Last window panes for Biology:
1.Excrete- to rid yourself of wastes (sweat, urine, feces, tears)
2.Optimum/optimal- The best possible condition or situation- the optimum temperature of our classroom is???? The optimal speed of your computer?
3.Immune system- system in an organism that protects it against disease by identifying and killing pathogens(anything that can make you sick) and tumor cells.
4.B-Cells- type of white blood cell (called a b-lymphocyte) that produce antibodies. B cells develop from stem cells in the bone marrow.
5.Helper T-Cells- Helper T cells do not directly kill infected cells, they help activate killer T cells and macrophages to attack infected cells, or they stimulate B cells to secrete antibodies.
6.Killer T-cells-Attack and lyse (split open) specific cells that contain antigens.
7.Vaccine- substance that improves your immunity to a particular disease. It is made from weakened or killed forms of a virus/ pathogen or its toxins. It jump starts your immune system so that if you are exposed to the real virus (small pox, avian flu,swine flu,polio, etc) your immune system can more easily recognize and destroy the virus so that you don’t get ill or so your illness is brief and you suffer very little.
8.Virus-A microorganism smaller than a bacteria, it can’t grow or reproduce apart from a living cell. A virus invades your cells and uses the chemical machinery of your cells to keep itself alive and to replicate. Viruses will make many clones of itself or mutate when being copied. Mutations lead to the virus being slightly different in each person.
9. Antigens-any substance that causes your immune system to produce antibodies against it. An antigen may be a foreign substance from the environment such as chemicals, bacteria, viruses, or pollen.
10.Antibodies-a specialized immune protein, produced because of the introduction of an antigen into the body. Antibodies are specific to the antigen it is fighting and they remain in your body even after the antigen has been defeated- ready to fight another day!!
11.Bacteria- prokaryotic organisms that lack a nucleus (but have DNA), lack membrane bound organelles, but have a cell wall and ribosomes. We use them to make human insulin by transplanting our DNA into their DNA (called a plasmid). Some bacteria are harmful so we use antibiotics to destroy them- antibiotics work to destroy their cell wall and since we don’t have cell walls – we’re OK J!tetanus, pneumonia, syphilis, and tuberculosis are a few illnesses caused by bacteria. (don’t forget MRSA and Strep.) http://www.livescience.com/bacteria/
12.Malaria is a mosquito-borne disease caused by a parasite ( a protist called Plasmodium). People with malaria often experience fever, chills, and flu-like symptoms. They may develop severe complications and die. In 2008, an estimated 190 - 311 million cases of malaria occurred and between 708,000 - 1,003,000 people died, most of them young children. *** people with sickle cell anemia seem to have resistance to malaria, making sickle cell a positive adaptation in this situation!!!
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.solcomhouse.com/images/malariaLifeCycle.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.solcomhouse.com/malaria.htm&usg=__FNE1n_Y_ZQbMpFFy4J13q4j15H4=&h=435&w=543&sz=45&hl=en&start=6&zoom=1&um=1&itbs=1&tbnid=FiGrFAvint8pCM:&tbnh=106&tbnw=132&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dmalaria%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DN%26rlz%3D1T4GGLJ_en-GBUS290US290%26tbs%3Disch:1
13.Cholera-is an infection of the small intestine caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission is through consuming contaminated drinking water or food.
http://www.npr.org/2010/12/10/131950133/doctors-urge-cholera-vaccine-for-haiti-neighbors
14.PKU-Phenylketonuria (PKU) is a genetic disorder that is characterized by an inability of the body to utilize the essential amino acid, phenylalanine. Babies are checked at birth for PKU, if positive, babies are put on a special diet and do not suffer any problems. If it is not caught, the infant will suffer a wide variety of problems including seizures and mental retardation
15.HIV-Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is a virus that causes acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) condition in humans in which the immune system begins to fail, leading to life-threatening opportunistic infections. It is transferred through bodily fluids. (Helper T-Cells and macrophages are the most affected cells).
16.Urinary system-The urinary system or excretory system is the system that produces, stores, and eliminates urine. In humans it includes two kidneys, two ureters, the bladder, the urethra, and two sphincter muscles. The kidneys extract the soluble wastes from the bloodstream, as well as excess water, sugars, and a variety of other compounds. Remaining fluid (URINE) contains high concentrations of urea and other substances, including toxins.
17.Circulatory system-The circulatory system is an organ system that passes nutrients,gases, hormones, blood cells, etc. to and from cells in the body to help fight diseases and help stabilize body temperature and pH to maintain homeostasis.
18.Essential nutrients-is a nutrient required for normal body functioning that either cannot be synthesized by the body at all, or cannot be synthesized in amounts adequate for good health. It must be obtained through your diet. Eight amino acids are generally regarded as essential for humans: phenylalanine, valine, threonine, tryptophan, isoleucine, methionine, leucine, and lysine.
19.Environmental toxins- substances in our environment that can make us sick- lead (neurological disorders), mercury ( neurological disorders), pesticides, herbicides, biocides ( cancer causing agents)
