B1 Definitions

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Disease
A condition caused by a part of the body not functioning properly
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Systolic pressure
Blood pressure in the arteries when the heart contracts
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Diastolic pressure
Blood pressure in the arteries when the heart relaxes
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Thrombosis
Blood clot in a blood vessel
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Balanced diet
Diet that has the right amount of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, water and fibre and gives you enough energy
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Deficiency disease
Disease caused by not eating enough of a particular nutrient
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Microorganism
Small organism visible under a microscope. Bacteria and viruses are microorganisms.
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Parasite
Organism that lives in another organism (the host) and gains nutrients and shelter from the host. Pathogens are parasites
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Host
An organism that has been invaded by a virus or a parasite
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Cancer
Body disorder where cells keep on dividing and form a tumour
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Tumour
Mass of cells
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Benign
Describes a tumour that does not spread throughout the body
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Malignant
Describes a tumour that spreads through the body
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Pathogen
Organism that can cause infectious diseases
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Toxin
Poison
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Vector
Carrier, eg of a disease - causing organism
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Incidence
The number of new cases of a disease in a population in a period of time
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Antibiotic
Chemicals, usually made by fungi or bacteria, that can be used as medicines to kill other fungi or bacteria in an infected person or animal
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Immune system
Your body's system that fights infections, involving white blood cells and antibodies
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Antibody
Special protein in the body that can destroy a particular pathogen
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Antigen
Special protein on the surface of a cell such as a pathogen. The body makes antibodies to an antigen
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Immunity
You have immunity when you have made antibodies to a pathogen, so that next time the body can make them again quickly, and the pathogen does not make you ill
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Immunisation
Medical procedure to make people immune to a particular disease. It involves introducing dead or inactivated pathogens into the body to stimulate the immune system to make the antibodies
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Epidemic
Sudden outbreak of a disease that affects many people in a country
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Pandemic
Epidemic that sweeps across continents or across the whole world
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Active immunity
Immunity that comes from making your own antibodies
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Passive immunity
Immunity that comes from having antibodies injected into your body
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Binocular vision
Seeing with two eyes focussing on an object at the same time
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Focus
Forming a clear image on the retina
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Monocular vision
Seeing with each eye independently, with eyes on either sides of the head
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Accommodation
Change in the shape of the lens of the eye to focus on near or distant objects
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Red-green colour blindness
Inherited condition in which people cannot tell the difference between red and green
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Long sight
Being able to see distant objects clearly, but not near objects
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Short sight
Being able to see near objects clearly, but not distant objects
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Stimulus
Change in the environment, such as temperature change that you respond to
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Central nervous system
The brain and spinal chord
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Peripheral nervous system
Nerves carrying information from sense organs in your body to the central nervous system and then to the effectors
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Neurone
Cell that carries electrical impulses, sometimes called a nerve cell
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Reflex action
Fast automatic response of the body to a potentially dangerous stimulus, coordinated by the spinal chord
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Response
Action of the body brought about by a stimulus
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Synapse
Small gap between one neurone and a muscle cell or between a neurone and a muscle cell
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Effector
Organ such as a gland or muscle that responds to a stimulus
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Drug
Chemical that alters the way your brain or body works
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Tolerant
You become tolerant to a drug when your body no longer responds to it to the same degree, and you need more of the drug for the same response
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Addiction
The body is dependent on the drug and will not function properly without it
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Withdrawal symptoms
If you are addicted to (dependent on) a drug, when you stop taking it you get unpleasant symptoms such as pain and tremors.
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Rehabilitation
Process of getting the body to function normally again without a drug that you are addicted to
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Blind trial
The groups do not know who is receiving the new drug, the existing or the placebo
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Double blind trial
Neither the volunteers nor doctors collecting the data know
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Carcinogen
Substance that causes cancer
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Emphysema
Disease of the lungs that causes breathlessness and lack of energy
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Addictive
Describes a drug that makes you need to keep taking more of the drug in order for your body to work properly
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Depressant
Drug that depresses the activity of the nervous system
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Homeostasis
Keeping the body's internal environment in a steady state
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Vasoconstriction
Narrowing of the blood vessels to regulate body temperature (heat not lost out of skin)
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Vasodilation
Widening of blood vessels to regulate body temperature (heat lost through skin)
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Evaporation
Changing of a liquid into vapour (gas
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Hormone
Chemical made by a gland and carried in the blood to its target organ(s)
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Gland
Structure that makes a useful substance for the living organism
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Target organ
Organ or part of the body that responds to a particular hormone
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Tropism
Growth response to a stimulus. The direction of the stimulus determines the direction of the growth response
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Phototropic
Describes the response of plants to the direction of light. Shoots grow towards light and roots grow away from light
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Auxin
Plant hormone that causes shoots to bend
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Geotropic
Describes the response of plants to the direction of the pull of gravity. Roots grow towards the pull of gravity and shoots grow away from it
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Gene
Length of DNA that codes for a characteristic/protein
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Chromosome
Structure in a cell nucleus the consists of one molecule of DNA that has condensed and coiled into a linear structure
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Gamete
Sex cell. Male gametes are sperm and female gametes are eggs. Gametes have half the normal number of chromosomes
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Mutation
Change in the structure of a gene
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Fertilisation
The joining of the male and female gametes to make a new individual
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Spontaneous
Happens of its own accord, with no outside influence
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Allele
Versions of a gene
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Sexual reproduction
Reproduction involving the joining of gametes from two (usually unrelated) parents
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Random
By chance - not ordered
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Dominant
Describes a characteristic that is expressed even if only one allele for it is present
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Recessive
Describe
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

Blood pressure in the arteries when the heart contracts

Back

Systolic pressure

Card 3

Front

Blood pressure in the arteries when the heart relaxes

Back

Preview of the back of card 3

Card 4

Front

Blood clot in a blood vessel

Back

Preview of the back of card 4

Card 5

Front

Diet that has the right amount of proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, water and fibre and gives you enough energy

Back

Preview of the back of card 5
View more cards

Comments

Pete Langley - Get Revising founder

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Really useful set of definitions

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