General Biology Reviewer Midterm

Genetic Engineering
 Artificial manipulation, modification and recombination of DNA or other nucleic acid molecules
in order to modify an organisms or population of organisms.

Central Dogma

DNA Replication – creating a copy of template DNA

Transcription – from DNA to RNA

Translation – from RNA to protein (amino acid)

Classical Breeding – mating or breeding selected organism with desirable traits

Natural process of obtaining desirable traits.

METHODS OF CLASSICAL BREEDING - It uses deliberate interbreeding (crossing) of closely or distantly

related individuals to produce new crop varieties or lines with desirable properties.

Example of Classical Breeding

 Siberian Husky
 Macapuno
 Guapple
 Wagyu Beef

STEPS IN CLASSICAL BREEDING

1. Determine which trait are significant enough to be chosen

2. Select parents that exemplify these traits

Recombinant DNA Technology – involves using enzymes and various laboratory techniques to
manipulate ad isolate DNA segments of interest. “New traits” “To Enhance of p” “Distrupting”

Process of Recombinant DNA Technology

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Plasmid (Vector) – extra chromosome DNA. (don’t have a direct use)

Restriction Enzyme – Scissors

Ligation Enzyme – Glue

Note* The Bacteria cell for containing gene for human growth hormone it needed to be insert again to
the same bacteria cells, because it doesn’t have the ability to mutate.

Example of Recombinant DNA Technology

 BT corn
 BT Plant
 Golden Rice
 Human Insulin
 Vaccine

Introduction of Plasmid

 Biotics / Gene Gun

 Plasmid insertion by heat shock treatment

History of Life on Earth

Geological Time Scale – timeline that illustrates Earth’s history based on geologic events and life forms
chronologically relates geological strata (stratigraphy) to time

Fossils – preserves remains of plants and animals whose bodies were buries in sediments, such as sand
and mud, under ancient seas, lakes and rivers

Relative Dating - does not offer specific dates

Absolute Dating – Exact Age

MAJOR DIVISIONS

EON – Largest time span

A. Precambrian Eon B. Phanerozoic Eon

Era – Shorter than eon but longer than period

A. Palaeozoic Era B. Mesozoic Era C. Cenozoic Era

Period – shorter than era but longer than epoch

Epoch – shortest life span
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Precambrian – earliest part of Earth’s History

 Hadean Eon – 4.6 to 4 billion years ago, solar system emergence

 Archean Eon – between 4 to 2.5 billion years ago, first form of life was created in the ocean
 Proterozoic Eon – 2.5 billion years ago “age of hidden life”, bacteria, blue-green algae, first
oxygen-dependent

Phanerozoic Eon – 541 million years up to present existence of abundant plants and animal life form

 Paleozoic Era - about 542 – 251 million years ago. Pangea, organism emergence and widespread
of plants
 Cambrian period – 541 to 485.4 million years ago. “Cambrian explosion” evolution of
arthropods and chordates
 Ordovician Period – 485.4 to 443 million years ago. Abundance of marine
invertebrates. First plant and jaw less fish
 Silurian Period – 443 to 416 million years ago. Plants Evolution. Mollusk and corals
thrived in the oceans and land
 Devonian Period – about 419.2 to 359 million years ago.” Age of Fishes” Armored
placoderms- powerful jawlines with bladelike plates
 Carboniferous Period – about 359 to 299 million years ago. Carbon-containing
period. Tetrapod and carboniferous forest
 Permian Period - about 299 to 251 million years ago. Permian Mass Extinction.
Pangea, waxy leaves and leathery skin “Life of death”
Mesozoic Era – Middle life era; giant beast
o Triassic Period – about 252 to 200 million years ago. “Age of Reptiles”, derns
conifers, and “separation of Pangea”
o Jurassic Period – about 200 to 145 million years ago. Golden Time for
Dinosaurs, flowering plants, mammals and birds
o Cretaceous Period - about 145 to 66 million years ago. Dinosaur Extinction,
iconic dinosaurs
Cenozoic Era – Age of Mammals
o Paleogene Period – about 65 to 23 million years ago. Mammal Survival”,
rodents, small horses, rhinoceros, elephants, dogs, cats and pigs
o Neogene Period – about 23 to 2.6 million years ago. Emergence of Early
Primates”, bovids, cattle, sheep, goats, antelope, gazzle
o Quaternary Period - 2.6 million years ago to present. Cycle of glacial growth
and retreat”, cave lions, saber tooth cats, cave beast, giant deer, wooly
rhinoceros, wooly mammoth “Ice Age”
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Evolution: Ideas and Concepts

Evolution – process successive generations of biological population inheritable characteristics develops

in a long period of time adapt to changes in their environment

Development of Evolutionary Thought

1809 – Species evolved from an existing species through environmental forces

1749 – As species change, they migrate to another environment resulting in their distribution

350 BCE – species are identical. They tend to remain the same species and arrange hierarchically

Jean Baptiste Lamarck “Lamarck Theories”

 Theory of Needs – organisms change in response to their environment

 Theory of Use and Disuse – parts of not in use will decline while parts in use will develop
 Theory of Acquired Traits - were believed to be inherited by their offspring and propagated by
the next generation

Charles Darwin ‘Darwin Theory”

 Theory of Evolution – survival of the fittest

Galapagos Finches

 Theory of Evolution – descent with modifications competitions natural selection adaptation

variations speciation species overproduction

Theory On Giraffe

Lamarck – original, short neck ancestor keeps stretching neck to reach leaves higher up on tree and
stretching until neck becomes progressive longer

Darwin -original, variation of neck length ancestor natural selection favors longer neck; better change to
get leaves of trees. After many generations, the group is still variable but shows a general increase in
neck length

Evolution; Evidences and Proofs

Evolution – organisms inhabiting the Earth have changed over time, their structures, traits and abilities
allowed them to adapt and survive in the environment
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Fossil Record – different traces or remains of an organism changed over time by natural process
 Imprints – trace fossils such as footprints, traces, remains of tunnels left by burrowing
organisms, fossilized excrement and holes made in shells by parasites.

 Compression - there is a remaining tissue or traces.

Artificial Selection – species variation occurred through mutation and sexual reproduction, but human
select features that are beneficial
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Geographic Distribution – organisms from prior geographic region that were closely related but
different species traveled into surrounding habitats and evolved

 Convergent Evolution - is when two species with different ancestral origins develop similar
characteristics.
 Divergent Evolution – refers to when species diverge from a common ancestor and develop
different characteristics

Comparative Anatomy – study that deals with similarities and differences in the structures of different
species

 Homologous Structure (Divergent Evolution) – body parts of an organisms that may perform
different functions but of the same origin
 Analogous Structure (Convergent Evolution) – body parts of an organism that may perform the
same function but different origin

Vestigial Organs – organs developed in an organism but seems to don’t have particular function or
purpose

Molecular Homologies – some living organisms share same genetic structure

Embryology – embryos of vertebrates develop in the same way
Evidences – viruses and bacteria evolve in different illnesses peppered moth and insects

Systematics: Taxonomy
Systematics – study of biological diversity and the relationships among organism
 Taxonomy – science of describing, naming and classifying species

Aristotle – classified all the animals, Historia Animalium

- Grouped creatures into hierarchy
 Great Chain of Being – places humans at the top of a hierarchy of complexity, intelligence, and
value (Plants came next, then animals, men, angels and, God)

Carl Linnaeus – Swedish botanist and explorer

 Linnaean System
 Hierarchical System
 Binomial System of Nomenclature

Binomial Nomenclature
 two-part name (genus and species)

Rules in Writing
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 The name should be in Latin;

 The genus of an organism begins with a capital letter; the species designation begins with
lowercase letter
 The entire specific name is italicized when typewritten or underlined when handwritten; and
 All taxa must have an author when described

(ICBN) – Algae, Fungi, and Plants

(ICZN) – Animals

(ICNB) – Bacteria

(ICTV) – Viruses

Classifying Living Organisms

 Morphological Traits
 Developmental Traits
 Genetic Traits

Taxonomy Hierarchy

Domain

Bacteria (No nucleus) Archaea (No nucleus) Eukarya (Nucleus)

Arhaea-Bacteria Protista

Fungi

Plantae

Animalia
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Kingdom
 Eubacteria
 Archaea-Bacteria
 Protista
 Fungi
 Plantae
 Animalia

Kingdom Archaea
 Ancient Bacteria
 Prokaryotes (No nucleus)
 Unicellular
 Lack of peptidoglycan
 Mostly extremophiles (halophites (salt loving), thermophiles (heat loving) , methanogens
(methane loving)
 Some are autotrophs (can produce own food), some are heterotrophs (can’t produce)

Kingdom Protista
 Plant-like, animal-like, and fungus-like organisms
 Eukaryotes (nucleus)
 Mostly unicellular, few are colonial and multicellular
 Mostly acquatic
 Some are autotrophs, some are heterotrophs

Kingdom Fungi
 Eukaryotes
 Mostly multicellular, very few unicellular
 Heterotrophs
 Spore-forming (reproduction)
 Chitin (cell wall)
 Food and drug production
 “Model organism” in genetics and molecular biology
 Causes plant and animal diseases

Kingdom Plantae
 Eukaryotes
 Multicellular
 Autotrophs – chloropyll (photosynthesis)
 Cell wall
 Produces
 Two major groups: bryophytes (no vascular tissues) and tracheophytes (vascular tissues)
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Kingdom Animalia
 Eukaryotes
 Multicellular
 Heterotrophs
 Consumers (primary, secondary)
 Biggest kingdom in living world
 Two major groups: vertebrates (backbone) and invertebrates (no backbone)

Systematics: Phylogenetics
Phylogenetics – describes relationship of organism as which organism it is thought to have evolved
from which species it it most closely related to

Homoplasy – shared character that are not result of common ancestry, but independent evolution of
similar character (convergent evolution)

Homoplasy vs Homology

Cladistics – classifying organism into hierarchical branches based on “shared derived characteristics”
General Biology Reviewer Midterm
 General Biology Reviewer Midterm

Principle of Parsimony – lesser evolutionary steps are better than more steps to explain relationship