MCAT BIOLOGY Muscular and Skeletal Systems

V. MUSCLE AND SKELETAL SYSTEMS a. Skeletal Muscle i. voluntary movement with somatic innervation ii. cells arranged into fibers, cells are multinucleated iii. sarcomere contractile, functional unit of the muscle cell; very regular arrangement gives skeletal muscle its striated appearance iv. sarcoplasmic reticulum variation of the smooth endoplasmic reticulum v. stores calcium for release during contraction vi. sarcoplasm cytoplasm of muscle cells vii. sarcolemma plasma membrane of muscle cells viii.Red fibers 1. slow twitch fibers with increased numbers of mitochondria and increased myoglobin content (myoglobin is similar to hemoglobin, but only has one subunit, it stores oxygen for release when it is needed during cellular respiration) 2. able to perform aerobic respiration for long periods of time used during sustained, vigorous activity (long-distance running) ix. White fibers 1. fast twitch fibers that have decreased numbers of mitochondria and low myoglobin content 2. Lots of anaerobic respiration, have increased rate of contraction, but are fast fatigueable sprinting b. Smooth Muscle i. intestines, blood vessels, bladder, uterus ii. mononucleated iii. non-striated, but still contains actin and myosin iv. contractions are slower but maintained longer v. have myogenic activity vi. reflexive contraction, independent of nervous innervation c. Cardiac Muscle i. striated with one or two nuclei per cell ii. autonomic nervous system modulates cardiac activity, but it also has myogenic activity heart will continue to beat if all nervous connections are severed, it will just not be able to increase or decrease its rate in response to exercise/rest d. Muscle Contraction i. Initiation 1. stimulated by a motor neuron at the neuromuscular junction 2. acetylcholine is released ! binds to

receptors on sarcolemma ! if enough are bound, an action potential is potentiated ii. Contraction 1. Action potential enters t-tubules ! calcium released from the sarcoplasmic reticulum 2. Calcium binds to troponin ! troponin moves tropomyosin off actin binding sites 3. Myosin heads bind to actin and pull on them to contract the sarcomere 4. I-zone and the H-zone reduce in size as the Z-lines come together iii. Relaxation calcium is pumped back into sacroplasmic reticulum 1. rigor mortis occurs when no ATP is left to move calcium back into SR ! tonic contraction **stimulus for contraction is all-or-none for individual fibers (they either contract or they dont), but the activation of progressively increasing numbers of fibers allows a graded response in the entire muscle (you can move your arm a little bit or contract it all the way)

I.

Skeletal System a. Joints i. immovable skull ii. movable 1. synovial capsules enclose joint cavity 2. synovial fluid, fills capsule, lubricates joint 3. articular cartilage smooth, surrounds joints to reduce tension during movement 4. ligaments connect bone to bone 5. tendons connect bone to muscle b. Skeleton i. Axial skull, vertebral column, ribcage ii. Appendicular limbs and pelvic bones c. Cartilage i. chondroitin sulfate and collagen matrix both released by chondrocytes ii. external ear, nose, walls of larynx, trachea, skeletal joints iii. mostly avascular iv. Types 1. Hyaline a. Most common, in joints, ends of long bones 2. Fibrocartilage intervertebral discs 3. Elastic all other locations d. Bone i. compact bone dense bone creates exterior of bones ii. spongy bone creates medullary cavity inside large bones iii. trabeculae bony spicules that create a bony network inside compact bone iv. cavities between trabeculae have yellow or red bone marrow 1. Yellow marrow inactive, infiltrated by adipose tissue 2. Red marrow responsible for blood cell formation v. Bone structure 1. organic components proteins: collagen and glycoproteins 2. inorganic calcium, phosphate, hydroxide 3. hydroxyapatite crystals mineral salts made of calcium and phosphorus 4. Osteon structural unit of bone 5. Haversian canals contain blood vessels, nerve fibers, lymph ducts 6. Lacunae spaces that contain mature bone cells osteocytes 7. Canaliculi small canals for exchange of nutrients and wastes 8. Osteoblasts bone builders from calcium in bloodstream 9. Osteoclasts breakdown bone release calcium to bloodstream vi. Types of Bone Formation 1. Endochondral ossification 2. Existing cartilage is replaced by bone 3. Long bones growth plates in children 4. Intramembranous ossification a. Mesenchymal tissue (undifferentiated embryonic tissue) is transformed into and replaced by bone

b. Skull in infants vii. Types of bones 1. Long femur, phalanges, metatarsals, metacarpals 2. Short wrist, patella 3. Flat cranium, sternum, scapula 4. Irregular vertebrae, pelvis

MCAT BIOLOGY - Respiratory and Skin Systems

I. RESPIRATORY AND SKIN SYSTEMS a. Respiratory System

b. Path of Air: i. External nares ! nasal cavities/sinuses (air filtered and warmed) ! pharynx ! larynx ! trachea ! 2 bronchi ! bronchioles ! alveoli (small air sacs for gas exchange 300 million per lung) ii. Surfactant produced by alveolar type II cells decrease surface tension so that alveoli can expand; not produced by fetus until just before birth decreases ability of premature infant to breathe iii. Ventilation 1. inhalation a. diaphragm contracts and flattens b. external intercostal muscles contract lifts ribcage/chest wall up and out c. interpleural pressure decreases ! volume of lungs increases ! lungs fill with air due to negative pressure (air drawn in by vacuum) 2. expiration a. passive process due to elasticity of chest wall and lungs

II.

b. thoracic cavity decreases in size and air is expelled c. with forced expiration, internal intercostals contract, pull ribcage down 3. Medulla Oblongata a. Controls breathing based on oxygen status/carbon dioxide status of blood b. Can be overridden so that person consciously controls breathing 4. Hemoglobin Curve - see figure (remember cooperative regulation?) Skin part of the integumentary system that includes skin, hair, nails, surface glands, some nerve endings (sebaceous glands secrete oil, sudoriferous glands secrete sweat) a. Functions i. homeostasis, osmoregulation ii. thermoregulation iii. physical protection b. Structure i. Epidermis keratinized stratified squamous epithelium (5 layers - CLGSB) 1. deepest layers contain Merkel cells (nerve endings) and melanocytes (pigment-producing cells stimulated by sun exposure) 2. Langerhans cells macrophages that patrol skin for bacteria, engulf debris 3. Surface is covered with dead, keratin-filled cells ii. Dermis 1. 2 Layers a. Papillary layer i. Most superficial 20% ii. Contains dermal papillae with extend into the epidermis and provide more surface area for connection of the two layers b. Reticular layer i. Dense irregular connective tissue ii. Mainly reticular (collagen) fibers iii. Hypodermis (subcutaneous layer) 1. Connective tissue 2. Adipose 3. Blood vessels, etc

MCAT BIOLOGY Reproductive System and Development

I. REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM AND DEVELOPMENT

i. Its most important to know the differences between mitosis and meiosis and to keep track of how many chromatids, homologous pairs, etc., are present at each stage. b. Prior to meiosis, the cell undergoes a round of DNA replication, resulting in 92 chromatids (but the cell remains 2n, b/c there are still only chromosomes from 2 parents, theyve just been replicated) c. Meiosis I i. Prophase I 1. The homologous chromosomes find one another and align (ie, the maternal chromosome 21 and the paternal chromosome 21 match up) 2. Crossing over occurs between the maternal and paternal chromosomes so that some of the maternal genetic information winds up on the paternal chromosome and vice versa. This is another way to increase genetic diversity. ii. Metaphase I 1. Homologous pairs move to the metaphase plate iii. Anaphase I

1. Homologous pairs separate this is different from mitosis because in mitosis, the sister chromatids separate know the difference! iv. Telophase I 1. The two cells divide and the homologous chromosomes are now separate, but the sister chromatids remained joined together. 2. The cells are now 1n b/c the maternal and paternal chromosomes have separated. There are now 46 chromatids joined together in 23 chromosomes. d. Meiosis II i. Meiosis II is exactly like mitosis in that the chromosomes align at the metaphase plate and then separate. The only difference is that there are only 23 chromosomes at the start of meiosis II instead of the 46 present at the beginning of mitosis. ii. At the end of meiosis II, there are 23 chromosomes and the cell is 1n. e. Gametogenesis

iv. Male Reproduction 1. Path of Sperm a. Testes ! Epididymis (sperm maturation completes and sperm are stored here) ! vas deferens ! seminal vesicles add fluid ! prostate adds fluid ! bulbourethral (Cowpers) glands add fluid ! penile urethra ! vagina (sperm become activated capacitation 2. Spermatogenesis

a. Spermatogonia go through episodes of mitosis and differentiation to increase in number, they become Primary Spermatocytes (46 chromosomes, 2n) b. Primary Spermatocytes go through one round of meiosis and become Secondary Spermatocytes (23 chromosomes, 1n). c. Secondary Spermatocytes go through meiosis II to become Spermatids (23, 1n) d. Spermatids go through a process known as spermeogenesis in which their cytoplasm is reduced, the DNA is tightly packed, and the cell grows a flagellum to become a sperm. 3. Anatomy of Sperm a. Head contains DNA b. Acrosome covers top of head contains enzymes for dissolving through the outside of the egg c. Neck contains mitochondria d. Tail/Flagellum movement 2. Testicular Cells a. Leydig Cells - produce testosterone when stimulated by luteinizing hormone b.Sertoli Cells c. Support sperm development by providing nutrients, removing waste, and keeping the sperm separate from the bodys immune system (the blood-testes barrier).

v. Female Reproduction 1. Oogenesis a. Oogonia form during the development of the female fetus (they are 2n). There are approximately 5 million oogonia present before the female fetus is born. b. The oogonia go through differentiation to become Primary Oocytes. Many degenerate so that all the oogonia only result in 1 million primary oocytes. c. The primary oocytes go through a round of replication and enter meiosis I, but become arrested in Prophase I during crossing over.

d. The primary oocytes become surrounded by follicular cells and become a Primordial Follicle. This process begins after birth and continues until puberty at which time there are 40,000 primordial follicles. e. At the start of a menstrual cycle, 10-20 primordial follicles become activated and complete meiosis I to become Secondary Oocytes. f. The secondary oocytes are supported by the follicular cells which include: i. Granulosa cells which surround the oocyte. They convert androgen into estradiol (a form of estrogen). ii. Thecal cells surround the granulosa cell layer and produce androgens. iii. The estradiol ensures the survival of the oocyte and allows it to continue maturing (the other oocytes that started to develop at the beginning of the cycle degenerate). g. At ovulation, the oocyte and a few of the surrounding follicular cells are extruded from the ovary. h. The remaining follicular cells remain behind in the ovary, become known as the corpus luteum and continue producing estradiol and progesterone.

2. Menstrual Cycle a. Day 1 Menses begins (uterine lining from the previous cycle is shed) b. Day 5 (or whenever menses ends) - ovary enters the Follicular Phase follicles begin developing i. Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) secreted from the anterior pituitary stimulates development of the follicles

ii. Luteinizing Hormone (LH), also from the anterior pituitary, stimulates the thecal cells to convert androgens to estradiol. iii. Uterus lining begins to regrow 1. Estrodiol from the follicles stimulates the lining to grow.

iv. Day 14 Ovulation 1. The estradiol and LH enter into a positive feedback loop so that increasing LH causes increasing estradiol, which increases LH and so on. Eventually an LH Surge causes ovulation. v. Day 14-28 1. The ovary enters the Luteal Phase (because it now contains the corpus luteum that was left behind after ovulation). 2. The corpus luteum secretes progesterone that maintains the uterine lining.

3. The enters its secretory phase and the uterine lining becomes ready to accept a fertilized egg. 4. Estrogen continues to prepare the lining. 5. If no fertilization occurs, the corpus luteum degenerates, progesterone decreases and the uterine lining begins to slough, heralding the start of a menses and Day 1 of the subsequent cycle. 6. If fertilization and implantation occur the developing embryo begins to secrete beta-HCG which maintains the corpus luteum, so that it continues to secrete progesterone, which maintains the uterine lining. Eventually, the placenta begins to secrete its own progesterone. 3. Menopause occurs when ovaries become depleted of primordial follicles the pituitary sends the hormones (FSH and LH), but no follicles are present to begin producing estradiol. vi. Developmental Mechanisms 1. Cell Specialization a. Determination i. Progressive restriction of a cells developmental potential ii. As embryonic cells develop more and more, they are more restricted as to what types of cells they can become b. Differentiation i. Structural and functional divergence of cells as they become specialized during development ii. Dependent on the control of gene function the genes that are activated determine the type of cell that will develop c. Induction i. Ability of one group of cells to influence the development of an adjacent group of cells. 1. ie, as the ureters grow out from the bladder, they induce surrounding cells to develop into the kidneys

MCAT BIOLOGY - GENETICS

I. Genetics a. Mendelian Concepts and Their Application i. Mendels Four Theories 1. Alternative versions of genes (alleles) account for variations in inherited characteristics 2. For each character, an organism inherits 2 alleles, one from each parent 3. If the two alleles differ, then one, the dominant allele, is fully expressed in the organisms appearance; the other allele, the recessive allele, has no noticeable affect on the organisms appearance 4. The two alleles for each characteristic segregate during gamete production Mendels Law of Segregation b. Other Important Mendelian Concepts i. Law of Independent Assortment 1. the segregation of the members of any pair of alleles is independent of the segregation of other pairs in the formation of reproductive cells when the alleles are located on different chromosomes in other words, the alleles on different chromosomes segregate independently

ii. Test Cross 1. Reveals the genetic makeup of the offspring of parents that exhibit dominant traits 2. Dihybrid Cross Mating of parents with 2 sets of differing characteristics of interest A dihybrid cross looks at the genetic makeup of the F2 generation

When performing a dihybrid cross, it is crucial that the correct gametes be identified from each parent If crossing a homozygous dominant parent with a parent that is homozygous recessive for two traits, the F2 generation will have a 9:3:3:1 phenotypic ratio i. Nine will have both dominant phenotypes ii. Three will have one dominant phenotype and three will have the other dominant phenotype iii. One will be recessive for both traits c. Genetics concepts and vocabulary i. Locus a particular place along the length of a certain chromosome where a given gene is located ii. Genotype the genetic makeup of an individual iii. Phenotype organisms appearance (a manifestation of its genotype) iv. Homozygous organism has a pair of identical alleles at a given locus v. Heterozygous organism has two different alleles for a given character d. Rules of Probability i. Multiplication Rule 1. computing the chance of two independent events occurring simultaneously 2. for example computing the chance that 2 coins will land heads up when they are flipped: !x!=" **chance of getting heads with one coin is one out of two, multiply for two coins 3. Similarly, what is the probability that an offspring will have white flowers (homozygous recessive) if both parents are heterozygous: !x!=" **same probability as coin one half chance that each parent will give a recessive allele 4. Can also be used for F2 crosses: If two heterozygotes are crosses (YyRr), what is the probability of getting a homozygous dominant (YYRR) offspring? ! x ! x ! x ! = 1/16 **one half chance of getting a dominant allele at each locus ii. Addition Rule 1. the probability of an event that can occur in two or more different ways is the sum of the separate probabilities of those ways what is the probability of getting a heterozygous offspring when crossing two heterozygous parents? "+"=! **there is a one in four chance that the dominant allele will come from the mother and the recessive allele will come from the father; there is a one in four chance that the dominant allele will come from the mother and the recessive allele will come from the father. These are two separate ways to get the same outcome, so the probabilities are added.

e. Complications Why Mendels Four Rules Dont Always Hold i. Codominance a phenotypic situation in which both alleles are expressed in the heterozygote, but not blended (ABO blood groups) ii. Incomplete dominance a type of inheritance in which the F1 hybrids have an appearance that is intermediate between the phenotypes of the parental varieties 1. pink flowers in the offspring of red and white homozygous parents iii. Linkage genes located near one another on the same chromosome dont experience independent assortment (because they will segregate together on the chromosome) iv. Pleiotropism alteration of a single gene that appears to affect apparently unrelated phenotypes v. X-inactivation during embryonic development, one x-chromosome in each cell in females becomes inactivated and is then known as a Barr body 1. all the cells that are derived from those cells will then only express the xchromosome that was not inactivated. As a result female animals are mosaics, with different portions of their bodies expressing one or the other x-chromosome vi. Polygenism complex trait that is influenced by multiple genes (height) vii. Penetrance likelihood that a given genotype will result in the expression of the expected phenotype viii.Epistasis expression of one gene is completely dependent on the expression of another gene (ie, transcription factors) ix. Non-disjunction failure of chromosomes to separate correctly during meiosis (results in an offspring with an extra chromosome 1. usually not compatible with life, however, having three copies of chromosome 21 is compatible with life trisomy 21 is known as Down Syndrome x. Sex-linked genes genes are located on a sex chromosome 1. this affects probabilities, dominance, etc. Example Probability Question: Hemophilia is an X-Linked recessive disease. A woman does not have hemophilia, but her father does. She marries a man with hemophilia. What is the probability that their first child will be a son with hemophilia? **Use multiplication rule because we need to calculate the probability of two separate events. ! chance of having a son. ! chance that the son (who has the sex chromosomes XY) will get an X with the hemophilia gene from his mom (she can either give an X with hemophilia or an X without hemophilia (because she is a carrier): !x!=" II. Hardy-Weinberg Equilibrium a. allele and genotype frequencies in a population remain constant (are in equilibrium) from unless disturbed b. Five Conditions:

i. Very large population size ii. Isolation from other populations iii. No net mutations iv. Random mating v. No natural selection c. If any of the five conditions are altered, the population will experience evolution i. Remember that populations are always evolving d. Hypothetical populations that fit the H-W conditions can be analyzed with the following equations: p+q=1 where p = frequency of the dominant allele and q = frequency of the recessive allele p2 + 2pq + q2 = 1 where p2 = frequency of homozygous dominant individuals, 2pq = frequency of heterozygotes and q2 = frequency of homozygous recessive individuals III. Evolution a. Natural Selection i. Fitness the relative contribution an individual makes to the gene pool of the next generation 1. a female who contributes one adult to the next generation as a fitness of 1.0 b. Speciation i. Remember the mnemonic King Philip Came Over For Good Soup ii. Kingdom ! Phylum ! Class ! Order ! Family ! Genus ! Species c. Comparative Anatomy i. Four Chordate Features (all chordates have these characteristics at some point in their development) 1. Notochord becomes the vertebral column 2. Dorsal, hollow nerve cord becomes the CNS 3. Pharyngeal Slits become pharynx or gills as well as other head and neck structures 4. Muscular, post-anal tail may or may not be present in fully formed animals