Life Sciences is another very popular foundation module among NatScis! This module sets the stage for future choices in molecular biology, neuroscience, biomed, and genetics.

The table below covers some of the molecular biology which is covered in the foundation module.

Acidic	Refers to a substance that releases protons when dissolved in water. Has a pH of below 7.
Action potential	a change in the electrical potential across a nerve cell membrane that reverses polarisation of the membrane and allows propagation of an electrical impulse.
Active transport	The movement of ions or molecules across a membrane from an area of low concentration to high concentration (against the electrochemical gradient), requiring energy.
Adenine, cytosine, guanine, thymine and uracil	The five bases that can be present on nucleotides. A,C,G and T are presented on DNA nucleotides/monomers and T is replaced with U in RNA nucleotides/monomers.
Amine group	a functional group consisting of a nitrogen atom with a lone pair of electrons.
Amino acid	A small organic molecule with both amino and carboxyl functional groups. Are monomers and polymerise to form proteins.
Anaerobic	Metabolic reactions, for example respiration, that occur in the absence of oxygen.
Anti-parallel	Parallel (continuously the same distance apart) but moving in opposite directions. Refers to the two strands of a DNA helix.
Apoptosis	Programmed cell death wherein the cell constituents are broken down during foetus development and to eliminate damaged/infected cells.
Aqueous	in reference to a solution; containing water. A water environment.
ATP (adenosine triphosphate)	A molecule containing a nucleotide and three phosphate groups. The terminal phosphate is removed and reattached to transfer energy inside cells for metabolic reactions, for example active transport.
Autonomic	In reference to the nervous system; the involuntary system that regulated activity of internal organs.
Autophagy	The regulated cell mechanism of degrading and recycling dysfunctional components, for example misfolded proteins.
Basic	Refers to a substance that accepts protons in aqueous solutions. Has a pH of above 7.
Carrier protein	A transmembrane protein with a specific binding site for an ion or molecule to transport that substance over the plasma membrane.
Chaperonin	Proteins that provide favourable conditions for the correct folding of proteins.
Chloroplast	An organelle containing chlorophyll that conducts photosynthesis in green plant leaves.
Chromatid	When chromosomes have self-replicated, this is one of the two identical chromosomes.
Chromatography	A technique to separate a mixture by passing it by suspension through a medium in which each component moves at a different rate.
Chromosome	Structure formed by the condensation DNA and associated histone proteins in early stages of cell division.
CNS (central nervous system)	The collective term for the brain and spinal cord.
Cofactor	A non-protein chemical compound or metallic ion required for an enzyme’s function.
Covalent bond	A chemical bond involving the sharing of electrons between atoms.
Cytoplasm	A thick solution of water, salt and proteins that surrounds organelles in the cell and encased by the plasma membrane.
Degenerate	Refers to the genetic code because each amino acid may be coded for by more than one codon (set of 3 bases).
Denaturation	Disruption of the three dimensional structure of a protein by breakage of weak hydrogen bonds, thus altering or stopping the function that protein. Caused by exposure to pH change or raised temperature.
Diffusion	Passive movement of a substance from a region of high concentration to an area of lower concentration of that substance.
Electrochemical gradient	The tendency of an ion to move from one side of a membrane to another, considering the electrical charge, concentration gradient and potential difference across the membrane.
Endoplasmic reticulum	An organelle consisting of a system of enclosed membranes. The Rough ER has ribosomes attached to synthesise proteins and smooth ER synthesises lipids.
Enzyme	Proteins that regulate the rate of metabolic reactions without being used up or altered.
Epidermis	A layer of tissue that covers the outer surface of a structure, e.g. the body or a plant.
Eukaryote	Multi-celled organisms that have a nucleus enclosed in a membrane. They have membrane bound organelles.
Excitatory	In reference to postsynaptic potential, a postsynaptic potential that makes the neuron more likely to fire an action potential.
Genome	The complete set of genetic material contained in each cell, including genes, non-coding DNA, mitochondrial DNA, and for plants, chloroplast DNA.
Helix	A shape like a corkscrew or a spiral, characteristic of DNA
Heredity	Also called inheritance, is the genetic passing of physical and mental characteristics from parents to offspring.
Hormone	A chemical signal released into the blood by endocrine cells in order to regulate activity of another group of cells.
Hydrophilic	A substance that is soluble in water.
Hydrophobic	A substance that is only partially soluble or insoluble in water.
Inhibitory	Of postsynaptic potential, decreases the likelihood of a neuron firing an action potential.
In vitro	Studies of biological matter taken outside of their natural biological context, I.e carried out in a test tube, flask or petri dish.
In vivo	Biological studies where the organism is studied as a whole organism rather than by tissue extract.
Ion channel	A transmembrane protein that allows specific ions pass through the membrane.
Ligand	A compound consisting of an ion or molecule (acting as functional group) attached to a central metal atom.
Macromolecule	A large molecule that is composed of many covalently bonded atoms.
Mitochondria	Membrane bound organelles that synthesise ATP through oxidative phosphorylation and have their own DNA called mtDNA.
Motor neuron	A neuron/nerve cell that carries impulses from the brain or spinal cord to the effector muscle or secretory gland.
Mutualistic	An ecological interaction between two species where each species benefits from said interaction.
Neuron	Preferred name for a nerve cell, which is a cell specialised for transmitting electrical signals throughout the body.
Neurotransmitter	A chemical signal released at the synaptic terminal to diffuse across the synapse and influence activity of the target cell by binding to it.
Nucleic acid	The nucleic acids are DNA and RNA, which consist of long chains of nucleotides. DNA is a double stranded helix shape ad RNA is a single strand.
Nucleotide	An organic compound that contains a base, pentose sugar and one or more phosphate groups.
(cell) Nucleus	The largest organelle in each cell, containing all of the DNA and the nucleolus.
Nucleolus	A region in the nucleus that contains protein and RNA, and synthesises ribosome subunits and RNA.
Organelle	A discrete structure in a cell that has a specific function.
Osmosis	The movement of water from an area of lower concentration to an area of higher concentration of solution through a semi-permeable membrane.
Parallel	DNA strands are parallel because they run side by side with the same distance consistently between them.
Peptide bond	The bond between the carboxyl group of one amino acid and the amino group of another amino acid.
Phosphodiester bond	A covalent bond in DNA or RNA where a phosphate on the 5th carbon of one nucleotide bonds to the hydroxyl group on the 3rd carbon of another nucleotide.
Phosphorylation	The addittion of a phosphoryl group (PO3-) to an organic molecule.
Plasma membrane	The lipid membrane that covers the entire outer surface of a cell.
Polar	The tendency of electrons in a bond to be associated with only one of the two atoms in the bond. Polar substances are soluble in water.
Polymerase	An enzyme used in DNA replication to join together nucleotides as they pair up against the DNA template.
Potential difference	Also called membrane potential, is the difference in charge between the inside and outside of the neuron.
Primary structure	The simplest level of protein structure, this is just the sequence of amino acids in the polypeptide chain.
Primer	A short nucleic acid sequence that acts as the starting point for DNA synthesis.
Prokaryote	A microscopic single-celled organism that does not have a nucleus or organelles that are membrane bound.
Promoter region	a region of DNA where transcription of a gene is initiated. Where RNA polymerase binds.
Prosthetic group	A non-protein chemical or a metal ion that is required to combine to a protein such as an enzyme for it to function.
Protease	An enzyme that catalyses proteins into smaller polypeptides and single amino acids.
Protein	A nitrogenous organic compound.
Purine	Describes the adenine and guanine bases that are part of nucleotides. They are based on a double ring structure therefore are larger than pyramidines.
Pyrimidine	Describes the cytosine, thymine and uracil bases that are part of nucleotides. Based on a single ring structure so are smaller than purines.
Quaternary structure	The final level of protein structure that is the number and arrangement of protein subunits into a multi-subunit structure.
Relay neuron	Neurons found in the brain and spinal cord to connect sensory neurons at the input and motor neurons at the output.
Respiration	The biochemical reaction inside every living cell to obtain energy by oxidising glucose.
RNA (ribonucleic acid)	Single stranded copies of sections of DNA. There are multiple types involved in the translation and transcription of DNA.
Secondary structure	Recurring arrangements of adjacent amino acids in the chain, held together by hydrogen bonds to form an alpha helix or beta pleated sheet.
Semiconservative	Describes DNA repliction because each molecule of DNA is comprised of one original strand and one newly formed strand.
Senescence	Loss of a cell’s ablity to divide and grow – deterioration.
Sense and anti sense	Refers to the two stands of DNA. Sense runs in the 5’ to 3’ direction and contains the translatable code, which is complimentary and thus opposite to the anti-sense strand.
Sensory neuron	The input neuron where external stimuli are converted into electrical impulses.
Somatic	Relates to the body.
Specialised	Cells that have developed particular characteristics for a specific function.
Symbiosis	Close, long-term, physical interaction of two organisms to the advantage of both.
Synapse	The junction between a nerve ending/ axon terminal and the next target cell, eg a neuron, mescle or gland.
Telomere	A region of repetitive nucleotide sequences at the end of a chromosome to protect the ends from fusing or deteriorating.
Tertiary structure	The overall three dimensional shape of a single polypeptide.
Transcription	The process by which the information in a strand of DNA is copied into a smaller, single stranded molecule called messenger RNA that is able to leave the nucleus.
Translation	The process by which ribosomes form proteins after transcription has occurred.
Truncated	Shortened by cutting off the end.
Ubiquitination	The process by which proteins are marked and targeted for degradation.
Vesicle	A structure present inside and out of cells that can pass through the membrane to transport substances. It is comprised of a liquid cytoplasm enclosed in a lipid bilayer.
XNA (xenonucleic acid)	Synthetic nucleic acids with a different sugar backbone to DNA and RNA.