potential

Virus

...ing complex, microscopic structures which have the potential for self-assembly , and thusly they have large implications in the study of the origin of life . In the debate of whether viruses are alive or not, if the requirement for autonomous self-reproduction is abandoned, it can be strongly argued that vir...

Vaccine

...wn of the adverse effects to determine whether the potential benefits make the risks worthwhile. Since most people are vaccinated against contagious and potentially fatal diseases, the chances of someone who is not vaccinated becoming ill is a good deal smaller than it might be if their opinion was held by mo...

Transmembrane receptor

...eceptors respond also to changes in transmembrane potential ), and in many receptors these ligands bind to the extracellular domain. The transmembrane domain In the majority of receptors for which structural evidence exists, transmembrane alpha helices make up most of the transmembrane domain. In cert...

Tumor

...lignant tumors are called cancer . Cancer has the potential to invade and destroy neighboring tissues and create metastases . Benign tumors do not invade neighboring tissues and do not seed metastases, but may locally grow to great size. They usually do not return after surgical removal. Depending on tissu...

Synapse

...ered by the arrival of a nerve impulse (or action potential ) and occurs through an unusually rapid process of...eady at the synaptic membrane. The arriving action potential produces an influx of calcium ions through voltage-dependent, calcium-selective ion channels , at...

Stem cell

...al, undifferentiated cells which have the unique potential to produce any kind of cell in the body. Many medical researchers believe stem cells have the potential to revolutionize medicine , enabling doctors to repair specific tissues or to grow organs . ...

Species

...ganisms that are known to recognise one another as potential mates. Like the isolation species concept above, it applies only to organisms that reproduce sexually. A phylogenetic or evolutionary or Darwinian species is a group of organisms that shares an ancestor; a lineage that maintains its integri...

Signal transduction

...transmembrane receptors on change of transmembrane potential 3.2 Nuclear receptors 3.2.1 Steroid rece...ransmembrane receptors on change of transmembrane potential An ion channel can also open when the receptor is activated by a change in cell potential , that...

Restriction enzyme

...ynthesized for sale to laboratories. As a result, potential " restriction sites " appear in almost any gene or chromosome . Meanwhile, the sequences of some artificial plasmids include a " linker " that contains dozens of restriction enzyme recognition sequences within a very short segment of DNA. So no ...

Proton pump

...ity ) and tending to establish an electrochemical potential . In bacteria , mitochondria and other ATP-producing organelles, reducing equivalents provided by electron transfer or photosynthesis power this translocation of protons. For example, the translocation of protons by cytochrome c oxidase is...

Potential energy

...tial energy ( U , or E p ), a kind of scalar potential , is energy by virtue of matter being able to ...show","hide") 1 Types 1.1 Gravitational potential energy 1.2 Elastic potential energy 1.3 Chemical energy 1.4 Rest mass energy 1.5 Electrical ...

Cell membrane

...key roles of the membrane is to maintain the cell potential . Contents showTocToggle("show","hide") 1 A Fluid Mosaic 2 Detailed Structure 3 Transport across membranes 3.1 Passive transport 3.2 Active transport 4 References 5 External links A Fluid Mosaic The basic...

Osmosis

...t, but not to the solute, resulting in a chemical potential difference across the membrane which drives the d...is the same strength (that is, until the chemical potential is equal on both sides). Osmosis is an important topic in biology because it provides the prima...

Neutral theory of molecular evolution

...encode alanine , for example). Consequently, many potential single-nucleotide changes are in effect "silent" or "unexpressed" (see synonymous or silent substitution ). Such changes are presumed to have little or no biological effect. A second assertion or hypothesis of the neutral theory is that most evolut...

Neurotransmitter

...ecules are packaged in vesicles . When an action potential travels to the synapse, the rapid depolarization causes calcium ion channels to open. Calcium then stimulates the transport of vesicles to the synaptic membrane: the vesicle and cell membrane fuse, leading to the release of the packaged neurotra...

Neuron

... spread to the axon hillock generating an action potential which then travels as a wave of electrical excitation along the axon. Arrival of an action potential at the tip of an axon triggers the release of neurotransmitter at a synaptic gap . Neurotransmitte...

Magnetic resonance imaging

...nning facility. Many safety issues, including the potential for biostimulation device interference, movement of ferromagnetic bodies and incidental localized heating have been addressed in the American College of Radiology's 'White Paper on MR Safety' which was originally published in 2002 and expanded in 200...

Mitochondrion

... disease Mitochondrial DNA Electrochemical potential Glycolysis Mitochondrial genetics...

Mitochondrion

... disease Mitochondrial DNA Electrochemical potential Glycolysis Mitochondrial genetics...

Marine biology

...sed that new species could be found, eventually of potential great interest also for the theories on evolution .Many universities teach courses in marine biology. See also Important publications in marine biology External link MarineBio: an evolving online tribute to Marine Biology and al...

Malaria

...ions. Sterile insect technique is emerging as a potential method to control malaria-carrying mosquitos. Progress towards transgenic, or genetically modified insects suggests that wild mosquito populations could be made malaria resistant. Researchers at Imperial College London created the world's first...

Major histocompatibility complex

... and balances" and underscores the immune system's potential for running amok and causing harm to the body (see autoimmune disorders .) All Mhc molecules receive polypeptides from inside the cells they are part of and display them on the cell's exterior surface for recognition by T cells . However, there...

Lichen

...sistive to man-made pollutants . Hence, they have potential as pollution indicator organisms. When growing on mineral surfaces, lichens slowly degrade it by secreting acids that dissolve the minerals, contributing to the process of weathering by which rocks are slowly turned into soil. Classification Li...

Ion channel

...voltage that all cells possess at rest (see cell potential ). Contents showTocToggle("show","hide") ... Voltage-gated channels sense the transmembrane potential and open or close in response to depolarization or hyperpolarization , respectively. Examples i...

Insulin

...e made to isolate the secretion of the islets as a potential treatment. In 1906 Georg Ludwig Zuelzer was parti...er there are several major limitations - cost, the potential for hypoglycemic episodes, catheter problems, and, thus far, no approvable means of controlling insu...

Hyperpolarization

...hyperpolarization occurs when a cell's membrane potential dips below its resting level . In physics , hyperpolarization is the selective polarization of nuclear spin in atoms far beyond normal thermal equilibrium....

Human

...umanity is currently not living up to its intended potential for life , joy , and freedom , and instead suffers under the power of sin and death . According to the Hebrew Bible , God chose the Jews as a special people, and determined that all other people were to remain under the Noahide Laws , reflec...

Homeostasis

.... For example, in nerves , a threshold electric potential triggers the generation of a much larger action potential . (See also leverage points .) Ecological homeostasis In the Gaia hypothesis , James Love...

Genomics

...gy , medicine , and industry . Genomics has the potential of offering new therapeutic methods for the treatment of some diseases, as well as new diagnostic methods. Other applications are in the food and agriculture sectors.The major tools and methods related to genomics are bioinformatics , genetic analys...

Free energy

...physics , free energy denotes the thermodynamic potential F = U - TS , also called Helmholtz free energy ...emistry , free energy denotes the thermodynamic potential F = U - TS + PV , also called the Gibbs function . In physics, this quantity is called the Gibbs...

Francis Galton

...liam Herschel (civil servant) in India, but their potential use in forensic work was first proposed by Dr Henry Faulds in 1880. In a Royal Institution paper in 1888 and three books ( 1892 , 1893 and 1895 ) Galton wrote about the technique (inadvertently sparking a controversy between Herschel and Fau...

Cell membrane

...key roles of the membrane is to maintain the cell potential . Contents showTocToggle("show","hide") 1 A Fluid Mosaic 2 Detailed Structure 3 Transport across membranes 3.1 Passive transport 3.2 Active transport 4 References 5 External links A Fluid Mosaic The basic...

Fitness landscape

...nction f(s) also corresponds to the concept of a potential or energy function in physics . The two concepts...ts traditionally think in terms of minimizing the potential function, while biologists prefer the notion that fitness is being maximized. Therefore, multiplyi...

Eugenics

...ost universally reviled. Modern inquiries into the potential use of genetic engineering have led to an increased invocation of the history of eugenics in the discourse of bioethics , usually as a cautionary tale, though some ethicists have questioned whether non-coercive eugenics programs would be inherentl...

Electrophysiology

...s that enable the measurement of this flow and the potential changes related to them. At the cellular level, ...mp" technique, which "clamp" or maintain the cell potential (voltage-clamp ) or current (current-clamp ) at a level the experimenter may specify. This control ...

Electron transfer chain

...pid-soluable messengers that convert the reductive potential of energized electrons into a cross-membrane proto...p protons, and Complex V uses the electrochemical potential generated to create ATP .Complex IV is the terminus of the electron transfer chain , where oxyge...

Electrical energy

...l energy of a charge Q situated at the electric potential V equals to the product QV . If V is a potential difference , the same expression gives the energy transformed when the charge moves through the po...

Ebola

...ra involved a worker who had been exposed to the potential natural reservoir at the local cotton factory .... much information published about the bioterrorism potential of Ebola, obviously for security reasons. However, scientists do say that altering the Ebola virus f...

Down syndrome

...y being offered better chances for realising their potential for personal and social development. Despite this ...their routines and in dealing with institutions or potential employers. Many children in the UK are now educated in mainstream schools, learn to read and write,...

Diffusion

...iffusion equation Effusion Electrochemical potential Emulsion polymerization Fick's law of diffusion Fokker-Planck equation Gel permeation chromatography Hydrothermal circulation Isotope separation Kirkendall effect Laminar flow Liposomes List of biochemistry topics ...

Dialysis

...is needed. The main consideration is the very high potential for infection with an open catheter; peritonitis is a common complication, as are infections of the catheter exit site or "tunnel" (path from the peritoneum to the exit site). Because of this, patients are advised to take a number of precautions ag...

Depolarization

...to the event a cell undergoes when its membrane potential grows more positive with respect to the extracell...ly muscle cells. Related topics membrane potential action potential...

Dendrite

...tory synaptic stimulation whether or not an action potential is present. This propagation is efficient only tow... axon in most neurons. This backpropagating action potential is mediated by the activation of voltage-gated ion channels and can interact with synaptic input to ...

Ion gradient

...nt of ions , it can be called an electrochemical potential gradient of ions across membranes. Ionophores ...are important for ion gradients. The chemiosmotic potential is used as energy storage, chemiosmotic coupling is one of several ways a thermodynamically unfavor...

Charles Darwin

...damage the "noblest part of our nature" for only a potential future benefit. "Hence we must bear without complaining the undoubtedly bad effects of the weak surviving and propagating their kind," he wrote. For each tendency of society to produce negative selections, Darwin also saw the possibility of society t...

Chemiosmotic hypothesis

...y of electron transfer was stored as a stable high potential intermediate, a chemically more conservative conce...so: mitochondrion , chloroplasts , chemiosmotic potential , electron transfer chain , cytochrome References: http://www.life.uiuc.edu/crofts/bioph354/mi...

Cell growth

...at provide special functions such as rapid action potential propagation. Mammals also use this trick for increasing the speed of signals in the nervous system, but they can also use myelin to accomplish this, so most human neurons are releatively small.h Other experimental systems for the study of cell ...

Cancer

...nal proliferation of cells with unregulated growth potential occur very early in life and progress very quickly...ific for cancer cells. Hence, chemotherapy has the potential to harm healthy tissue, especially those tissues that have a high replacement rate (e.g. intestinal ...

Brain

...brain to recognize danger, find food, and identify potential mates, among other goals. Visual, touch, and audit...electricity and to the discovery of the membrane potential , action potential , etc., by researchers such as Emil du Bois-Reymond . The scientists of the 18...

Barbiturate

...utically without harm, concern about the addiction potential (withdrawal symptoms can include tonic-clonic or grand mal seizures potentially leading to permanent disability or even death) of barbiturates and theever-increasing number of fatalities associated with them led to the development of alternative me...

ATPase

...nic concentration balance that maintains the cell potential . Besides exchangers, other categories of transme...nger. Transmembrane ATPases harness the chemical potential energy of ATP, because they perform mechanical work : they transport solutes in a direction opposit...

Andrew Huxley

... measurements on which the pair based their action potential theory represent one of the earliest applications of a technique of electrophysiology known as the "voltage clamp". The second critical element of their research was the so-called giant axon of Atlantic squid ( Loligo pealei ), which enabled them ...

Active transport

...um-potassium pump , which helps maintain the cell potential . Secondary In secondary active transport, ...ect coupling of ATP; instead, the electrochemical potential difference created by pumping ions out of cells is used. The two main forms of this are counter-tra...