A.P.  BIOLOGY  REVIEW  TOPICS

(First Semester)

•   Ecology

 

                                Biomes, terrestrial

                        Aquatic systems

                        Succession

                        Ecosystems, food & energy relationships

                        Ecosystems, matter cycling

                        Population biology

                        Competition, predation & symbiotic relationships

 

•   Chemistry

 

                                Elements & atomic structure

                        Bonding

                        Molecules, compounds & chemical reactions

                        Properties of water

                        Dissociation & pH scale

 

•   Biochemistry

 

                                General organic molecule structure & reactions forming & breaking them down

                        Lipids, structures, kinds & functions

                        Carbohydrates, structure, nomenclature & functions

                        Proteins, composition & structure hierarchy

                        Enzymes, structure and function

                        Nucleic acids, structures, kinds & differences

 

•   Cells

 

                                Membrane structure & function, diffusion, osmosis

                        Tonicity, passive transport, active transport, large particle transport

                        Communication & attachments between cells

                        Prokaryotic Vs eukaryotic structural differences

                        Nucleus structure & function

                        Ribosomes, endoplasmic reticulum & Golgi complex, lysosome structure & function

                        Mitochondria & plastids

                        Cell wall, cytoskeleton, microtubules & related structures

  

•   Energy Transformations

 

                                Chemical reactions & energy, oxidation-reduction

                        Energy intermediates, electron transport system

                        Glycolysis

                        Citric acid cycle

                        Chemiosmotic ATP synthesis, role of O₂ & energy yield from glucose

                        Fermentation, alcoholic & lactic

                        Protein & fat metabolism

                        Photosynthesis, light reactions

                        Photosynthesis, dark reactions

                                Variations in photosynthesis pathways

 

•   Molecular Genetics

 

                                Experiments of Griffith, Hershey & Chase, Meselson & Stahl

                        Watson & Crick & DNA structure, replication & repair

                        Transcription & translation

                        Control of gene expression in prokaryotes & eukaryotes

                        Mitosis & meiosis

 

•   Heredity

 

                                Mendelian genetics & terminology

                        Incomplete dominance & codominance, linkage groups & crossing over

                        Lethal alleles, multiple alleles, polygenic characters, sex-linkage

 

•   Evolution

 

                                Darwin, Wallace & Lamarck, evidence for evolution

                        Hardy-Weinberg principle, genetic drift, heterozygote advantage, hybrid vigor

                        Species & speciation

                        Reproductive methods evolution