Topics in Biology related to Mammalian Reproduction: 

• Unit 1 (Intro): None

• Unit 2 (Little things we are made of chem/water/macros/cells): None

• Unit 3 (Why do we eat food?  And what is food really? - more on biosynthesis, cell respiration and photo): None

• Unit 4 (when things go wrong - and right, homeostasis, body systems, mitosis, cancer, membranes and communication - neurotransmitters):  

  • A brief (2 minute) breakdown of the purpose, major parts, and homeostatic function of the reproductive system in mammals.

• During cell communication discussions (from a membrane and homeostatic level), discussion of testosterone, progesterone and estrogen signaling (along with dopamine, adrenaline, serotonin, etc)

• How testosterone works with multiple body systems (muscular, endocrine, reproductive, nervous) - case study

• Possible cell signaling and puberty BBC video (awkward and from the early 2000’s)

• Unit 5 (Making more people! Differentiation at the embryonic level, meiosis genetics and punnett squares, dogma, disorders, CRISPR):  

  • Meiosis (cell cycle that re-arranges chromosomes to create unique mammalian gametes)

• Cell differentiation of a mammalian embryo (how identical cells start to signal and develop into the spinal cord, hands, etc)

• Case study about a chimera (mammal with two sets of chromosomes within one human) and a question of maternity due to different chromosomes)

• Unit 6 (We are the champions: population drift, natural selection, artificial selection): None that would not be discussed in agricultural ed (breeding for dog or bovine traits)

• Unit 7 (Why we shouldn’t destroy everything… cycles and ecology):  None