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Glossary of terms used on this site

Glossary of biology.

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Glossaries

Term Main definition
O horizon
Glossaries - Biology glossary

layer of soil with humus at the surface and decomposed vegetation at the base

obligate aerobes
Glossaries - Biology glossary

organisms, such as humans, that must perform aerobic respiration to survive

obligate anaerobes
Glossaries - Biology glossary

organisms that only perform anaerobic respiration and often cannot survive in the presence of oxygen

occipital lobe
Glossaries - Biology glossary

part of the cerebral cortex that contains visual cortex and processes visual stimuli

ocean upwelling
Glossaries - Biology glossary

rising of deep ocean waters that occurs when prevailing winds blow along surface waters near a coastline

oceanic zone
Glossaries - Biology glossary

part of the ocean that begins offshore where the water measures 200 m deep or deeper

Octamer box
Glossaries - Biology glossary

(ATTTGCAT) nonessential eukaryotic promoter sequence that binds cellular factors to increase the efficiency of transcription; may be present several times in a promoter

octet rule
Glossaries - Biology glossary

rule that atoms are most stable when they hold eight electrons in their outermost shells

odorant
Glossaries - Biology glossary

airborne molecule that stimulates an olfactory receptor

Okazaki fragment
Glossaries - Biology glossary

DNA fragment that is synthesized in short stretches on the lagging strand

olfaction
Glossaries - Biology glossary

sense of smell

olfactory bulb
Glossaries - Biology glossary

neural structure in the vertebrate brain that receives signals from olfactory receptors

olfactory epithelium
Glossaries - Biology glossary

specialized tissue in the nasal cavity where olfactory receptors are located

olfactory receptor
Glossaries - Biology glossary

dendrite of a specialized neuron

oligodendrocyte
Glossaries - Biology glossary

glial cell that myelinates central nervous system neuron axons