Biology

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For other uses, see Biology (disambiguation).

Biology deals with the study
of life and organisms.

 top: E. coli bacteria and gazelle

 bottom: Goliath beetle and tree

fern

Biology
 History
 Outline
 Glossary
 Index
 Category
 Portal
 v
 t
 e
Biology is the natural science that studies life and living organisms, including
their physical structure, chemical processes, molecular interactions, physiological
mechanisms, development and evolution.[1] Despite the complexity of the science, there
are certain unifying concepts that consolidate it into a single, coherent field.
Biology recognizes the cell as the basic unit of life, genes as the basic unit of heredity,
and evolution as the engine that propels the creation and extinction of species. Living
organisms are open systems that survive by transforming energy and decreasing their
local entropy[2] to maintain a stable and vital condition defined as homeostasis.[3]
Sub-disciplines of biology are defined by the research methods employed and the
kind of system studied: theoretical biology uses mathematical methods to formulate
quantitative models while experimental biology performs empirical experiments to
test the validity of proposed theories and understand the mechanisms underlying
life and how it appeared and evolved from non-living matter about 4 billion years ago
through a gradual increase in the complexity of the system.[4][5][6] See branches of
biology.

Contents

 1History
 2Foundations of modern biology
 2.1Cell theory
 2.2Evolution
 2.3Genetics
 2.4Homeostasis
 2.5Energy
 3Study and research
 3.1Structural
 3.2Physiological
 3.3Evolutionary
 3.4Systematic
 3.5Kingdoms
 3.6Ecological and environmental
 4Basic unresolved problems in biology
 5Branches
 6See also
 7References
 8Further reading
 9External links

History
Main article: History of biology

A Diagram of a fly from Robert Hooke's innovative Micrographia, 1665

Ernst Haeckel's Tree of Life (1879)

The term biology is derived from the Greek word βίος, bios, "life" and the suffix -
λογία, -logia, "study of."[7][8] The Latin-language form of the term first appeared in
1736 when Swedish scientist Carl Linnaeus (Carl von Linné) used biologi in
his Bibliotheca botanica. It was used again in 1766 in a work entitled Philosophiae
naturalis sive physicae: tomus III, continens geologian, biologian, phytologian
generalis, by Michael Christoph Hanov, a disciple of Christian Wolff. The first German
use, Biologie, was in a 1771 translation of Linnaeus' work. In 1797, Theodor Georg
August Roose used the term in the preface of a book, Grundzüge der Lehre van
der Lebenskraft. Karl Friedrich Burdach used the term in 1800 in a more restricted
sense of the study of human beings from a morphological, physiological and
psychological perspective (Propädeutik zum Studien der gesammten Heilkunst).
The term came into its modern usage with the six-volume treatise Biologie, oder
Philosophie der lebenden Natur (1802–22) by Gottfried Reinhold Treviranus, who
announced:[9]
The objects of our research will be the different forms and manifestations of life,
the conditions and laws under which these phenomena occur, and the causes
through which they have been effected. The science that concerns itself with
these objects we will indicate by the name biology [Biologie] or the doctrine of life
[Lebenslehre].

Although modern biology is a relatively recent development, sciences related to

and included within it have been studied since ancient times. Natural philosophy was
studied as early as the ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Indian
subcontinent, and China. However, the origins of modern biology and its approach to
the study of nature are most often traced back to ancient Greece.[10][11] While the
formal study of medicine dates back to Hippocrates (ca. 460–370 BC), it
was Aristotle (384–322 BC) who contributed most extensively to the development
of biology. Especially important are his History of Animals and other works where he
showed naturalist leanings, and later more empirical works that focused on
biological causation and the diversity of life. Aristotle's successor at
the Lyceum, Theophrastus, wrote a series of books on botany that survived as the most
important contribution of antiquity to the plant sciences, even into the Middle Ages.
[12]

Scholars of the medieval Islamic world who wrote on biology included al-Jahiz (781–
869), Al-Dīnawarī (828–896), who wrote on botany,[13]and Rhazes (865–925) who
wrote on anatomy and physiology. Medicine was especially well studied by Islamic
scholars working in Greek philosopher traditions, while natural history drew
heavily on Aristotelian thought, especially in upholding a fixed hierarchy of life.
Biology began to quickly develop and grow with Anton van Leeuwenhoek's dramatic
improvement of the microscope. It was then that scholars
discovered spermatozoa, bacteria, infusoria and the diversity of microscopic life.
Investigations by Jan Swammerdam led to new interest in entomology and helped to
develop the basic techniques of microscopic dissection and staining.[14]
Advances in microscopy also had a profound impact on biological thinking. In the
early 19th century, a number of biologists pointed to the central importance of
the cell. Then, in 1838, Schleiden and Schwann began promoting the now universal
ideas that (1) the basic unit of organisms is the cell and (2) that individual cells
have all the characteristics of life, although they opposed the idea that (3) all cells
come from the division of other cells. Thanks to the work of Robert Remak and Rudolf
Virchow, however, by the 1860s most biologists accepted all three tenets of what
came to be known as cell theory.[15][16]
Meanwhile, taxonomy and classification became the focus of natural
historians. Carl Linnaeus published a basic taxonomy for the natural world in 1735
(variations of which have been in use ever since), and in the 1750s
introduced scientific names for all his species.[17] Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon,
treated species as artificial categories and living forms as malleable—even
suggesting the possibility of common descent. Although he was opposed to evolution,
Buffon is a key figure in the history of evolutionary thought; his work influenced the
evolutionary theories of both Lamarck and Darwin.[18]
Serious evolutionary thinking originated with the works of Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, who
was the first to present a coherent theory of evolution.[19] He posited that
evolution was the result of environmental stress on properties of animals,
meaning that the more frequently and rigorously an organ was used, the more
complex and efficient it would become, thus adapting the animal to its
environment. Lamarck believed that these acquired traits could then be passed on
to the animal's offspring, who would further develop and perfect them.
[20] However, it was the British naturalist Charles Darwin, combining the
biogeographical approach of Humboldt, the uniformitarian geology
of Lyell, Malthus's writings on population growth, and his own morphological
expertise and extensive natural observations, who forged a more successful
evolutionary theory based on natural selection; similar reasoning and evidence
led Alfred Russel Wallace to independently reach the same conclusions.[21][22] Although
it was the subject of controversy(which continues to this day), Darwin's theory
quickly spread through the scientific community and soon became a central axiom
of the rapidly developing science of biology.
The discovery of the physical representation of heredity came along with
evolutionary principles and population genetics. In the 1940s and early 1950s,
experiments pointed to DNAas the component of chromosomes that held the trait-
carrying units that had become known as genes. A focus on new kinds of model
organisms such as viruses and bacteria, along with the discovery of the double
helical structure of DNA in 1953, marked the transition to the era of molecular
genetics. From the 1950s to present times, biology has been vastly extended in
the molecular domain. The genetic code was cracked by Har Gobind Khorana, Robert W.
Holley and Marshall Warren Nirenberg after DNA was understood to contain codons.
Finally, the Human Genome Project was launched in 1990 with the goal of mapping the
general human genome. This project was essentially completed in 2003,[23] with
further analysis still being published. The Human Genome Project was the first
step in a globalized effort to incorporate accumulated knowledge of biology into a
functional, molecular definition of the human body and the bodies of other
organisms.
Foundations of modern biology
Cell theory

Human cancer cells with nuclei (specifically the DNA) stained blue. The central and rightmost cell are
in interphase, so the entire nuclei are labeled. The cell on the left is going through mitosis and its DNA has
condensed.

Main article: Cell theory

Cell theory states that the cell is the fundamental unit of life, that all living things
are composed of one or more cells, and that all cells arise from pre-existing cells
through cell division. In multicellular organisms, every cell in the organism's body
derives ultimately from a single cell in a fertilized egg. The cell is also considered to
be the basic unit in many pathological processes.[24] In addition, the phenomenon
of energy flow occurs in cells in processes that are part of the function known
as metabolism. Finally, cells contain hereditary information (DNA), which is passed
from cell to cell during cell division. Research into the origin of life, abiogenesis,
amounts to an attempt to discover the origin of the first cells.
Evolution

Natural selection of a population for dark coloration.

Main article: Evolution

A central organizing concept in biology is that life changes and develops through
evolution, and that all life-forms known have a common origin. The theory of
evolution postulates that all organisms on the Earth, both living and extinct, have
descended from a common ancestor or an ancestral gene pool. This universal common
ancestor of all organisms is believed to have appeared about 3.5 billion years ago.
[25] Biologists regard the ubiquity of the genetic code as definitive evidence in favor of
the theory of universal common descent for all bacteria, archaea,
and eukaryotes (see: origin of life).[26]
The term "evolution" was introduced into the scientific lexicon by Jean-Baptiste de
Lamarck in 1809,[27] and fifty years later Charles Darwin posited a scientific model of
natural selection as evolution's driving force.[28][29][30] (Alfred Russel Wallace is
recognized as the co-discoverer of this concept as he helped research and
experiment with the concept of evolution.)[31] Evolution is now used to explain the
great variations of life found on Earth.
Darwin theorized that species flourish or die when subjected to the processes
of natural selection or selective breeding.[32] Genetic driftwas embraced as an additional
mechanism of evolutionary development in the modern synthesis of the theory.[33]
The evolutionary history of the species—which describes the characteristics of the
various species from which it descended—together with its genealogical
relationship to every other species is known as its phylogeny. Widely varied
approaches to biology generate information about phylogeny. These include the
comparisons of DNA sequences, a product of molecular biology (more
particularly genomics), and comparisons of fossils or other records of ancient
organisms, a product of paleontology.[34] Biologists organize and analyze
evolutionary relationships through various methods,
including phylogenetics, phenetics, and cladistics. (For a summary of major events in the
evolution of life as currently understood by biologists, see evolutionary timeline.)
Evolution is relevant to the understanding of the natural history of life forms and
to the understanding of the organization of current life forms. But, those
organizations can only be understood in the light of how they came to be by way
of the process of evolution. Consequently, evolution is central to all fields of
biology.[35]
Genetics

A Punnett square depicting a cross between two pea plants heterozygous for purple (B) and white (b)
blossoms

Main article: Genetics

Genes are the primary units of inheritance in all organisms. A gene is a unit
of heredity and corresponds to a region of DNA that influences the form or function
of an organism in specific ways. All organisms, from bacteria to animals, share the
same basic machinery that copies and translates DNA into proteins. Cells transcribe a
DNA gene into an RNA version of the gene, and a ribosome then translates the RNA
into a sequence of amino acids known as a protein. The translation code from RNA
codon to amino acid is the same for most organisms. For example, a sequence of
DNA that codes for insulin in humans also codes for insulin when inserted into
other organisms, such as plants.[36]
DNA is found as linear chromosomes in eukaryotes, and circular chromosomes
in prokaryotes. A chromosome is an organized structure consisting
of DNA and histones. The set of chromosomes in a cell and any other hereditary
information found in the mitochondria, chloroplasts, or other locations is collectively
known as a cell's genome. In eukaryotes, genomic DNA is localized in the cell nucleus,
or with small amounts in mitochondria and chloroplasts. In prokaryotes, the DNA is
held within an irregularly shaped body in the cytoplasm called the nucleoid.[37] The
genetic information in a genome is held within genes, and the complete
assemblage of this information in an organism is called its genotype.[38]
Homeostasis
Main article: Homeostasis
 The hypothalamus secretes CRH, which directs the pituitary gland to secrete ACTH. In turn, ACTH directs
the adrenal cortex to secrete glucocorticoids, such as cortisol. The GCs then reduce the rate of secretion by
the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland once a sufficient amount of GCs has been released. [39]

Homeostasis is the ability of an open system to regulate its internal environment to

maintain stable conditions by means of multiple dynamic equilibrium adjustments
that are controlled by interrelated regulation mechanisms. All living organisms,
whether unicellular or multicellular, exhibit homeostasis.[40]
To maintain dynamic equilibrium and effectively carry out certain functions, a
system must detect and respond to perturbations. After the detection of a
perturbation, a biological system normally responds through negative feedback that
stabilize conditions by reducing or increasing the activity of an organ or system.
One example is the release of glucagon when sugar levels are too low.

Basic overview of energy and human life.

Energy
The survival of a living organism depends on the continuous input of energy.
Chemical reactions that are responsible for its structure and function are tuned to
extract energy from substances that act as its food and transform them to help
form new cells and sustain them. In this process, molecules of chemical substances that
constitute food play two roles; first, they contain energy that can be transformed
and reused in that organism's biological, chemical reactions; second, food can be
transformed into new molecular structures (biomolecules) that are of use to that
organism.

The organisms responsible for the introduction of energy into an ecosystem are
known as producers or autotrophs. Nearly all such organisms originally draw their
energy from the sun.[41]Plants and other phototrophs use solar energy via a process
known as photosynthesis to convert raw materials into organic molecules, such
as ATP, whose bonds can be broken to release energy.[42] A few ecosystems, however,
depend entirely on energy extracted by chemotrophs from methane, sulfides, or other
non-luminal energy sources.[43]
Some of the energy thus captured produces biomass and energy that is available
for growth and development of other life forms. The majority of the rest of this
biomass and energy are lost as waste molecules and heat. The most important
processes for converting the energy trapped in chemical substances into energy
useful to sustain life are metabolism[44]and cellular respiration.[45]
Study and researc
Structural
Main articles: Molecular biology, Cell biology, Genetics, and Developmental biology

Schematic of typical animal cell depicting the various organelles and structures.

Molecular biology is the study of biology at the molecular level.[46] This field overlaps
with other areas of biology, particularly those of genetics and biochemistry. Molecular
biology is a study of the interactions of the various systems within a cell, including
the interrelationships of DNA, RNA, and protein synthesis and how those
interactions are regulated.
The next larger scale, cell biology, studies the structural and physiological properties
of cells, including their internal behavior, interactions with other cells, and with
their environment. This is done on both the microscopic and molecular levels, for
unicellular organisms such as bacteria, as well as the specialized cells of
multicellular organisms such as humans. Understanding the structure and function
of cells is fundamental to all of the biological sciences. The similarities and
differences between cell types are particularly relevant to molecular biology.

Anatomy is a treatment of the macroscopic forms of such structures organs and

organ systems.[47]
Genetics is the science of genes, heredity, and the variation of organisms.[48][49] Genes
encode the information needed by cells for the synthesis of proteins, which in turn
play a central role in influencing the final phenotype of the organism. Genetics
provides research tools used in the investigation of the function of a particular
gene, or the analysis of genetic interactions. Within organisms, genetic information is
physically represented as chromosomes, within which it is represented by a
particular sequence of amino acids in particular DNA molecules.
Developmental biology studies the process by which organisms grow and develop.
Developmental biology, originated from embryology, studies the genetic control
of cell growth, cellular differentiation, and "cellular morphogenesis," which is the process
that progressively gives rise to tissues, organs, and anatomy. Model organisms for
developmental biology include the round worm Caenorhabditis elegans,[50] the fruit
fly Drosophila melanogaster,[51] the zebrafish Danio rerio,[52] the mouse Mus musculus,
[53] and the weed Arabidopsis thaliana.[54][55] (A model organism is a species that is
extensively studied to understand particular biological phenomena, with the
expectation that discoveries made in that organism provide insight into the
workings of other organisms.)[56]
Physiological
Main article: Physiology

Physiology is the study of the mechanical, physical, and biochemical processes of

living organisms function as a whole. The theme of "structure to function" is
central to biology. Physiological studies have traditionally been divided into plant
physiology and animal physiology, but some principles of physiology are universal, no
matter what particular organismis being studied. For example, what is learned
about the physiology of yeast cells can also apply to human cells. The field of
animal physiology extends the tools and methods of human physiology to non-human
species. Plant physiology borrows techniques from both research fields.

Physiology is the study the interaction of how, for example,

the nervous, immune, endocrine, respiratory, and circulatory systems, function and
interact. The study of these systems is shared with such medically oriented
disciplines as neurology and immunology.

Evolutionary
Evolutionary research is concerned with the origin and descent of species, and their
change over time. It employs scientists from many taxonomically oriented
disciplines, for example, those with special training in particular organisms such
as mammalogy, ornithology, botany, or herpetology, but are of use in answering more
general questions about evolution.

Evolutionary biology is partly based on paleontology, which uses the fossil record to
answer questions about the mode and tempo of evolution,[57] and partly on the
developments in areas such as population genetics.[58] In the 1980s, developmental
biology re-entered evolutionary biology after its initial exclusion from the modern
synthesis through the study of evolutionary developmental biology.
[59] Phylogenetics, systematics, and taxonomy are related fields often considered part of
evolutionary biology.
Systematic

A phylogenetic tree of all living things, based on rRNA gene data, showing the separation of the three
domains bacteria, archaea, and eukaryotes as described initially by Carl Woese. Trees constructed with other
genes are generally similar, although they may place some early-branching groups very differently,
presumably owing to rapid rRNA evolution. The exact relationships of the three domains are still being
debated.

The hierarchy of biological classification's eight major taxonomic ranks. Intermediate minor rankings are
not shown. This diagram uses a 3 Domains / 6 Kingdoms format

Main article: Systematics

Multiple speciation events create a tree structured system of relationships between

species. The role of systematics is to study these relationships and thus the
differences and similarities between species and groups of species. [60]However,
systematics was an active field of research long before evolutionary thinking was
common.[61]
Traditionally, living things have been divided into five
kingdoms: Monera; Protista; Fungi; Plantae; Animalia.[62] However, many scientists now
consider this five-kingdom system outdated. Modern alternative classification
systems generally begin with the three-domain system: Archaea (originally
Archaebacteria); Bacteria (originally Eubacteria)
and Eukaryota (including protists, fungi, plants, and animals).[63] These domains reflect
whether the cells have nuclei or not, as well as differences in the chemical
composition of key biomolecules such as ribosomes.[63]
Further, each kingdom is broken down recursively until each species is separately
classified. The order is: Domain; Kingdom; Phylum; Class; Order; Family; Genus; Species.

Outside of these categories, there are obligate intracellular parasites that are "on
the edge of life"[64] in terms of metabolic activity, meaning that many scientists do
not actually classify such structures as alive, due to their lack of at least one or
more of the fundamental functions or characteristics that define life. They are
classified as viruses, viroids, prions, or satellites.
The scientific name of an organism is generated from its genus and species. For
example, humans are listed as Homo sapiens. Homo is the genus, and sapiens the
species. When writing the scientific name of an organism, it is proper to capitalize
the first letter in the genus and put all of the species in lowercase.[65] Additionally,
the entire term may be italicized or underlined.[66]
The dominant classification system is called the Linnaean taxonomy. It includes ranks
and binomial nomenclature. How organisms are named is governed by international
agreements such as the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (ICN),
the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN), and the International Code of
Nomenclature of Bacteria (ICNB). The classification of viruses, viroids, prions, and all other
sub-viral agents that demonstrate biological characteristics is conducted by
the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) and is known as the
International Code of Viral Classification and Nomenclature (ICVCN).[67][68][69]
[70]However, several other viral classification systems do exist.
A merging draft, BioCode, was published in 1997 in an attempt to standardize
nomenclature in these three areas, but has yet to be formally adopted.[71] The
BioCode draft has received little attention since 1997; its originally planned
implementation date of January 1, 2000, has passed unnoticed. A revised BioCode
that, instead of replacing the existing codes, would provide a unified context for
them, was proposed in 2011.[72][73][74] However, the International Botanical Congress of
2011 declined to consider the BioCode proposal. The ICVCN remains outside the
BioCode, which does not include viral classification.
Kingdoms
Main article: Kingdom (biology)

Animalia – Bos primigenius taurus

Plantae – Triticum

Fungi – Morchella esculenta

Stramenopila/Chromista– Fucus serratus


Bacteria – Gemmatimonas aurantiaca (-=1 Micrometer)

Archaea – Halobacteria

Virus – Gamma phage

Ecological and environmental

Mutual symbiosis between clownfish of the genus Amphiprion that dwell among the tentacles of
tropical sea anemones. The territorial fish protects the anemone from anemone-eating fish, and in turn the
stinging tentacles of the anemone protects the clown fish from its predators.

Main articles: Ecology, Ethology, Behavior, and Biogeography

Ecology is the study of the distribution and abundance of living organisms, the
interaction between them and their environment.[75] An organism shares an
environment that includes other organisms and biotic factors as well as local abiotic
factors (non-living) such as climate and ecology.[76] One reason that biological systems
can be difficult to study is that so many different interactions with other
organisms and the environment are possible, even on small scales. A
microscopic bacterium responding to a local sugar gradient is responding to its
environment as much as a lion searching for food in the African savanna. For any
species, behaviors can be co-operative, competitive, parasitic, or symbiotic. Matters become
more complex when two or more species interact in an ecosystem.
Ecological systems are studied at several different levels, from the scale of the
ecology of individual organisms, to those of populations, to the ecosystems and finally
the biosphere. The term population biology is often used interchangeably with population
ecology, although population biology is more frequently used in the case
of diseases, viruses, and microbes, while the term population ecology is more
commonly applied to the study of plants and animals. Ecology draws on many
subdisciplines.
 Ethology is the study of animal behavior (particularly that of social animals such
as primates and canids), and is sometimes considered a branch of zoology.
Ethologists have been particularly concerned with the evolution of behavior and the
understanding of behavior in terms of the theory of natural selection. In one sense,
the first modern ethologist was Charles Darwin, whose book, The Expression of the
Emotions in Man and Animals, influenced many ethologists to come.[77]
Biogeography studies the spatial distribution of organisms on the Earth, focusing on
such topics as plate tectonics, climate change, dispersal and migration, and cladistics.

Basic unresolved problems in biology

Main article: List of unsolved problems in biology

Despite the profound advances made over recent decades in our understanding of
life's fundamental processes, some basic problems have remained unresolved.
One of the major unresolved problems in biology is the primary adaptive function
of sex, and particularly its key processes in eukaryotes of meiosis and homologous
recombination. One view is that sex evolved primarily as an adaptation that
promoted increased genetic diversity (see references e.g. [78][79]). An alternative
view is that sex is an adaptation for promoting accurate DNA repair in germ-line
DNA, and that increased genetic diversity is primarily a byproduct that may be
useful in the long run.[80][81] (See also Evolution of sexual reproduction).
Another basic unresolved problem in biology is the biologic basis of aging. At
present, there is no consensus view on the underlying cause of aging. Various
competing theories are outlined in Ageing Theories.

Brances
These are the main branches of biology:[82][83] For a more detailed list, see outline of
biology.
 Anatomy – the study of organisms structures
 Comparative anatomy – the study of evolution of species through similarities and
differences in their anatomy
 Histology – the study of tissues, a microscopic branch of anatomy
 Astrobiology (also known as exobiology, exopaleontology, and bioastronomy) – the
study of evolution, distribution, and future of life in the universe
 Biochemistry – the study of the chemical reactions required for life to exist and function,
usually a focus on the cellular level
 Biological engineering – the attempt to create products inspired by biological systems
or to modify and interact with the biological systems
 Biogeography – the study of the distribution of species spatially and temporally
 Bioinformatics – the use of information technology for the study, collection, and
storage of genomic and other biological data
 Biolinguistics – the study of the biology and evolution of language
 Biomechanics – the study of the mechanics of living beings
 Biomedical research – the study of health and disease
 Biophysics – the study of biological processes by applying the theories and methods
traditionally employed in the physical sciences
 Biotechnology – the study of the manipulation of living matter, including genetic
modification and synthetic biology
 Synthetic biology – research integrating biology and engineering; construction of
biological functions not found in nature
 Botany – the study of plants
 Phycology – scientific study of algae
 Plant physiology – concerned with the functioning, or physiology, of plants
 Astrobotany - the study of plants in space
 Cell biology – the study of the cell as a complete unit, and the molecular and
chemical interactions that occur within a living cell
 Chronobiology – the study of periodic events in living systems
 Cognitive biology – the study of cognition
 Conservation biology – the study of the preservation, protection, or restoration of the
natural environment, natural ecosystems, vegetation, and wildlife
 Cryobiology – the study of the effects of lower than normally preferred
temperatures on living beings
 Developmental biology – the study of the processes through which an organism forms,
from zygote to full structure
 Embryology – the study of the development of embryo (from fecundation to birth)
 Gerontology – study of ageing processes
 Ecology – the study of the interactions of living organisms with one another and
with the non-living elements of their environment
 Evolutionary biology – the study of the origin and descent of species over time
 Genetics – the study of genes and heredity
 Genomics – the study of genomes
 Epigenetics – the study of heritable changes in gene expression or cellular
phenotype caused by mechanisms other than changes in the underlying DNA
sequence
 Immunology – the study of the immune system
 Marine biology (or biological oceanography) – the study of ocean ecosystems,
plants, animals, and other living beings
 Microbiology – the study of microscopic organisms (microorganisms) and their
interactions with other living things
 Bacteriology – the study of bacteria
 Mycology – the study of fungi
 Parasitology – the study of parasites and parasitism
 Virology – the study of viruses and some other virus-like agents
 Molecular biology – the study of biology and biological functions at the molecular
level, some cross over with biochemistry
 Nanobiology – the application of nanotechnology in biological research, and the study
of living organisms and parts on the nanoscale level of organization
 Neuroscience – the study of the nervous system
 Paleontology – the study of fossils and sometimes geographic evidence of
prehistoric life
 Pathobiology or pathology – the study of diseases, and the causes, processes, nature,
and development of disease
 Pharmacology – the study of the interactions between drugs and organisms
 Physiology – the study of the functions and mechanisms occurring in living
organisms
 Phytopathology – the study of plant diseases (also called Plant Pathology)
 Psychobiology – the application of methods traditionally used in biology to study
human and non-human animals behaviour
 Quantum biology – the study of the role of quantum phenomena in biological processes
 Systems biology – the study complex interactions within biological systems through a
holistic approach
 Structural biology – a branch of molecular biology, biochemistry, and biophysics concerned
with the molecular structure of biological macromolecules
 Theoretical biology – the branch of biology that employs abstractions and
mathematical models to explain biological phenomena
 Zoology – the study of animals, including classification, physiology, development,
evolution and behaviour, including:
 Ethology – the study of animal behaviour
 Entomology – the study of insects
 Herpetology – the study of reptiles and amphibians
 Ichthyology – the study of fish
 Mammalogy
u – the study of mammals
m
 Ornithology
p – the study of birds

ut
See
om also
p
n
at
vo
i
gs
ae
ta
ir
oc
nh