GCSE Biology: Core Vocabulary Explained | GCSE 生物：核心词汇解析

📚 GCSE Biology: Core Vocabulary Explained | GCSE 生物：核心词汇解析

Understanding and using key biological terms accurately is essential for GCSE Biology. This guide breaks down the most important vocabulary topic by topic, providing clear definitions and example sentences to help you master the language of the subject.

准确理解和使用关键生物术语是学好 GCSE 生物的基础。本指南按主题拆解最重要的词汇，提供清晰的定义和例句，帮助你掌握这门学科的专业语言。

1. Cell Biology | 细胞生物学

Cell membrane – The partially permeable layer that surrounds the cell, controlling which substances enter and leave.

细胞膜 – 包围细胞的半透性薄层，控制物质的进出。

Nucleus – An organelle containing the cell’s genetic material (DNA), which controls the cell’s activities.

细胞核 – 含有细胞遗传物质 (DNA) 的细胞器，控制细胞活动。

Mitochondria – Organelles in which aerobic respiration takes place, releasing energy for cellular processes. Muscle cells have many mitochondria.

线粒体 – 进行有氧呼吸的细胞器，为细胞活动释放能量。肌肉细胞中含有大量线粒体。

Ribosomes – Tiny structures where proteins are synthesised (made). They can be found free in the cytoplasm or attached to the rough endoplasmic reticulum.

核糖体 – 合成蛋白质的微小结构。它们可以游离在细胞质中，或附着在粗面内质网上。

Chloroplast – An organelle found in plant cells and some algae, containing chlorophyll, which absorbs light energy for photosynthesis.

叶绿体 – 存在于植物细胞和某些藻类中的细胞器，含有叶绿素，可吸收光能进行光合作用。

Cell wall – A rigid layer made of cellulose surrounding plant, algal and fungal cells, providing support and protection.

细胞壁 – 包围植物、藻类和真菌细胞的刚性层，由纤维素构成，提供支持和保护。

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2. Cell Division | 细胞分裂

Mitosis – A type of cell division that produces two genetically identical daughter cells, important for growth and repair.

有丝分裂 – 产生两个遗传上完全相同的子细胞的细胞分裂类型，对生长和修复至关重要。

Chromosomes – Thread-like structures in the nucleus made of DNA, carrying genetic information. Human body cells contain 46 chromosomes (23 pairs).

染色体 – 细胞核中由 DNA 组成的线状结构，携带遗传信息。人体细胞含有 46 条染色体 (23 对)。

Cell cycle – The series of stages a cell goes through, including growth, DNA replication and division by mitosis.

细胞周期 – 细胞经历的一系列阶段，包括生长、DNA 复制和有丝分裂。

Stem cells – Undifferentiated cells that can divide to produce more stem cells or differentiate into specialised cell types. Embryonic stem cells can form any cell type.

干细胞 – 未分化的细胞，可以分裂产生更多干细胞，或分化成特化的细胞类型。胚胎干细胞可以形成任何细胞类型。

Differentiation – The process by which a cell becomes specialised to perform a particular function, e.g. a red blood cell loses its nucleus to carry more haemoglobin.

分化 – 细胞变得特化以执行特定功能的过程，例如红细胞失去细胞核以携带更多血红蛋白。

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3. Organisation | 组织

Tissue – A group of similar cells working together to carry out a specific function, like muscle tissue contracting to produce movement.

组织 – 一组相似的细胞协同工作以执行特定功能，比如肌肉组织收缩产生运动。

Organ – A structure made up of different tissues working together, such as the stomach, which contains muscular, glandular and epithelial tissues.

器官 – 由不同组织组成的结构，共同工作，例如胃含有肌肉组织、腺体组织和上皮组织。

Enzyme – A biological catalyst that speeds up chemical reactions in living organisms without being used up. All enzymes are proteins.

酶 – 一种生物催化剂，能加速生物体内的化学反应而自身不被消耗。所有酶都是蛋白质。

Active site – The specific region on an enzyme where the substrate binds; its shape is complementary to the substrate. The lock-and-key model illustrates this.

活性位点 – 酶上底物结合的特定位点；其形状与底物互补。锁钥模型可以说明这一点。

Denaturation – The irreversible change in an enzyme’s active site shape due to extreme temperature or pH, preventing the substrate from binding.

变性 – 酶活性位点形状因极端温度或 pH 发生不可逆变化，阻止底物结合。

Digestive system – An organ system that breaks down large insoluble food molecules into small soluble ones, so they can be absorbed into the blood. It includes the mouth, oesophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine and accessory organs.

消化系统 – 将大型不溶性食物分子分解为小型可溶性分子的器官系统，使其能被吸收进血液。包括口腔、食道、胃、小肠、大肠和附属器官。

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4. Infection and Response | 感染与反应

Pathogen – A microorganism that causes disease, such as viruses, bacteria, fungi or protists.

病原体 – 引起疾病的微生物，如病毒、细菌、真菌或原生生物。

Bacteria – Single-celled prokaryotic organisms; some cause disease by releasing toxins (e.g. Salmonella). Many are harmless or beneficial.

细菌 – 单细胞原核生物；有些通过释放毒素致病 (如沙门氏菌)。许多细菌无害或有益。

Virus – A tiny, non-living particle that infects host cells and uses them to replicate, e.g. measles virus, HIV.

病毒 – 一种微小的非生命粒子，感染宿主细胞并利用它们进行复制，如麻疹病毒、HIV。

Antibody – A specific protein produced by lymphocytes in response to a foreign antigen; it binds to the antigen to help destroy the pathogen.

抗体 – 淋巴细胞响应外来抗原而产生的特异性蛋白质；与抗原结合帮助消灭病原体。

Antigen – A molecule (often on the surface of a pathogen) that triggers an immune response. Each antigen has a specific shape.

抗原 – 触发免疫反应的分子 (通常在病原体表面)。每种抗原具有特定形状。

Vaccination – Introducing a weakened or inactive form of a pathogen to stimulate the immune system to produce memory cells, providing long-term immunity without causing disease.

疫苗接种 – 引入减弱或灭活的病原体，刺激免疫系统产生记忆细胞，在不致病的情况下提供长期免疫力。

Antibiotic – A medicine that kills or inhibits the growth of bacteria, but not viruses. Penicillin is an example.

抗生素 – 杀死或抑制细菌生长的药物，但对病毒无效。青霉素是一个例子。

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5. Bioenergetics | 生物能学

Photosynthesis – The endothermic process by which plants and algae use light energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose and oxygen, taking place in chloroplasts. Overall word equation: carbon dioxide + water → glucose + oxygen.

光合作用 – 植物和藻类利用光能将二氧化碳和水转化为葡萄糖和氧气的吸热过程，发生在叶绿体中。总文字方程：二氧化碳 + 水 → 葡萄糖 + 氧气。

Limiting factor – An environmental condition that restricts the rate of photosynthesis, such as light intensity, carbon dioxide concentration or temperature.

限制因素 – 限制光合作用速率的环境条件，如光照强度、二氧化碳浓度或温度。

Aerobic respiration – The exothermic reaction that releases energy from glucose using oxygen. It takes place continuously in mitochondria: glucose + oxygen → carbon dioxide + water (+ energy).

有氧呼吸 – 利用氧气从葡萄糖释放能量的放热反应，在线粒体中持续进行：葡萄糖 + 氧气 → 二氧化碳 + 水 (+ 能量)。

Anaerobic respiration – The incomplete breakdown of glucose without oxygen, releasing less energy and producing lactic acid in animals (or ethanol and carbon dioxide in plants and yeast).

无氧呼吸 – 无氧条件下葡萄糖的不完全分解，释放较少能量，在动物体内产生乳酸 (在植物和酵母中产生乙醇和二氧化碳)。

Fermentation – A type of anaerobic respiration used by microorganisms like yeast, producing ethanol and carbon dioxide. Important in bread-making and brewing.

发酵 – 酵母等微生物使用的一种无氧呼吸，产生乙醇和二氧化碳。在面包制作和酿造中很重要。

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6. Homeostasis and Response | 稳态与反应

Homeostasis – The maintenance of a constant internal environment in the body, e.g. regulating blood glucose concentration, body temperature and water balance.

稳态 – 维持身体内环境恒定的状态，例如调节血糖浓度、体温和水分平衡。

Neurone (nerve cell) – A specialised cell that carries electrical impulses. A motor neurone transmits impulses from the central nervous system to effectors (muscles or glands).

神经元 (神经细胞) – 传导电冲动的特化细胞。运动神经元将冲动从中枢神经系统传递到效应器 (肌肉或腺体)。

Synapse – The junction between two neurones, where chemical messengers (neurotransmitters) diffuse across the gap to transmit the impulse.

突触 – 两个神经元之间的连接处，化学信使 (神经递质) 在此扩散跨过间隙以传递冲动。

Insulin – A hormone produced by the pancreas that lowers blood glucose concentration by causing cells to take up glucose and the liver to convert glucose into glycogen.

胰岛素 – 胰腺产生的激素，通过促使细胞摄取葡萄糖和肝脏将葡萄糖转化为糖原来降低血糖浓度。

Glucagon – A hormone that increases blood glucose concentration by stimulating the liver to convert stored glycogen back into glucose.

胰高血糖素 – 一种升高血糖浓度的激素，刺激肝脏将储存的糖原转化回葡萄糖。

Negative feedback – A control mechanism in which a change from the normal level triggers a response that counteracts the change, returning conditions to the set point; e.g. blood glucose regulation.

负反馈 – 一种控制机制，偏离正常水平的变化引发相反的响应，使条件恢复到设定点；例如血糖调节。

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7. Inheritance, Variation and Evolution | 遗传、变异与进化

DNA – Deoxyribonucleic acid, a double-helix polymer that carries the genetic code. It is made of nucleotides containing bases A, T, C and G.

DNA (脱氧核糖核酸) – 携带遗传密码的双螺旋聚合物。由含碱基 A、T、C 和 G 的核苷酸组成。

Gene – A section of DNA that codes for a particular protein. Different versions of the same gene are called alleles.

基因 – 编码特定蛋白质的一段 DNA。同一基因的不同版本称为等位基因。

Allele – One of the different forms of a gene. For example, the gene for eye colour has alleles for brown and blue.

等位基因 – 基因的不同形式之一。例如，眼睛颜色基因有棕色和蓝色等位基因。

Dominant – An allele that is always expressed in the phenotype if present, even if only one copy is inherited (e.g. allele for brown eyes ‘B’). Represented by an uppercase letter.

显性 – 一旦存在总会在表型中表达的等位基因，即使只遗传了一个拷贝 (如棕色眼睛等位基因 ‘B’)。用大写字母表示。

Recessive – An allele that is only expressed if two copies are inherited and no dominant allele is present (e.g. allele for blue eyes ‘b’).

隐性 – 只有在继承两个拷贝且无显性等位基因存在时才表达的等位基因 (如蓝色眼睛等位基因 ‘b’)。

Genotype – The combination of alleles an organism has for a particular gene (e.g. BB, Bb, bb).

基因型 – 生物体针对某一特定基因拥有的等位基因组合 (如 BB、Bb、bb)。

Phenotype – The observable characteristic resulting from the genotype and its interaction with the environment (e.g. brown eyes).

表型 – 由基因型及其与环境相互作用产生的可观察特征 (如棕色眼睛)。

Mutation – A random change in the DNA sequence. Mutations can be neutral, harmful or occasionally beneficial, and they are the ultimate source of genetic variation.

突变 – DNA 序列的随机改变。突变可以是中性、有害或偶尔有利的，是遗传变异的最终来源。

Evolution by natural selection – The process by which organisms with advantageous traits are more likely to survive, reproduce and pass on those traits, leading to changes in the species over generations.

自然选择进化 – 具有有利特征的生物更可能生存、繁殖并传递这些特征，导致物种代代相传发生变化的过程。

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8. Ecology | 生态学

Ecosystem – A community of living organisms (biotic) interacting with their non-living (abiotic) environment, e.g. a pond or woodland.

生态系统 – 生物群落 (生物) 与其非生物环境相互作用的系统，例如一个池塘或林地。

Habitat – The specific place where an organism lives, providing the conditions it needs, e.g. a rocky shore for limpets.

栖息地 – 生物居住的具体地点，提供其所需条件，例如帽贝的栖息地是岩岸。

Population – All the organisms of the same species living in the same area at the same time.

种群 – 同一时间在同一地区生活的所有同一物种的个体。

Community – All the populations of different species living together in an ecosystem.

群落 – 生态系统中共同生活的所有不同物种种群。

Abiotic factor – A non-living physical or chemical component of the environment that affects organisms, such as light intensity, temperature, water availability and soil pH.

非生物因素 – 环境中影响生物的非生物物理或化学成分，如光照强度、温度、水分可用性和土壤 pH。

Biotic factor – A living factor that affects another organism, e.g. predation, competition for resources, disease.

生物因素 – 影响另一生物的生命因素，如捕食、资源竞争、疾病。

Food web – A network of interconnected food chains showing the feeding relationships in an ecosystem. Producers are eaten by primary consumers, which are eaten by secondary consumers, and so on.

食物网 – 相互连接的食物链网络，显示生态系统的摄食关系。生产者被初级消费者取食，初级消费者被次级消费者取食，依此类推。

Carbon cycle – The cycling of carbon between the atmosphere, organisms and the Earth; key processes include photosynthesis, respiration, combustion and decomposition.

碳循环 – 碳在大气、生物和地球之间循环的过程；关键过程包括光合作用、呼吸作用、燃烧和分解。

Biodiversity – The variety of different species, genetic variation within species, and the range of ecosystems in an area. High biodiversity contributes to ecosystem stability.

生物多样性 – 一个地区不同物种的多样性、物种内的遗传变异以及生态系统的范围。高生物多样性有助于生态系统的稳定性。

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