AQA GCSE Biology key terms

The openings between the strands of a fishing net, whose dimensions affect which organisms are retained or can escape.

The sum of all the chemical reactions in a cell or the body.

A photograph or other recorded image produced using a microscope.

A unit of length equal to $10^{-6}$ metres; its symbol is $\mu\text{m}$.

Growing many genetically identical plants from small pieces of plant tissue under controlled conditions.

The use of instruments to produce images of objects that are too small to see clearly with the unaided eye.

An adaptation in which a plant resembles something else and so can trick animals into avoiding it.

The loss of a pregnancy before the baby is able to survive independently.

A sub-cellular structure where aerobic respiration occurs and energy is transferred for cell activities.

The process by which one cell divides to produce two genetically identical cells.

The value that occurs most often in a set of data.

Identical antibodies that bind to one specific binding site and can therefore be used in a test to detect a particular pathogen or chemical.

An identical antibody made by cells from a single clone; it binds to one specific binding site on one protein antigen.

A system in which farmers grow only one type of crop over an area.

A nerve cell that carries electrical impulses from the central nervous system to an effector.

A technique that uses magnetic fields to produce detailed images of the brain.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a strain of bacterium resistant to antibiotics, including methicillin.

A sticky substance that traps pathogens and other particles in the airways.

A pregnancy in which more than one baby develops, such as twins or triplets.

A reduction in a muscle's ability to contract efficiently after prolonged vigorous activity.

A random change in the DNA of an organism that can produce a new genetic variant.

A protein-rich food made from the harvested and purified biomass of a fungus.

A defect of vision in which light from a distant object is focused in front of the retina, making distant objects appear blurred.

A unit of length equal to $10^{-9}$ metres; its symbol is $\text{nm}$.

A group of cells in the right atrium that produces electrical signals controlling the natural resting heart rate.

The process by which organisms with advantageous inherited characteristics are more likely to survive and reproduce, making those characteristics more common over generations.

A control process in which a departure from the normal level causes responses that oppose the change and restore conditions towards normal.