AP Biology Vocab 7
Terms
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- Malignant Tumor
- A cancerous tumor that is invasive enough to impair functions of one or more organs.
- Benign Tumor
- A mass of abnormal cells that remains at the site of origin.
- Somatic Cell
- Any cell in a multicellular organism except a sperm or egg cell.
- Chromatin
- The complex of DNA and proteins that makes up a eukaryotic chromosome. When the cell is not dividing, chromatin exists as a mass of very long, thin fibers that are not visible with a light microscope.
- Genome
- The complete complement of an organism's genes; an organism's genetic material.
- Tumor
- A mass of abnormal cells within otherwise normal tissue, caused by the uncontrolled growth of a transformed cell.
- Cyclin
- A regulatory protein whose concentration fluctuates cyclically.
- Cytokinesis
- The division of the cytoplasm to form two separate daughter cells immediately after mitosis.
- Kinetochore
- A specialized region on the centromere that links each sister chromatid to the mitotic spindle.
- Binary Fission
- The type of cell division by which prokaryotes reproduce. Each dividing daughter cell receives a copy of the single parental chromosome.
- G0 Phase
- A nondividing state in which a cell has left the cell cycle.
- Sister Chromatids
- Replicated forms of a chromosome joined together by the centromere and eventually separated during mitosis or meiosis II.
- Gamete
- A haploid cell such as an egg or sperm. Gametes unite during sexual reproduction to produce a diploid zygote.
- Cell Division
- The reproduction of cells.
- Anaphase
- The fourth subphase of mitosis, in which the chromatids of each chromosome have separated and the daughter chromosomes are moving to the poles of the cell.
- Cell Cycle
- An ordered sequence of events in the life of a eukaryotic cell, from its origin in the division of a parent cell until its own division into two; composed of the M, G1, S, and G2 phases.
- S Phase
- The synthesis phase of the cell cycle; the portion of interphase during which DNA is replicated.
- Centrosome
- Material present in the cytoplasm of all eukaryotic cells, important during cell division; the microtubule-organizing center.
- Chromosome
- A threadlike, gene-carrying structure found in the nucleus. Each chromosome consists of one very long DNA molecule and associated proteins. See chromatin.
- Telophase
- The fifth and final subphase of mitosis, in which daughter nuclei are forming and cytokinesis has typically begun.
- Cell Cycle Control System
- A cyclically operating set of molecules in the cell that triggers and coordinates key events in the cell cycle.
- Mitotic Phase
- The phase of the cell cycle that includes mitosis and cytokinesis.
- Density-Dependent Inhibition
- The phenomenon observed in normal animal cells that causes them to stop dividing when they come into contact with one another.
- Prometaphase
- The second subphase of mitosis, in which discrete chromosomes consisting of identical sister chromatids appear, the nuclear envelope fragments, and the spindle microtubules attach to the kinetochores of the chromosomes.
- Cell Plate
- A double membrane across the midline of a dividing plant cell, between which the new cell wall forms during cytokinesis.
- Interphase
- The period in the cell cycle when the cell is not dividing. During interphase, cellular metabolic activity is high, chromosomes and organelles are duplicated, and cell size may increase. Interphase accounts for 90% of the cell cycle.
- Transformation
- (1) The conversion of a normal animal cell to a cancerous cell. (2) A change in genotype and phenotype due to the assimilation of external DNA by a cell.
- Metastasis
- The spread of cancer cells to locations distant from their original site.
- G1 Phase
- The first growth phase of the cell cycle, consisting of the portion of interphase before DNA synthesis begins.
- Centromere
- The centralized region joining two sister chromatids.
- Mitotic Spindle
- An assemblage of microtubules and associated proteins that is involved in the movements of chromosomes during mitosis.
- Prophase
- The first subphase of mitosis, in which the chromatin is condensing and the mitotic spindle begins to form, but the nucleolus and nucleus are still intact.
- Mitosis
- A process of nuclear division in eukaryotic cells conventionally divided into five stages: prophase, prometaphase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase. Mitosis conserves chromosome number by equally allocating replicated chromosomes to each of the daughter nuclei.
- Cleavage
- The process of cytokinesis in animal cells, characterized by pinching of the plasma membrane; specifically, the succession of rapid cell divisions without growth during early embryonic development that converts the zygote into a ball of cells.
- G2 Phase
- The second growth phase of the cell cycle, consisting of the portion of interphase after DNA synthesis occurs.
- Meiosis
- A two-stage type of cell division in sexually reproducing organisms that results in cells with half the chromosome number of the original cell.
- Growth Factor
- A protein that must be present in the extracellular environment (culture medium or animal body) for the growth and normal development of certain types of cells.
- Metaphase
- The third subphase of mitosis, in which the spindle is complete and the chromosomes, attached to microtubules at their kinetochores, are all aligned at the metaphase plate.