Biological Process

A Biological Process is a process that enables biological functions through molecular events and cellular activity (within biological systems).

• AKA: Life Process, Biological Activity, Biological Function, Biological Mechanism.
• Context:
  • It can typically involve Biological Event through molecular interaction.
  • It can typically require Biological Entity through structural component.
  • It can typically serve Biological Function through physiological mechanism.
  • It can typically maintain System Homeostasis through regulatory control.
  • It can typically support Organism Survival through adaptive response.
  • ...
  • It can often coordinate Cellular Activity through signaling pathway.
  • It can often regulate Gene Expression through transcriptional control.
  • It can often modulate Protein Function through post-translational modification.
  • It can often facilitate Energy Production through metabolic pathway.
  • It can often drive Biological Change through evolutionary mechanism.
  • ...
  • It can range from being a Simple Molecular Event to being a Complex System Process, depending on its process complexity.
  • It can range from being a Fast Metabolic Response to being a Slow Developmental Change, depending on its temporal scale.
  • It can range from being a Local Cellular Process to being a Systemic Organism Response, depending on its spatial distribution.
  • It can range from being an Individual-Level Biological Process to being a Population-Level Biological Process, depending on its biological scope.
  • ...
  • It can interact with Environmental Factor for adaptive response.
  • It can integrate with Chemical Process for biochemical regulation.
  • It can coordinate with Physical Process for structural maintenance.
  • It can accumulate Biological Change for evolutionary progression.
  • ...
• Examples:
  • Molecular Biological Processes, such as:
    • Metabolic Biological Processes, such as:
      • Glycolysis Biological Process for energy production.
      • Citric Acid Cycle Biological Process for molecular breakdown.
      • Protein Synthesis Biological Process for biomolecule creation.
    • Signaling Biological Processes, such as:
      • Cell Signaling Biological Process for information transfer.
      • Hormone Signaling Biological Process for systemic regulation.
  • Cellular Biological Processes, such as:
    • Cell Division Biological Processes, such as:
      • Mitosis Biological Process for somatic cell division.
      • Meiosis Biological Process for reproductive cell formation.
    • Cell Death Biological Processes, such as:
      • Apoptosis Biological Process for programmed death.
      • Necrosis Biological Process for injury response.
  • System Biological Processes, such as:
    • Immune Biological Processes, such as:
      • Inflammatory Response Biological Process for defense activation.
      • Antibody Production Biological Process for pathogen recognition.
    • Neural Biological Processes, such as:
      • Synaptic Transmission Biological Process for signal propagation.
      • Memory Formation Biological Process for information storage.
  • Development Biological Processes, such as:
    • Growth Biological Processes, such as:
      • Tissue Formation Biological Process for organ development.
      • Cell Differentiation Biological Process for specialization.
  • Evolutionary Biological Processes, such as:
    • Variation-Generating Evolutionary Biological Processes, such as:
      • Mutation Evolutionary Biological Process for genetic sequence alteration.
      • Recombination Evolutionary Biological Process for genetic material exchange.
    • Selection-Based Evolutionary Biological Processes, such as:
      • Natural Selection Evolutionary Biological Process for adaptive trait proliferation.
      • Sexual Selection Evolutionary Biological Process for reproductive success enhancement.
    • Population-Level Evolutionary Biological Processes, such as:
      • Genetic Drift Evolutionary Biological Process for random allele frequency change.
      • Gene Flow Evolutionary Biological Process for genetic material migration.
    • Speciation Evolutionary Biological Processes, such as:
      • Allopatric Speciation Evolutionary Biological Process for geographic isolation-based divergence.
      • Sympatric Speciation Evolutionary Biological Process for ecological niche-based divergence.
  • ...
• Counter-Examples:
  • Computing Process, which operates on digital information rather than biological material.
  • Chemical Process, which occurs without biological regulation or cellular context.
  • Physical Process, which involves only mechanical forces rather than biochemical reactions.
  • Cultural Evolution Process, which transmits cultural traits through social learning rather than genetic inheritance.
  • Technological Evolution Process, which advances technology through human innovation rather than natural selection.
• See: Ecological Dominance Shift, Chemical Process, Cellular Function, Molecular Mechanism, Physiological Process, Biological Pathway, Metabolic Network, Biological System, Evolutionary Transition Period, Natural Selection, Adaptation, Speciation, Population Genetics.

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References

2009

• http://www.biocarta.com/genes/index.asp
  • Observe how genes interact in dynamic graphical models. Our online maps depict molecular relationships from areas of active research. In an "open source" approach, this community-fed forum constantly integrates emerging proteomic information from the scientific community. It also catalogs and summarizes important resources providing information for over 120,000 genes from multiple species. Find both classical pathways as well as current suggestions for new pathways.

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