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Unit 4 — DNA and Cell Division / DNA i podziały komórkowe

← All units / Wszystkie działy

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This unit opens the cell's instruction book. It starts with DNA itself — the double helix, its sugar-phosphate backbone, and the pairing rule A–T, G–C — and how the cell copies it (DNA replication). Then it follows the instructions into action: transcription and translation turn genes into proteins, with mRNA, tRNA and rRNA each doing one job. Finally it watches a cell divide — the cell cycle, mitosis, cytokinesis — and asks what happens when the brakes on division fail: tumors and cancer — and how stem cells and differentiation decide what each new cell will become. Ten dział otwiera księgę instrukcji komórki. Zaczyna od samego DNA — podwójnej helisy, szkieletu cukrowo-fosforanowego i reguły parowania zasad A–T, G–C — oraz od tego, jak komórka je kopiuje (replikacja DNA). Potem śledzi instrukcje w działaniu: transkrypcja i translacja zamieniają geny w białka, a mRNA, tRNA i rRNA wykonują przy tym po jednym zadaniu. Na koniec przygląda się dzielącej się komórce — cykl komórkowy, mitoza, cytokineza — i pyta, co się dzieje, gdy hamulce podziałów zawodzą: guzy i nowotwory — oraz jak komórki macierzyste i różnicowanie decydują, czym stanie się każda nowa komórka.
The storyline: one molecule (DNA) → its code read out as proteins (gene → mRNA → protein) → the molecule copied (replication) → the copies dealt out to two daughter cells (cell cycle, mitosis) → the control system that keeps division in check — and cancer, where that control is lost. Oś działu: jedna cząsteczka (DNA) → odczyt jej kodu na białka (gen → mRNA → białko) → kopiowanie cząsteczki (replikacja) → rozdzielenie kopii do dwóch komórek potomnych (cykl komórkowy, mitoza) → system kontroli, który trzyma podziały w ryzach — i nowotwór, w którym ta kontrola zostaje utracona.

The terms / Hasła

Term Po polsku In one line
Adult Stem Cells dorosłe komórki macierzyste Tissue-repair cells that can become a limited range of cell types.
Anticodon antykodon The three bases on tRNA that match a codon on mRNA.
Asexual Reproduction rozmnażanie bezpłciowe One parent; genetically identical offspring.
Benign nowotwór łagodny A tumor that stays in place and does not spread.
Binary Fission podział podwójny (prosty) How bacteria reproduce: copy the DNA loop, split in two.
Cancer nowotwór złośliwy (rak) The disease of uncontrolled cell division.
Cell Cycle cykl komórkowy A cell's life plan: G1 → S → G2 → M.
Cell Differentiation różnicowanie komórek How a cell becomes specialized — genes switched on and off.
Centromere centromer The pinched "waist" holding sister chromatids together.
Chromatin chromatyna DNA in its loose, working form between divisions.
Chromosome chromosom One DNA molecule packed into a compact unit; humans have 46.
Codon kodon A three-letter mRNA "word" naming one amino acid.
Complementary Base Pairing komplementarne parowanie zasad The rule A–T and G–C (A–U in RNA).
Cytokinesis cytokineza Splitting the cytoplasm — the final cut into two cells.
Deoxyribose deoksyryboza The five-carbon sugar in DNA's backbone.
Diploid (2n) komórka diploidalna (2n) Two full chromosome sets; human body cells have 46.
DNA DNA (kwas deoksyrybonukleinowy) The double-helix molecule that stores genetic instructions.
DNA Replication replikacja DNA Copying DNA before division — each new helix keeps one old strand.
Embryonic Stem Cells zarodkowe komórki macierzyste Early-embryo cells that can become nearly any cell type.
Gene gen A stretch of DNA with the instructions for one product, usually a protein.
Haploid (1n) komórka haploidalna (1n) A single chromosome set; human sex cells have 23.
Interphase interfaza G1 + S + G2 — the cell grows and copies its DNA.
Malignant złośliwy (o nowotworze) Cancerous: invades neighbors and can spread.
Metastasize dawać przerzuty (przerzutowanie) To break away and start new tumors elsewhere in the body.
Mitosis mitoza Division of the nucleus into two identical nuclei (PMAT).
mRNA mRNA (matrycowy RNA) The messenger — carries a gene's recipe to the ribosome.
Mutation mutacja A change in the DNA sequence — harmful, neutral, or occasionally helpful.
Nitrogenous Base zasada azotowa The "letter" part of a nucleotide: A, T, G, C (U in RNA).
Protein Synthesis biosynteza białka The whole path from gene to protein: transcription, then translation.
Ribose ryboza The five-carbon sugar of RNA — and of ATP.
rRNA rRNA (rybosomowy RNA) The RNA that, together with proteins, builds the ribosome itself.
Sister Chromatids chromatydy siostrzane Two identical copies of one chromosome, joined at the centromere.
Somatic (Body) Cells komórki somatyczne All body cells except sex cells; diploid, made by mitosis.
Spindle Fibers wrzeciono podziałowe Protein ropes that pull the chromatids apart during division.
Transcription transkrypcja Copying a gene from DNA into mRNA.
Translation translacja The ribosome reads the mRNA and builds the protein.
tRNA tRNA (transportujący RNA) The delivery molecule — brings the right amino acid to the ribosome.
Tumor guz (nowotwór) A lump of extra cells; can be benign or malignant.

AP Biology connection

The division half of this unit — cell cycle, interphase, mitosis, cytokinesis, spindle fibers, and the whole cancer cluster (tumor, benign, malignant, metastasize) — maps onto AP Biology Unit 4 (Cell Communication and Cell Cycle): checkpoints, cyclins and CDKs, and p53 as the guardian of the genome. The molecular half — DNA structure, replication, transcription, translation, the RNAs, codons, and mutation — is the core of AP Unit 6 (Gene Expression and Regulation), and the stem-cell and differentiation pages sit in Unit 6's gene-regulation story: one genome, different genes expressed. Diploid, haploid, and the somatic-vs-sex-cell distinction set up meiosis and AP Unit 5 (Heredity), which the next unit covers. The deep-dive section at the bottom of each term page goes there.