Molecular biology is the study of biology at a molecular level. The field overlaps with other areas of biology and chemistry, particularly genetics and biochemistry. Molecular biology chiefly concerns itself with understanding the interactions between the various systems of a cell, including the interactions between DNA, RNA and protein biosynthesis and learning how these interactions are regulated.
Writing in Nature, William Astbury described molecular biology as:
"... not so much a technique as an approach, an approach from the viewpoint of the so-called basic sciences with the leading idea of searching below the large-scale manifestations of classical biology for the corresponding molecular plan. It is concerned particularly with the forms of biological molecules and ..... is predominantly three-dimensional and structural - which does not mean, however, that it is merely a refinement of morphology - it must at the same time inquire into genesis and function.
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Microorganism
A microorganism (also can be spelled as micro organism) or microbe is an organism that is microscopic (too small to be seen by the naked human eye). The study of microorganisms is called microbiology, a subject that began with Anton van Leeuwenhoek's discovery of microorganisms in 1675, using a microscope of his own design.
Microorganisms are incredibly diverse and include bacteria, fungi, archaea, and protists, as well as some microscopic plants and animals such as plankton, and popularly-known animals such as the planarian and the amoeba. They do not include viruses and prions, which are generally classified as non-living. Most microorganisms are single-celled, or unicellular, but some multicellular organisms are microscopic, while some unicellular protists, and a bacteria called Thiomargarita namibiensis are visible to the naked eye.
Microorganisms live in all parts of the biosphere where there is liquid water, including hot springs, on the ocean floor, high in the atmosphere and deep inside rocks within the Earth's crust. Microorganisms are critical to nutrient recycling in ecosystems as they act as decomposers. As some microorganisms can fix nitrogen, they are a vital part of the nitrogen cycle, and recent studies indicate that airborne microbes may play a role in precipitation and weather.
Microbes are also exploited by people in biotechnology, both in traditional food and beverage preparation, as well as modern technologies based on genetic engineering. However, pathogenic microbes are harmful, since they invade and grow within other organisms, causing diseases that kill millions of people, other animals, and plants.
Microorganisms are incredibly diverse and include bacteria, fungi, archaea, and protists, as well as some microscopic plants and animals such as plankton, and popularly-known animals such as the planarian and the amoeba. They do not include viruses and prions, which are generally classified as non-living. Most microorganisms are single-celled, or unicellular, but some multicellular organisms are microscopic, while some unicellular protists, and a bacteria called Thiomargarita namibiensis are visible to the naked eye.
Microorganisms live in all parts of the biosphere where there is liquid water, including hot springs, on the ocean floor, high in the atmosphere and deep inside rocks within the Earth's crust. Microorganisms are critical to nutrient recycling in ecosystems as they act as decomposers. As some microorganisms can fix nitrogen, they are a vital part of the nitrogen cycle, and recent studies indicate that airborne microbes may play a role in precipitation and weather.
Microbes are also exploited by people in biotechnology, both in traditional food and beverage preparation, as well as modern technologies based on genetic engineering. However, pathogenic microbes are harmful, since they invade and grow within other organisms, causing diseases that kill millions of people, other animals, and plants.
Animals
Animals are a major group of multicellular, eukaryotic organisms of the kingdom Animalia or Metazoa. Their body plan becomes fixed as they develop, although some undergo a process of metamorphosis later on in their life. Most animals are motile - they can move spontaneously and independently. Animals are heterotrophs - they are dependent on other organisms (e.g. plants) for sustenance.
Most known animal phyla appeared in the fossil record as marine species during the Cambrian explosion, about 542 million years ago.
Most known animal phyla appeared in the fossil record as marine species during the Cambrian explosion, about 542 million years ago.
Anatomy
Anatomy (from the Greek ἀνατομία anatomia, from ἀνατέμνειν ana: separate, apart from, and temnein, to cut up, cut open) is a branch of biology that is the consideration of the structure of living things. It is a general term that includes human anatomy, animal anatomy (zootomy) and plant anatomy (phytotomy). In some of its facets anatomy is closely related to embryology, comparative anatomy and comparative embryology, through common roots in evolution.
Anatomy is subdivided into gross anatomy (or macroscopic anatomy) and microscopic anatomy. Gross anatomy (also called topographical anatomy, regional anatomy, or anthropotomy) is the study of anatomical structures that can be seen by unaided vision. Microscopic anatomy is the study of minute anatomical structures assisted with microscopes, which includes histology (the study of the organisation of tissues),and cytology (the study of cells).
The history of anatomy has been characterized, over time, by a continually developing understanding of the functions of organs and structures in the body. Methods have also advanced dramatically, advancing from examination of animals through dissection of cadavers (dead human bodies) to technologically complex techniques developed in the 20th century.
Anatomy is subdivided into gross anatomy (or macroscopic anatomy) and microscopic anatomy. Gross anatomy (also called topographical anatomy, regional anatomy, or anthropotomy) is the study of anatomical structures that can be seen by unaided vision. Microscopic anatomy is the study of minute anatomical structures assisted with microscopes, which includes histology (the study of the organisation of tissues),and cytology (the study of cells).
The history of anatomy has been characterized, over time, by a continually developing understanding of the functions of organs and structures in the body. Methods have also advanced dramatically, advancing from examination of animals through dissection of cadavers (dead human bodies) to technologically complex techniques developed in the 20th century.
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