides • Epigenetics - changes in DNA that alter the expression of genes Cells produce adhesion Cells stop producing adhesion
without changing the base sequence of DNA itself. It involves molecules molecule. Can spread through the
Substitution A nucleotide is replaced by a different nucleotide the addition of chemical tags onto DNA or histones.
• The epigenetic changes can body (metastasis)
Inversion A sequence of bases is separated and then
reattached in the inverse order regulate transcription by changing Can usually be removed by Chemotherapy and radiotherapy are
how tightly the chromatin is packed surgery. used, which specifically target and
Duplication One or multiple bases are repeated
(chromatin remodelling), affecting kill rapidly dividing cells.
Translocation A piece of DNA breaks off and doesn’t reattach to RNA polymerase accessibility.
itself or its homologous pair. • DNA methylation prevents transcription by preventing
• Some mutations may only affect a single codon, changing a transcription factors from binding & chromatin condensation.
single amino acid in a protein, therefore the protein may remain • Acetylation of histones promotes transcription by decreasing
functional. Other may have no effect on protein structure due to the attraction between DNA and histones, making chromatin
the genetic code being degenerate. more loosely packed.
• Mutations such as insertions and deletions can cause frame • The epigenetic changes in gene function can be heritable.
shifts, changing all the codons and amino acids downstream • Epigenetic changes occur during development but can also be
from the mutation. This results in a dysfunctional protein. caused by environmental factors e.g. smoking.