Download Reproduction and Genetics Vocabulary

Reproduction and Genetics
Vocabulary
organism
living thing (plant, animal, people, bacteria)
reproduce
to have offspring (children) of the same species
sexual reproduction
offspring inherit half of their DNA from each
parent
asexual reproduction
single organism produces offspring with
identical DNA to the parent
pollination
transfer of pollen from stamen (male part) to
stigma (female part)
binary fission
type of asexual reproduction where organism
(often bacteria) grows twice its size and splits in
two, with DNA in each half
bacteria conjugation
bacteria shares DNA directly with a cell, using a
plasmid “bridge”
budding
asexual reproduction where offspring develops
from a bud on the parent organism
spore
tiny body that can grow into a new organism;
often produced by plants, fungi, and bacteria
fertilization
joining of male and female sex cells to form a
new individual
development
how a living thing changes during its life
cell
basic unit of life
organelles
parts inside a cell
nucleus
cell part that controls cell activities (the boss)
cell membrane
cell part that controls what enters and leaves
the cell (security guard)
mitosis
process of cellular division resulting in two
identical “daughter cells”
meiosis
process of cellular division resulting in four sex
cells with ½ DNA
genetics
the study of how traits of an individual re passed
on to its offspring
trait
a characteristic inherited from a parent or
parents
Examples: eye color, type of feather
DNA
chemical inside all cells with genetic information
gene
section of a chromosome that controls a specific
inherited trait
chromosome
a structure in the cell nucleus that has DNA;
each chromosome has many genes
Punnett square
a diagram used to calculate possible traits in
offspring of the same parents
dominate gene
in a pair of genes, the dominate gene
determines if a trait is present (B)
recessive gene
a gene that is masked if the dominate gene is
present (b)
allele
each gene that codes for a different trait is called
an allele
pedigree
a chart that shows the history of traits in a family
genotype
specific combination of all an organisms alleles
phenotype
traits an organisms exhibits (shows), based on
alleles