Module 5: Heredity

● explain the mechanisms of reproduction that ensure the continuity of a species, by analysing sexual and asexual methods of reproduction in a variety of organisms, including but not limited to:

– animals: advantages of external and internal fertilisation

– plants: asexual and sexual reproduction

– fungi: budding, spores

– bacteria: binary fission

– protists: binary fission, budding

● analyse the features of fertilisation, implantation and hormonal control of pregnancy and birth in mammals

● evaluate the impact of scientific knowledge on the manipulation of plant and animal reproduction in agriculture

● model the processes involved in cell replication, including but not limited to:

– mitosis and meiosis

– DNA replication using the Watson and Crick DNA model, including nucleotide composition, pairing and bonding

● assess the effect of the cell replication processes on the continuity of species

● construct appropriate representations to model and compare the forms in which DNA exists in eukaryotes and prokaryotes

● model the process of polypeptide synthesis, including:

– transcription and translation

– assessing the importance of mRNA and tRNA in transcription and translation

– analysing the function and importance of polypeptide synthesis

– assessing how genes and environment affect phenotypic expression

● investigate the structure and function of proteins in living things

● conduct practical investigations to predict variations in the genotype of offspring by modelling meiosis, including the crossing over of homologous chromosomes, fertilisation and mutations

● model the formation of new combinations of genotypes produced during meiosis, including but not limited to:

– interpreting examples of autosomal, sex-linkage, co-dominance, incomplete dominance and multiple alleles

– constructing and interpreting information and data from pedigrees and Punnett squares

● collect, record and present data to represent frequencies of characteristics in a population, in order to identify trends, patterns, relationships and limitations in data, for example:

– examining frequency data

– analysing single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP)

● investigate the use of technologies to determine inheritance patterns in a population using, for example:

– DNA sequencing and profiling

● investigate the use of data analysis from a large-scale collaborative project to identify trends, patterns and relationships, for example:

– the use of population genetics data in conservation management

– population genetics studies used to determine the inheritance of a disease or disorder

– population genetics relating to human evolution