Outline of biology

Drosophila melanogaster, commonly used as a model organism

Biology – The natural science that involves the study of life and living organisms, including their structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy.

Branches of biology

Branch of biology – subdiscipline of biology, also referred to as a biological science. Note that biology and all of its branches are also life sciences.

• Anatomy – study of form in animals, plants and other organisms, or specifically in humans. Simply, the study of internal structure of living organisms.
  • Comparative anatomy – the study of evolution of species through similarities and differences in their anatomy.
  • Osteology – study of bones.
• Astrobiology – study of origin, early-evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe. Also known as exobiology,and bioastronomy.
• Bioinformatics – use of information technology for the study, collection, and storage of genomic and other biological data.
• Biomechanics – the study of the mechanics of living beings.
• Biochemistry – study of the chemical reactions required for life to exist and function, usually a focus on the cellular level.
• Biogeography – study of the distribution of species spatially and temporally.
• Biophysics – study of biological processes through the methods traditionally used in the physical sciences.
  • Neurophysics - study of the development of the nervous system on a molecular level.
  • Quantum biology - application of quantum mechanics and theoretical chemistry to biological objects and problems.
  • Virophysics - study of mechanics and dynamics driving the interactions between virus and cells.
• Biotechnology – new and sometimes controversial branch of biology that studies the manipulation of living matter, including genetic modification and synthetic biology.
  • Bioengineering – study of biology through the means of engineering with an emphasis on applied knowledge and especially related to biotechnology.
  • Synthetic biology – research integrating biology and engineering; construction of biological functions not found in nature.
• Botany – study of plants.
  • Phycology – scientific study of algae.
  • Plant physiology – subdiscipline of botany concerned with the functioning, or physiology, of plants.^[1]
• Cell biology – study of the cell as a complete unit, and the molecular and chemical interactions that occur within a living cell.
• Chronobiology – field of biology that examines periodic (cyclic) phenomena in living organisms and their adaptation to solar- and lunar-related rhythms.
  • Dendrochronology – study of tree rings, using them to date the exact year they were formed in order to analyze atmospheric conditions during different periods in natural history.
• Developmental biology – study of the processes through which an organism forms, from zygote to full structure
  • Embryology – study of the development of embryo (from fecundation to birth).
  • Gerontology – study of aging processes.
• Ecology – study of the interactions of living organisms with one another and with the non-living elements of their environment.
• Epidemiology – major component of public health research, studying factors affecting the health of populations.
• Evolutionary biology – study of the origin and descent of species over time.
  • Evolutionary developmental biology – field of biology that compares the developmental processes of different organisms to determine the ancestral relationship between them, and to discover how developmental processes evolved.
  • Paleobiology – discipline which combines the methods and findings of the natural science biology with the methods and findings of the earth science paleontology.
    • Paleoanthropology – the study of fossil evidence for human evolution, mainly using remains from extinct hominin and other primate species to determine the morphological and behavioral changes in the human lineage, as well as the environment in which human evolution occurred.
    • Paleobotany - study of fossil plants.
    • Paleontology – study of fossils and sometimes geographic evidence of prehistoric life.
    • Paleopathology – the study of pathogenic conditions observable in bones or mummified soft tissue, and on nutritional disorders, variation in stature or morphology of bones over time, evidence of physical trauma, or evidence of occupationally derived biomechanic stress.
• Genetics – study of genes and heredity.
  • Behavioral genetics - study of genetic and environmental influences on behaviors.
• Histology – study of the anatomy of cells and tissues of plants and animals using microscopy.
• Immunology – study of immune systems in all organisms.
• Marine biology – study of ocean ecosystems, plants, animals, and other living beings.
• Microbiology – study of microscopic organisms (microorganisms) and their interactions with other living things.
  • Bacteriology – study of bacteria
  • Mycology – study of fungi
  • Parasitology – study of parasites and parasitism.
  • Virology – study of viruses
• Molecular biology – study of biology and biological functions at the molecular level, with some cross over from biochemistry.
  • Structural biology – a branch of molecular biology, biochemistry, and biophysics concerned with the molecular structure of biological macromolecules.
• Neuroscience – study of the nervous system, including anatomy, physiology and emergent proprieties.
  • Cellular neuroscience - study of neurons at a cellular level.
  • Cognitive neuroscience - study of biological substrates underlying cognition, with a focus on the neural substrates of mental processes.
  • Computational neuroscience - study of the information processing functions of the nervous system, and the use of digital computers to study the nervous system.
  • Developmental neuroscience - study of the cellular basis of brain development and addresses the underlying mechanisms.
  • Molecular neuroscience - studies the biology of the nervous system with molecular biology, molecular genetics, protein chemistry and related methodologies.
  • Neuroanatomy - study of the anatomy of nervous tissue and neural structures of the nervous system.
  • Neuroendocrinology - studies the interaction between the nervous system and the endocrine system, that is how the brain regulates the hormonal activity in the body.
  • Neuroethology - study of animal behavior and its underlying mechanistic control by the nervous system.
  • Neuroimmunology - study of the nervous system, and immunology, the study of the immune system.
  • Neuropharmacology - study of how drugs affect cellular function in the nervous system.
  • Neurophysiology - study of the function (as opposed to structure) of the nervous system.
  • Neuropsychology - studies the structure and function of the brain related to psychological processes and behaviors. The term is used most frequently with reference to studies of the effects of brain damage in humans and animals.
  • Systems neuroscience - studies the function of neural circuits and systems. It is an umbrella term, encompassing a number of areas of study concerned with how nerve cells behave when connected together to form neural networks.
• Oncology – study of cancer processes, including virus or mutation, oncogenesis, angiogenesis and tissues remoldings.
• Photobiology – scientific study of the interactions of light (technically, non-ionizing radiation) and living organisms. The field includes the study of photosynthesis, photomorphogenesis, visual processing, circadian rhythms, bioluminescence, and ultraviolet radiation effects.
• Physiology – study of the internal workings of organisms.
  • Endocrinology - study of the endocrine system.
• Population biology – study of groups of conspecific organisms.
• Pharmacology – study of uses, effects, and modes of action of drugs.
• Psychology – study of behavior and mind, including conscious and unconscious phenomena, as well as feeling and thought.
• Radiobiology – study of the action of ionizing radiation on living things.
• Theoretical Biology – the mathematical modeling of biological phenomena.
• Systems biology – computational modeling of biological systems.
• Zoology – study of animals, including classification, physiology, development, and behavior. Subbranches include:
  • Arthropodology – biological discipline concerned with the study of arthropods, a phylum of animals that include the insects, arachnids, crustaceans and others that are characterized by the possession of jointed limbs.
    • Acarology – study of the taxon of arachnids that contains mites and ticks.
    • Arachnology – scientific study of spiders and related animals such as scorpions, pseudoscorpions, harvestmen, collectively called arachnids.
    • Entomology – study of insects.
      • Coleopterology – study of beetles.
      • Lepidopterology – study of a large order of insects that includes moths and butterflies (called lepidopterans).
      • Myrmecology – scientific study of ants.
    • Carcinology – study of crustaceans.
    • Myriapodology – study of centipedes, millipedes, and other myriapods.
  • Ethology – scientific and objective study of animal behaviour, usually with a focus on behaviour under natural conditions.
  • Helminthology – study of worms, especially parasitic worms.
  • Herpetology – study of amphibians (including frogs, toads, salamanders, newts, and gymnophiona) and reptiles (including snakes, lizards, amphisbaenids, turtles, terrapins, tortoises, crocodilians, and the tuataras).
    • Batrachology – subdiscipline of herpetology concerned with the study of amphibians alone.
  • Ichthyology – study of fishes. This includes bony fishes (Osteichthyes), cartilaginous fishes (Chondrichthyes), and jawless fishes (Agnatha).
  • Malacology – branch of invertebrate zoology which deals with the study of the Mollusca (mollusks or molluscs), the second-largest phylum of animals in terms of described species after the arthropods.
    • Teuthology – branch of Malacology which deals with the study of cephalopods.
  • Mammalogy – study of mammals, a class of vertebrates with characteristics such as homeothermic metabolism, fur, four-chambered hearts, and complex nervous systems. Mammalogy has also been known as "mastology," "theriology," and "therology." There are about 4,200 different species of animals which are considered mammals.
    • Biological anthropology – studies the physical development of the human species.
      • Evolutionary psychology – the study of psychological structures from a modern evolutionary perspective. It seeks to identify which human psychological traits are evolved adaptations – that is, the functional products of natural selection or sexual selection in human evolution.
      • Human behavioral ecology – the study of behavioral adaptations (foraging, reproduction, ontogeny) from the evolutionary and ecologic perspectives (see behavioral ecology). It focuses on human adaptive responses (physiological, developmental, genetic) to environmental stresses.
    • Cetology – branch of marine mammal science that studies the approximately eighty species of whales, dolphins, and porpoise in the scientific order Cetacea.
    • Primatology – scientific study of primates
  • Nematology – scientific discipline concerned with the study of nematodes, or roundworms.
  • Ornithology – scientific study of birds.

History of biology

• History of anatomy
• History of biochemistry
• History of biotechnology
• History of ecology
• History of genetics
• History of evolutionary thought:
  • The eclipse of Darwinism – Catastrophism – Lamarckism – Orthogenesis – Mutationism – Structuralism – Vitalism
  • Modern (evolutionary) synthesis
  • History of molecular evolution
• History of medicine
• History of model organisms
• History of molecular biology
• Natural history
• History of plant systematics

Ecology

Outline of ecology

• Ecology:
  • Autecology: autotroph – heterotroph – acclimatization – endotherm – ectotherm – hibernation – homeostasis – behavior – circadian rhythm
  • Population ecology: population – competition – mating – biological dispersal – endemism – niche – growth curve (biology) – carrying capacity
  • Community ecology: community – keystone species – mimicry – symbiosis – pollination – mutualism – commensalism – parasitism – predation – invasive species – environmental heterogeneity – edge effect
  • Ecosystems: biodiversity – biome – habitat – plankton – thermocline – carbon cycle – water cycle – nitrogen cycle – food web – trophic level – saprobe – decomposition

Evolution

Outline of evolution

• Life: origin of life – hierarchy of life – Miller–Urey experiment
• Evolutionary biology (evolution):
  • Microevolution: species – speciation – adaptation – selection – natural selection – directional selection – sexual selection – genetic drift – sexual reproduction – asexual reproduction – colony – allele frequency – neutral theory of molecular evolution – population genetics – Hardy-Weinberg principle
  • Macroevolution: adaptive radiation – convergent evolution – extinction – mass extinction – fossil – taphonomy – geologic time – plate tectonics – continental drift – vicariance – Gondwana – Pangaea – endosymbiosis
  • Systematics: taxon – taxonomy – scientific classification – phylogeny – evolutionary tree – cladistics – synapomorphy – homology – molecular clock

Organismal biology

• Nonliving organisms
  • Viruses : DNA viruses – RNA viruses – retroviruses
• Groups of living organisms
  • Prokaryota
    • Domains Bacteria and Archaea
  • Domain Eukaryotas:
    • • Kingdom Animalia
        • Vertebrates —Molluscs – Annelids – Arthropods – Sponges – Jellyfish
      • Kingdom Plantae
      • Kingdom Fungi
      • Kingdom Protista
• Developmental biology : gamete – spermatid – ovum – zygote – embryo – cellular differentiation – morphogenesis —homeobox
  • Animal development: stem cell – blastula – gastrula – egg (biology) – fetus – placenta
  • Plant development: seed – cotyledon – meristem – apical meristem – vascular cambium – cork cambium

• Morphology, anatomy and physiology:
  • Techniques: electrophysiology – electron microscopy
  • Tissues – Organs
  • Plant systems: root – shoot – stem – leaf – flower
    • vascular tissue – Casparian strip – turgor pressure – xylem – phloem – transpiration – wood
    • alternation of generations – gametophyte – antheridium – archegonium – sporophyte – spore – sporangium
    • tropism – taxis

• • Animal systems: skin cell
    • Skeletal system – bone – cartilage – joint – muscle – tendon – actin – myosin – reflex
    • Circulatory system – respiration – lung – heart – artery – vein – capillary – blood – blood cell
    • Digestive system – stomach – intestine – liver – nutrition – primary nutritional groups metabolism – kidney – excretion
    • Nervous system: limbic system – vestibular system – neuron – axon – dendrite – brain – eye – vision – audition – proprioception – olfaction – memory
    • nerve signaling: action potential – signal transduction – synapse – receptor
    • Endocrine system – hormone
    • Reproductive system – testes – ovary – pregnancy
      • Fish#Reproductive system
      • Mammalian reproductive system
        • Human reproductive system
        • Mammalian penis
          • Os penis
          • Penile spines
        • Genitalia of bottlenose dolphins
        • Genitalia of marsupials
        • Equine reproductive system
        • Even-toed ungulate#Genitourinary system
          • Bull#Reproductive system
        • Carnivora#Reproductive system
          • Fossa (animal)#External genitalia
          • Female genitalia of spotted hyenas
          • Cat anatomy#Genitalia
          • Genitalia of dogs
            • Canine penis
              • Bulbus glandis
    • Lymphatic system – lymph node
    • Immune system: antibody – host – vaccine – immune cell – AIDS – T cell – leucocyte
• Medicine:
  • Diseases: Cancer — Diabetes – Heart disease
  • Drugs: antibiotic – barbiturate – SSRI
  • Techniques: MRI – Computed axial tomography – blood test

Cellular and molecular biology

Outline of cell biology

• Cell biology: the cell coined by Robert Hooke
  • Techniques: cell culture – microscope – SEM – TEM
  • Cell Components:
    • Organelles: Cytoplasm – Vacuole – Peroxisome – Plastid
      • Cell nucleus
        • Nucleoplasm – Nucleolus – Chromatin – Chromosome
      • Endomembrane system
        • Nuclear envelope – Endoplasmic reticulum – Golgi apparatus – Vesicles – Lysosome
      • Energy creators: Mitochondrion and Chloroplast
    • Biological membranes:
      • Plasma membrane – Mitochondrial membrane – Chloroplast membrane
    • Other subcellular features: Cell wall – pseudopod – cytoskeleton – mitotic spindle – flagellum – cilium
  • Cell processes:
    • Cell transport: Diffusion – Osmosis – isotonic – active transport – phagocytosis
    • Energy pathways: fermentation
      • Cellular respiration
        • Glycolysis – Pyruvate dehydrogenase complex – Citric acid cycle
      • Photosynthesis
        • Light-dependent reactions – Calvin cycle
    • Protein biosynthesis – ribosomes
    • Cellular reproduction: cytokinesis – centromere – meiosis
    • Nuclear reproduction: mitosis – interphase – prophase – metaphase – anaphase – telophase
    • programmed cell death – apoptosis – cell senescence

Outline of biochemistry

• Biochemistry:
  • Biomolecules:
    • Small: amino acids – Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) – fats – lipids – oil – phospholipid – prion – sugar – vitamins – neurotransmitter – wax
    • Medium-sized:
      • pigments: chlorophyll – carotenoid – xanthophyll – melanin
    • Biopolymers/macromolecules
      • proteins: primary structure – secondary structure – tertiary structure – conformation – native state – protein folding – enzyme – receptor – transmembrane receptor – ion channel – membrane transporter— collagen – silk
      • DNA – RNA
      • polysaccharide: cellulose – carbohydrate – chitin – glycogen – starch
  • Biochemical mechanisms: proteolysis – cooperativity
  • Techniques: electrophoresis – protein tag —affinity chromatography – x-ray diffraction – Proteomics – mass spectrometry
• Molecular biology:
  • genetic structure: DNA – DNA replication – nucleosome – genetic code – codon – transcription factor – transcription – translation – RNA – histone – telomere
  • gene expression – heterochromatin – promoter – enhancer – operon
  • mutation – point mutation – crossover – recombination —plasmid – transposon
  • molecular genetics: DNA fingerprinting – genetic fingerprint – microsatellite – gene knockout— imprinting – RNA interference
  • Genomics: computational biology – bioinformatics
  • Molecular Techniques: gel electrophoresis – transformation – PCR – PCR mutagenesis – primer – chromosome walking – RFLP – restriction enzyme – sequencing – shotgun sequencing – cloning – culture – DNA microarray

Outline of genetics

• Genetics (classical genetics) :
  • heredity – Mendelian inheritance – gene – locus – trait – allele – polymorphism – homozygote – heterozygote – hybrid – hybridization – dihybrid cross – Punnett square
  • genotype–phenotype distinction – genotype – phenotype – dominant gene – recessive gene
  • genetic interactions – Mendel's law of segregation – genetic mosaic – maternal effect – penetrance – complementation – suppression – epistasis – genetic linkage
  • chromosomal effects: chromosome – haploid – diploid – polyploidy – dosage effect – inbreeding
  • Model organisms: Drosophila – Arabidopsis – Caenorhabditis elegans – mouse – Saccharomyces cerevisiae – Escherichia coli – Lambda phage – Xenopus – chicken – zebrafish – Ciona intestinalis – amphioxus
  • Techniques: genetic screen – DNA paternity testing – linkage map – genetic map

Biologists

See also

• Bibliography of biology
• Earliest known life forms
• Invasion biology terminology
• List of omics topics in biology

Related outlines

• Outline of life forms
• Outline of zoology
• Outline of engineering
• Outline of technology
• List of social sciences

References

External links

Wikibooks has more on the topic of: Outline of biology

Look up outline of biology in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Wikiversity has learning resources about Biology at The School of Biology

• The Dolan DNA Learning Center: The source for timely information about your life
• OSU's Phylocode
• The Tree of Life: A multi-authored, distributed Internet project containing information about phylogeny and biodiversity.
• MIT video lecture series on biology
• A wiki site for protocol sharing run from MIT.
• Biology and Bioethics.
• Biology online wiki dictionary.
• Biology Video Sharing Community.
• What is Biotechnology : a voluntary program as Biotech for Beginners.
• Branches of Biology Depict Its Essence in Diversities.