Ch. 2: Heredity, Prenatal Development, and Birth

Question 1

chromosomes

Answer 1

threadlike structures in the nuclei of cells that contain genetic material

Question 2

autosomes

Answer 2

first 22 pairs of chromosomes

Question 3

sex chromosomes

Answer 3

23rd pair of chromosomes that determines sex of the child

Question 4

gene

Answer 4

group of nucleotide bases that provides specific set of biochemical instructions

Question 5

genotype

Answer 5

person’s hereditary makeup

Question 6

phenotype

Answer 6

physical, behavioral, and psychological features that results from the interaction between ones’s genes and the environment

Question 7

alleles

Answer 7

variations of genes (usually dominant or recessive. sickle cell example)

Question 8

homozygous

Answer 8

when alleles in a pair in the chromosome are the same

Question 9

heterzygous

Answer 9

when alleles in a chromosome pair are different

Question 10

incomplete dominance

Answer 10

one allele does not dominate another completely

Question 11

Huntington’s Disease

Answer 11

progressive and fatal form of dementia caused by dominant alleles. An exception to general principles that most fatal genetic disorders are recessive.

Question 12

behavioral genetics

Answer 12

branch of genetics that studies inheritance and behavioral psychology traits

Question 13

polygenic inheritance

Answer 13

when phenotypes are the result of the combined activity of many separate genes

Question 14

heritability coefficient

Answer 14

measure (derived from correlation coefficient) of the extent to which a trait or characteristic is inherited

Question 15

niche-picking

Answer 15

deliberately seeking environments that are compatible to one’s genetic makeup

Question 16

nonshared environmental influences

Answer 16

forces within a family that make siblings different from each other

Question 17

zygote

Answer 17

fertilized egg, created when sperm cell penetrates egg

Question 18

implantation

Answer 18

zygote burrows into the uterine wall and establishes connections with the woman’s blood vessels

Question 19

germ disc

Answer 19

small cluster of cells near the center of the zygote that eventually develop into the baby

Question 20

embryo

Answer 20

term given to zygote once it is completely embedded in the uterine wall

Question 21

ectoderm

Answer 21

outer layer of the embryo, which becomes the hair, outer layer of skin, and nervous system

Question 22

mesoderm

Answer 22

middle layer of the embryo, which becomes the muscles, bones, and circulatory system

Question 23

endoderm

Answer 23

inner layer of the embryo, which becomes the lungs and digestive system

Question 24

amnion

Answer 24

inner sac in which the developing child rests

Question 25

cephalocaudal principle

Answer 25

a principle of physical growth that states that structures nearest the head develop first

Question 26

proximodistal principle

Answer 26

principle of physical growth stating that structures nearest the center of the body develop first

Question 27

Period of the fetus

Answer 27

Weeks 9-38

Question 28

Cerebral Cortex

Answer 28

wrinkled surface of the brain that regulates many functions that are distinctly human

Question 29

Vernix

Answer 29

substance that protects fetus's skin during development

Question 30

age of viability

Answer 30

typically seven months after conception

Question 31

Teratogen

Answer 31

an agent that causes abnormal prenatal development (found in alcohol, aspirin, famously in Thalidomide, etc.)

Question 32

chorionic villus sampling (CVS)

Answer 32

prenatal diagnostic technique that involves taking a sample of tissue from the placenta (genetic testing and can be used earlier than other techniques, 9 to 12 weeks after conception)

Question 33

hypoxia

Answer 33

birth complication - umbilical blood flow is disrupted and the infant does not receive adequate oxygen