Part 10: The immune system
Introduction
The vertebrate, including human, immune system is a complex multilayered system for defending against external and internal threats to the integrity of the body.…
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Natural and Medical Sciences
Part 9: Viruses and the diseases they cause
No one knows exactly when viruses emerged or from where they came, since viruses do not leave historical footprints such as fossils.…
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Part 8: Gene expression
Each somatic cell in the body generally contains the same DNA. A few exceptions include red blood cells, which contain no DNA in their mature state, and some immune system cells, which rearrange their DNA while producing antibodies.…
Part 7: The heterocatalytic function of nucleic acids
The heterocatalytic function is how DNA controls the development of the body, that is how it decodes the genetic information and transforms it into specific proteins by transcription and translation.
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Part 6: The autocatalytic function of nucleic acids
The autocatalytic function is how DNA reproduces itself, that is the process of replication by semiconservative mechanism with duplication of genetic information.
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Part 5: The nucleic acids DNA and RNA
The nucleic acids DNA and RNA are key macromolecules in the continuity of life. They carry the genetic blueprint of a cell and carry instructions for the functioning of the cell.…
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Part 4: Reproduction at cellular level
The individual sexually reproducing organism – including humans – begins life as a fertilized egg, or zygote. Trillions of cell divisions subsequently occur in a controlled manner to produce a complex, multicellular organism like, for instance, the human organism.…
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Part 3: Structure and function of plasma membrane
The cell membrane or plasma membrane has many functions, but the most basic one is to define the cell’s borders and keep the cell functional.…
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Part 2: About the cellular level of organization of living things
Levels of organization of living things
Living things are highly organized and structured, following a hierarchy on a scale from small to large.
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Part 1: Chemistry of Life
The elements carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, sulfur, and phosphorus are the key building blocks of the chemicals found in living things.…
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The Covid-19 conspiracy theories and how I came to write about biology and genetics
As the light at the end of the pandemic tunnel becomes clearer and larger, we all feel a sense of relief every day, as if the weight on our collective shoulders is shrinking a little.…
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