Vocabulary

• What is the definition of asexual reproduction?


  Not involving fusion of gamete, the offspring are genetic clones of the parent cell
• What is a gamete?


  A sex cell
• What is fertilisation?


  The nucleus of the sperm and the egg fusing
• What is a clone?


  Daughter cells are genetically identical to the parent cell, they are made by mitosis
• What is variation?


  Different characteristics within a species (phenotypes)
• What is a zygote?


  A fertilised egg
• What is an embryo?

  A zygote that has started to divide by mitosis into many cells
• What is meiosis?


  Reduction division, four daughter cells each with half the number of chromosomes of the parent cell - sexual
• What is mitosis?


  Two daughter cells each having the same number and kind of chromosomes as the parent cell - asexual
• What is a diploid?


  A pair of chromosomes
• What is a haploid?


  One of each chromosome
• What is a homogeneous?


  Two of the same alleles e.g: BB or bb
• What is heterozygous?


  One dominant and one recessive allele eg: Bb
• What is dominant?

  An allele that masks the expression of another allele. If a dominant allele is present, it will be expressed in the phenotype
• What is recessive?


  An allele that is masked by a dominant allele. A recessive allele is only expressed in the phenotype when both alleles are recessive
• What is a Punnet square?


  A visual tool used to predict the possible genotypes and phenotypes of offspring from a cross between two individuals. It shows the possible combinations of alleles that can result from the union of gametes
• What is a phenotype?


  The observable physical characteristics of an individual, such as eye colour, hair colour or height
• What is a genotype?


  The genetic makeup of an individual, consisting of the combination of alleles for a particular trait
• What is a chromosome?


  A long coiled molecule of DNA
• What is DNA?


  A chemical that contains genetic material
• What is a gene?


  A small section of DNA that codes for protein. Each gene codes for a sequence of amino acids
• What is a protein?


  A sequence of amino acids
• What is a genome?

  The entire set of genetic material in an organism
• What is mutation?


  Changes to the DNA