Genome Chapter 9 Summary: Disease (6th Entry)

Chapter 9: Disease

 Chapter 9 begins by discussing the variation of blood types among humans.  The discussion delves into the variation and explains it as a result of genetic mutations.  Ridley differentiates between random genetic mutations and the actual mechanism of natural selection.  Further into the chapter, Ridley notes how different blood types are, in truth, more susceptible to different kinds of disease.  Cholera is linked to A and AB while malaria is linked to O types.  Additionally, the relationship between the genetic sickle-cell disease and malaria is discussed.  Ridley asserts that certain genes are still present, even if they may sometimes cause diseases, because when used in the correct combination, they code for resistance to much more deadly infectious diseases. 

BOW: Compare and Contrast Invertebrates

Pick 3 invertebrates Compare them in terms of physical features and systems. Identify at least 3 similarities and 3 differences Include pictures and References

Invertebrate #1

 Invertebrate #2

Invertebrate #3

Similarities
   As invertebrates, these animals lack defined backbones that hold them in structure.  To make up for this, invertebrates 1 and 2 respectively use an exoskeleton and a shell to protect themselves from their environment.  The squid and the snail are mainly composed of soft and squishy bodies.  Both the grasshopper and the snail have adaptions to help with respiration on land. 

Differences
   These invertebrates are relatively soft and may be easily crushed.  Although the first two have protection, because it lives in an aquatic environment, the squid uses other adaptions like ink and camouflage to protect itself.  The grasshopper breathes through openings in its abdomen called spiracles.  Terrestrial snails have an opening on their right side called a pneumostome that allows them to breathe.

Genome Chapter 22: Free Will

Ridley's final chapter of Genome discusses the seemingly conflicting concepts of free will and genetic determinism.  Free Will supposes that each individual controls all of his and her actions through conscious deliberation and use of experience and knowledge.  In contrast, genetic determinism in its extreme supposes that any and all actions made by humans, animals, or plants, are planned, dictated, and predetermined by the genes that are coded in each cell of our body.  Ridley supposes the determinism is not very plausible and that the aspect of nurture plays a large role that should not be taken for granted.  Ridley invokes an example using child abusers.  Using this topic, Ridley also notes that children may often stimulate nurture in their own parents because it helps the learn how to better care and foster safer environments that are beneficial to the overall survival and fitness of a species. It is important to consider that nearly infinite number of factors and influences that may steer an organism.  Free will is also one of these factors. While it may not be able to control everything, it is certainly a major part in the events that occur in the lives of humans and other organisms.

Genome Chapter 17: Death

   Ridley opens chapter 17 by introducing the idea that, occasionally, there will be times in which cells will reproduce when they are not typically supposed to do so.  Delving further in, Ridley notes that this is the basis for cancer.  Cancer is the uncontrolled and detrimental reproduction of cells.  This uncontrolled reproduction causes masses of cells called tumors that can severely inhibit and damage bodily functions.  Often, death follows untreatable tumors.  According to the chapter, chromosome 17 is home to gene TP53.  This gene is central because it controls and suppresses rogue cancer cells.  This gene is integral to stopping cells or tissues from becoming cancerous.  In contrast, oncogenes promote cell growth and, if left unchecked, will cause cancer.  It is also important to note that tumor suppressing genes may also cause cancer if left unchecked. Moving on, Ridley expands on the concept of mutator genes that cause cancer.  Additionally, various types of cancers are explained and efforts made by scientists to employ proteins as a cancer drug are elaborated on. 

Genome Chapter 15: Sex

   Opening this chapter, the author discusses a couple genetic diseases.  However, Ridley makes it a point to note that genes are not there to cause disease.  According to the chapter, both diseases are apart of Chromosome 15.  However, the relationship between the two conditions is that, if your parents passes the gene to you, the type of disease you get depends on whether or not you inherited the gene from your mother or your father.  Moving on, Ridley describes the process of cloning and how such processes, as demonstrated in the sheep Dolly, have the effect of removing genetic imprints.  that may influence and organism.  Specific genes from parents can affect the development of organs that later become central to the development of thinking, perception, and moods.  According to the chapter, some scientific evidence is demonstrative of the notion that behavioral gender roles may be controlled or influenced by the genome.  This comes in contrast to the traditional notion that gender roles have been developed and based around society influence and environmental stimulation.

Blog 5: Why is it important to define and debate our understanding of intelligence and its origins? How does this relate to you?

Why is it important to define and debate our understanding of intelligence and its origins? How does this relate to you?

   To understand a concept often means to define it.  Without at least a rigid definition of a concept, it is difficult to develop a solid and true understanding of the mechanics, details, and intricacies that define the concept.  With the concept of intelligence, the issue is even more important because, in current society, intelligence is an integral aspect surrounding everything from politics to academics and games to employment.  Everyone wants to be intelligent.  However, in pursuing intelligence, many people are not able to articulate what they believe to define intelligence.  Without knowing specifically what is being pursued, it is difficult for anyone to set goals and find directions through which they should move.  Through defining and understanding intelligence, the types of intelligences, how intelligence is developed, and why certain actions affect intelligence will help an individual to pursue self development and make clearer goals and milestones. 


  As a student, defining intelligence and its origin is important because it directly applies to how I learn and how I absorb and apply the information that is taught at school.  Recognizing the which intelligences apply to me and the types of study techniques and habits are the most effective will help aid my learning and my grades.  As a biology student, the issue of intelligence is central to the debate between nature and nurture.  Whether or not intelligence is based on personal experiences or on the lump sum of genes that reside within each cell is a question that has many facets and details.  Because this subject relates to the development of animals and the way genes control organisms, it is an important topic to consider.
  

Nephron Blog

Nephrons are the basic structural and functional units in the kidney.  The main purpose of the nephron is to regulate and control the concentration of water and the soluble substances that flow throughout the human body.  An example of the regulated substances include sodium salts.  The nephron works by using a small blood vessel to act as a filtering unit that keeps typical cells and proteins flowing through the blood stream.  At the same time, a chemical exchange causes specific waster materials and water to leave the blood and enter the urinary system.

Semester 2 Blog 3: Starfish Blog

   Starfish possess 5-rayed radial symmetry. In some cases, the symmetry may be bilateral.  Echinoderms possess a body with tissue and organ cell layers.  The body cavity is described as a true coelom.  Echinodermata do not posses a head and their bodies can be highly variable.  The circulatory system is open and is poorly defined.  Their water vascular system hydraulically operates their tube.  The nervous system consists of a circum-oesophageal ring.  Starfish do not have excretory organs.  Reproduction typically occurs sexually and gonochoristic.  Starfish feed on small particles and animals that may reside in the water. 

Crinoidea

Ophiocistiodea

Astroidea

 

Echinoludea

a

Holothuoidea

 

Genome Chapter 16: Memory

   The chapter opens by comparing the genome to a book.  A book that, given some reading and skill, can be used to construct a complete human body.  Ridley goes on to explain the supposed difference between the coded instinct and the concept of learning and memory.  Ridley acknowledges the age old distinction that animals operate on instinct alone and that humans learn everything.  However, Ridley states that many people take for granted that many of the things that humans do are operated based on the instinct coded into our genes.  Ridley additionally exemplifies learning in animals such as eagles, bees, and sea slugs.  The idea of learning and memory is also coded by genes.  Learning and memory provide the animal with the flexibility required to adapt to specific situations.  Ridley uses the example of language:  A hard-coded genetic language would not be flexible enough to efficiently describe a computer.  Learned language allows humans to effectively communicate ideas within the span of a single word. Going on to describe Eric Kandel's experiments with sea slugs, Ridley expands on the three types of learning: habituation, sensitization, and associative learning. 

   Moving into the technicalities, Ridley introduces cyclic AMP moleculres, CREB proteins, and CRE genes that are located on Chromosome 16.  These molecules are responsible for the process of learning and memory storage.  Ridley identifies various parts of the brain and how they are integrated into the process of learning and memory storage.  Ridley states that the entire process of learning may possibly be based on the tightening and loosening of specific connections between nerve cells.  Ridley stresses the importance of integrins in enabling the process of learning. Additionally, Ridley briefly discusses the effects of an overabundance or lack of CREB protein production. 

Double Fertilization

The process of double fertilization is an integral one to all of the flowering plants on Earth.  Double fertilization is a process by which two sperm sells are transported by pollen to the ovaries of an angiosperm.  One sperm fertilizes the egg to form a zygote.  The other sperm fuses with a polar nuclei to form a tripolar endosperm nucleus.  The endosperm is responsible for providing nutrients to the developing zygote and allows the seed to undergo the initial stages of germination when specific conditions are met. 

The evolution of the double fertilization process is interesting because it involves a gene that inhibits the expression of another gene.  Originally, a specific gene would limit the amount of sperm cells in any given pollen to one.  However, by inhibiting this gene, angiosperms are able to produce two sperm cells in a pollen.  This mechanism allows the process of double fertilization to occur and is a defining characteristic of all flower plants on Earth today.

Extra Credit Blog

What topics really confused you?

Prokaryotes/Fungi, Virus types, Sex Linked Traits, Functional Groups

What topics do you feel very clear on?

Cellular Respiration/Photosynthesis, Enzymes, Succession, Imprinting, Biomes,



What lab/activity was your favorite? Why?

I thought that the Toothpickase lab was helpful in understanding how enzymes work and how they are limited by things like environmental conditions and substrate concentrations.

What lab/activity was your least favorite? Why?

    I felt that the transpiration lab was a bit confusing at first.  When my group was able to complete the set-up, I felt that we did not have enough time left to collect enough data. 

If you could change something about the class to make it better, for instance the type of homework (not the amount) what would it be and why?

I think that the AP class would benefit from more exposure to AP Exam style Multiple Choice questions that relate to our unit of study.  While the study guides and online quizzes help reinforce understanding, the multiple choice tests sometimes seem like totally different beasts.  I think that packets or links to multiple choice AP style questions pertaining to the unit of study would help a lot.  

Genome Chapter 1: Life Summary

   The chapter begins by attempting to relate awe that Matt Ridley feels when he thinks of the odds that placed him at the precise moment, time, and species to allow him to understand the discoveries made by scientists in mapping the human genome.  Ridley goes on to explain life as beginning as a single word.  The development of a replicating recipe is ultimately the development of life.  The three letter words come together to create and regulate orderly systems called animals.  Ridley goes on to cite Aristotle's original idea of information theory and then transitions to the scientists that were integral to genetic discoveries: Francis Crick, James Watson, etc...  Ridley describes Oswald Avery's work in experimenting with bacterial transformations in an attempt to identify the true function of DNA and its bases.  Ridley asserts that like a well designed machine, "life, too, is digital information written in DNA" (16). The chapter moves on to identify the 120 letter long gene on Chromosome 1 that codes for the production of a type of RNA that comes together to form protein assembling ribosomes.  Citing evidence such as its ability to replicate itself, Ridley introduces the theory that RNA developed before the rise of Proteins and DNA.  DNA and proteins arose to facilitate the replication of the fragile RNA molecules.  A theory is also introduced that supposes that bacteria were not at the origin of life.  Rather, protozoan like creatures were.  Ridley concludes the chapter by noting the universal quality that the language of DNA has across all organisms.  The fact that all genetic code is universal across all organisms means that we were all descended from one point of creation.

Cell Haikus

Golgi

It is the Golgi

Apparatus that does all

Sorting and Secretion

Nucleus

At the cell’s center

Packed with genes and DNA

Lies the nucleus

Membrane

Protection throughout

The plasma membrane is strong

Allows some molecules

Major Plant Divisions

Bryophytes

                        These plants are composed of liverworts, hornworts, and mosses.  Bryophyte plants have dominant gametophyte generations are larger and longer living than their sporophyte generations.  In fact, their sporophyte generations are dependent on the gametophytes for nutrition and shelter.  Bryophytes are nonvascular plants so they are unable to grow fairly tall and typically  will be shorter flat plants.  

 

Seedless Vascular Plants

                                    These plants have developed tubes inside them that allow them to transport minerals, nutrients, and water to different areas of the plant.  Made out of xylem and phloem, these plants are more able to stand upright and grow taller to be more competitive in gathering sunlight and nutrients in their environment.  These plants demonstrate a steady shift from dominant gametophyte generations to longer sporophyte generations that rely less on the gametophytes.

 

Gymnosperms

                        Gymnosperms include plants like conifers, pines, etc.. Their seeds are considered naked seeds and lack an enclosed ovary.  As such they are typically called naked seed plants.  In conifers, the seeds are grown on cones.  Gymnosperms have very small and very short gametophyte generations.  The sporophyte is now the largest and more noticeable part of the plant.

 

 

Angiosperms

                        The angiosperms are considered the flowering and fruiting plants.  These plants have enclosed ovaries that allow them to protect their embryos.  Angiosperms are divided into monocots and dicots.  Angiosperms utilize flowers to attract insects and animals to aid in the process of pollination and fertilization.  Angiosperms also grow fruits to protect their seeds.  Fruits have also evolved to aid the spread of species by means of both animal and environmental aids.