Specification points

Edexcel International AS and A level Biology XBI11/YBI11

273 points in 6 topics, with Edexcel's codes and titles.

Codes and titles are read by a script from Edexcel's published specification and have not been checked by a person. What each point covers is in the specification itself: Edexcel’s specification.

U1 Molecules, Diet, Transport and Health

1 Molecules, Transport and Health
1.1 Water as a solvent and its dipole nature
1.2 Monosaccharides, disaccharides and polysaccharides
1.2.i Types of carbohydrate
1.2.ii Carbohydrate structure and energy roles
1.3 Core practical 1: reducing sugar and starch concentrations
1.4 Condensation and hydrolysis of carbohydrates
1.5 Lipids
1.5.i Triglyceride synthesis and ester bonds
1.5.ii Saturated and unsaturated lipids
1.6 Why animals need a heart and circulation
1.7 Structure and function of blood vessels
1.8 The cardiac cycle and the mammalian heart
1.9 Haemoglobin
1.9.i Haemoglobin and gas transport
1.9.ii Oxygen dissociation curves and the Bohr effect
1.10 Development of atherosclerosis
1.11 Blood clotting and cardiovascular disease
1.12 Risk factors for cardiovascular disease
1.13 Dietary antioxidants and cardiovascular disease
1.14 Core practical 2: vitamin C content of food and drink
1.15 Analysing data on health risks
1.16 Evaluating studies of health risk factors
1.17 Perceived and actual risks
1.18 Cholesterol and cardiovascular disease
1.18.i Blood cholesterol, HDLs and LDLs
1.18.ii Evidence linking cholesterol and cardiovascular disease
1.19 Using knowledge to reduce cardiovascular risk
1.20 Benefits and risks of treatments for cardiovascular disease
2 Membranes, Proteins, DNA and Gene Expression
2.1 Gas exchange surfaces
2.1.i Properties of gas exchange surfaces
2.1.ii Rate of diffusion and Fick's law
2.1.iii Adaptations of the mammalian lung for gas exchange
2.2 Cell membranes
2.2.i Structure and properties of cell membranes
2.2.ii The fluid mosaic model
2.3 Core practical 3: membrane permeability
2.4 Osmosis and water potential
2.5 Transport across membranes
2.5.i Passive transport, active transport, endocytosis and exocytosis
2.5.ii Carrier and channel proteins
2.6 Amino acids and proteins
2.6.i Structure of an amino acid
2.6.ii Formation of polypeptides and proteins
2.6.iii Primary structure and protein shape
2.6.iv Globular and fibrous proteins
2.7 Enzymes
2.7.i Enzyme mechanism and specificity
2.7.ii Enzymes as catalysts that lower activation energy
2.7.iii Intracellular and extracellular enzymes
2.8 Core practical 4: factors affecting enzyme activity
2.9 Nucleotides and nucleic acids
2.9.i Structure of nucleotides, DNA and RNA
2.9.ii Complementary base pairing and the double helix
2.10 DNA replication
2.10.i Steps of DNA replication and the role of DNA polymerase
2.10.ii Meselson and Stahl's experiment
2.11 Nature of the genetic code
2.12 Genes as base sequences coding for polypeptides
2.13 Protein synthesis
2.13.i Transcription and translation
2.13.ii Template strand, codons and anticodons
2.14 Mutations
2.14.i Mutations from errors in DNA replication
2.14.ii Effects of mutations
2.15 Inheritance
2.15.i Genetic terms
2.15.ii Monohybrid inheritance and pedigree diagrams
2.15.iii Sex linkage on the X chromosome
2.16 Cystic fibrosis
2.17 Genetic screening
2.17.i Uses of genetic screening
2.17.ii Implications of prenatal genetic screening
2.18 Ethical and social issues of genetic screening

U2 Cells, Development, Biodiversity and Conservation

3 Cell Structure, Reproduction and Development
3.1 Cells as the basis of all living organisms
3.2 Levels of organisation in multicellular organisms
3.3 Eukaryotic cells
3.3.i Ultrastructure of eukaryotic cells
3.3.ii Functions of eukaryotic organelles
3.4 Protein transport: rough ER and Golgi apparatus
3.5 Prokaryotic cells
3.5.i Ultrastructure of prokaryotic cells
3.5.ii Functions of prokaryotic cell structures
3.6 Recognising organelles in electron micrographs
3.7 Microscopy
3.7.i Magnification and resolution in microscopy
3.7.ii Staining specimens
3.8 Core practical 5: microscopy of animal cells
3.8.i Light microscope observations and drawings of animal cells
3.8.ii Measuring with a graticule; scale
3.9 Loci and linkage
3.9.i Gene loci
3.9.ii Gene linkage
3.10 Meiosis and genetic variation
3.11 Specialised mammalian gametes
3.12 Fertilisation in mammals
3.13 Fertilisation in flowering plants
3.14 Mitosis and the cell cycle
3.15 Core practical 6: root tip squash and mitosis
3.16 Mitotic index
3.17 Stem cells
3.17.i Stem cells, totipotency and pluripotency
3.17.ii Society's decisions on stem cell therapies
3.18 Cell specialisation through differential gene expression
3.19 One gene, more than one protein
3.20 Phenotype, genotype and epigenetics
3.20.i Genotype, environment and phenotype
3.20.ii Epigenetic modification
3.20.iii Inheritance of epigenetic modifications
3.21 Multiple alleles, polygenic inheritance and continuous variation
4 Plant Structure and Function, Biodiversity and Conservation
4.1 Plant cells
4.1.i Structure and ultrastructure of plant cells
4.1.ii Functions of plant cell structures
4.2 Recognising plant organelles in electron micrographs
4.3 Starch and cellulose
4.4 Cellulose microfibrils and plant fibre properties
4.5 Sclerenchyma fibres, xylem vessels and phloem
4.6 Core practical 7: plant tissues under the light microscope
4.6.i Plan diagrams of roots, stems and leaves
4.6.ii Drawing cells of plant tissues
4.6.iii Identifying sclerenchyma, phloem and xylem
4.7 Plant fibres, starch and sustainability
4.8 Water and inorganic ions in plants
4.9 Core practical 8: tensile strength of plant fibres
4.10 Conditions for bacterial growth
4.11 Antimicrobial and therapeutic substances from plants
4.12 Core practical 9: antimicrobial properties of plants
4.13 Development of drug testing
4.14 Classification
4.14.i Classification by phenotype and genotype
4.14.ii Evaluating new data and the three-domain system
4.15 Variety of life and threats from human activity
4.16 Biodiversity and endemism
4.17 Species richness and heterozygosity index
4.18 Index of diversity
4.19 Niches and adaptations
4.20 Allele frequency and speciation
4.20.i Hardy-Weinberg equation
4.20.ii Mutation, natural selection and allele frequency
4.20.iii Reproductive isolation and new species
4.21 Zoos, seed banks and conservation

U3 Practical Skills in Biology I

U3.1 Planning
U3.2 Implementation and measurements
U3.3 Processing results

U4 Energy, Environment, Microbiology and Immunity

5 Energy Flow, Ecosystems and the Environment
5.1 Overall reaction of photosynthesis
5.2 Photophosphorylation and ATP
5.3 Light-dependent reactions
5.4 Light-independent reactions
5.4.i Light-independent reactions and the Calvin cycle
5.4.ii Uses of the products of photosynthesis
5.5 Chloroplast structure and photosynthesis
5.6 Absorption and action spectra
5.7 Chromatography of chloroplast pigments
5.8 Core practical 10: factors affecting photosynthesis
5.9 Primary productivity
5.9.i Gross and net primary productivity
5.9.ii Calculating net primary productivity
5.10 Efficiency of transfers between trophic levels
5.11 Population, community, habitat and ecosystem
5.12 Biotic and abiotic factors
5.13 Niche and distribution of organisms
5.14 Core practical 11: ecology of a habitat
5.15 Succession
5.16 Evidence for climate change
5.17 Causes of anthropogenic climate change
5.18 The carbon cycle and reducing atmospheric carbon dioxide
5.19 Models of climate change
5.19.i Extrapolation and climate change models
5.19.ii Limitations of climate change models
5.20 Effects of climate change on plants and animals
5.21 Temperature, enzyme activity and Q10
5.22 Core practical 12: temperature and development of organisms
5.23 Evolution by mutation and natural selection
5.24 Isolation and speciation
5.25 Scientific conclusions on controversial issues
5.26 Reforestation, sustainable resources and conservation
6 Microbiology, Immunity and Forensics
6.1 Culturing microorganisms with aseptic technique
6.2 Measuring the growth of microorganisms
6.3 Bacterial growth curves and growth rate constants
6.4 Core practical 13: growth of microorganisms in liquid culture
6.5 Bacteria and viruses
6.5.i Structure of bacteria and viruses
6.5.ii Lytic and latent cycles
6.6 Infection by Mycobacterium tuberculosis and HIV
6.7 Pathogen entry and barriers to infection
6.7.i Routes of entry for pathogens
6.7.ii Barriers to infection
6.8 Non-specific responses to infection
6.9 Antigens and antibodies in the immune response
6.10 Roles of B cells and T cells
6.11 Natural, artificial, active and passive immunity
6.12 The evolutionary race between pathogens and hosts
6.13 Bacteriostatic and bactericidal antibiotics
6.14 Core practical 14: effect of antibiotics on bacteria
6.15 Hospital-acquired infections and codes of practice
6.16 Microorganisms in decomposition and carbon recycling
6.17 Polymerase chain reaction
6.18 Gel electrophoresis
6.19 DNA profiling
6.20 Determining time of death

U5 Respiration, Internal Environment, Coordination and Gene Technology

7 Respiration, Muscles and the Internal Environment
7.1 Aerobic respiration
7.1.i Overall reaction of aerobic respiration
7.1.ii Respiration as a stepped, enzyme-controlled process
7.2 Glycolysis
7.3 The link reaction and the Krebs cycle
7.4 Oxidative phosphorylation and chemiosmosis
7.5 Fate of lactate after anaerobic respiration
7.6 Respiratory quotient
7.7 Core practical 15: respiration in yeast with a redox indicator
7.8 Core practical 16: respirometer, respiration rate and RQ
7.9 Muscles, tendons, ligaments and the skeleton in movement
7.10 Skeletal muscle fibres
7.10.i Structure of a skeletal muscle fibre
7.10.ii Fast and slow twitch muscle fibres
7.11 Sliding filament theory
7.12 Cardiac muscle and control of the heartbeat
7.12.i Myogenic cardiac muscle
7.12.ii Electrical activity of the heart
7.12.iii Electrocardiograms in diagnosis
7.13 Cardiac output and ventilation
7.13.i Cardiac output
7.13.ii Control of ventilation and cardiac output
7.14 Adrenaline and the fight or flight response
7.15 Core practical 17: exercise and spirometer data
7.16 Feedback control
7.16.i Negative and positive feedback
7.16.ii Negative feedback in maintaining systems
7.17 Homeostasis and thermoregulation
7.18 Structure of the mammalian kidney
7.19 Urea production and ultrafiltration
7.20 Selective reabsorption and the loop of Henle
7.21 ADH and osmoregulation
7.22 Transcription factors and hormones
8 Coordination, Response and Gene Technology
8.1 Sensory, relay and motor neurones
8.2 Nervous responses to stimuli
8.3 The spinal reflex arc
8.4 Conduction of a nerve impulse
8.5 Myelination and saltatory conduction
8.6 Synapses
8.6.i Synapses and neurotransmitters
8.6.ii Pupil dilation and contraction
8.7 Drugs and nerve impulse transmission
8.8 Rods, rhodopsin and detecting light
8.9 Habituation
8.10 Central and peripheral nervous systems
8.11 Plant responses: phytochrome, auxin and gibberellins
8.12 Core practical 18: amylase production in germinating grains
8.13 Nervous and hormonal coordination in animals
8.14 Main regions of the human brain
8.15 Brain imaging in diagnosis and research
8.16 Brain chemical imbalances and ill health
8.17 Drugs from genetically modified organisms
8.18 Producing recombinant DNA
8.19 Inserting recombinant DNA into cells
8.20 Microarrays
8.21 Bioinformatics
8.22 Risks and benefits of genetically modified organisms

U6 Practical Skills in Biology II

U6.1 Planning
U6.2 Implementation and measurements
U6.3 Analysis