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 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 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.
  • ...
• Examples:
  • Molecular Processes, such as:
    • Metabolic Processes, such as:
      • Glycolysis for energy production.
      • Citric Acid Cycle for molecular breakdown.
      • Protein Synthesis for biomolecule creation.
    • Signaling Processes, such as:
      • Cell Signaling for information transfer.
      • Hormone Signaling for systemic regulation.
  • Cellular Processes, such as:
    • Cell Division Processes, such as:
      • Mitosis for somatic cell division.
      • Meiosis for reproductive cell formation.
    • Cell Death Processes, such as:
      • Apoptosis for programmed death.
      • Necrosis for injury response.
  • System Processes, such as:
    • Immune Processes, such as:
      • Inflammatory Response for defense activation.
      • Antibody Production for pathogen recognition.
    • Neural Processes, such as:
      • Synaptic Transmission for signal propagation.
      • Memory Formation for information storage.
  • Development Processes, such as:
    • Growth Processes, such as:
      • Tissue Formation for organ development.
      • Cell Differentiation for specialization.
  • ...
• 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.
• See: Chemical Process, Cellular Function, Molecular Mechanism, Physiological Process, Biological Pathway, Metabolic Network, Biological System.

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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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