Biology key terms

Introducing microorganisms into a culture medium so that they can grow.

A chemical used to kill insects.

An unintended change caused when inserted DNA disrupts a gene or affects its control, potentially contributing to cancer.

A hormone released by the pancreas when blood glucose is too high; it promotes glucose uptake by cells and storage of excess glucose as glycogen.

A small device attached to the body that delivers insulin.

A condition in which body cells do not respond normally to insulin.

Raising many animals under closely controlled conditions to increase the efficiency and output of food production.

The way species in a community depend on one another for resources or services such as food, shelter and pollination.

The conditions surrounding the cells inside an organism, including temperature and the concentrations of water and glucose.

The internationally agreed system of measurement units used to make measurements consistent and comparable.

The stage of the cell cycle when a cell grows and copies its DNA before division.

Estimating a value within the range covered by measured data, using the trend shown by a graph.

Competition between members of different species.

Competition between members of the same species.

A device placed in the uterus to prevent pregnancy; different types may act without hormones or release a hormone.

A relationship in which one quantity is proportional to the reciprocal of another quantity.

The relationship in which light intensity from a point source is proportional to the reciprocal of the square of its distance from the source.

A fertility treatment in which eggs are fertilised by sperm in a laboratory before one or two embryos are inserted into the uterus.

Something that happens without conscious control.

An automatic action that does not require conscious thought, such as the normal control of heart rate.

A chemical test in which iodine turns blue-black if starch is present and remains yellow-brown if it is not detected.

Charged particles, such as sodium ions, whose concentrations in body fluids affect the movement of water.

The coloured ring of muscle that changes pupil size to control how much light enters the eye.

Damage that cannot be repaired sufficiently to restore the lost tissue or function.

The separation of populations so that they do not interbreed and exchange alleles.

A solution in which a potato chip has no overall gain or loss of water by osmosis.

An internationally agreed system for naming chemical substances clearly and consistently.