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ScienceBiology

AP Biology

Investigate how living systems use energy, store information, evolve, and interact from the molecular scale through whole ecosystems.

Start with the course map All AP courses

Course map

Open a section, then choose the exact idea.

1Chemistry of Life7 topics

Relate water, carbon-based molecules, and macromolecular structure to the chemical functions that make living systems possible.

  1. 1.1Structure of Water and Hydrogen Bonding
  2. 1.2Elements of Life
  3. 1.3Introduction to Macromolecules
  4. 1.4Carbohydrates
  5. 1.5Lipids
  6. 1.6Nucleic Acids
  7. 1.7Proteins

2Cells10 topics

Explain how cell structures, membranes, transport, size, and compartmentalization support efficient and regulated biological functions.

  1. 2.1Cell Structure and Function
  2. 2.2Cell Size
  3. 2.3Plasma Membrane
  4. 2.4Membrane Permeability
  5. 2.5Membrane Transport
  6. 2.6Facilitated Diffusion
  7. 2.7Tonicity and Osmoregulation
  8. 2.8Mechanisms of Transport
  9. 2.9Cell Compartmentalization
  10. 2.10Origins of Cell Compartmentalization

3Cellular Energetics5 topics

Trace how enzymes and metabolic pathways capture, transform, and use energy through photosynthesis and cellular respiration.

  1. 3.1Enzymes
  2. 3.2Environmental Impacts on Enzyme Function
  3. 3.3Cellular Energy
  4. 3.4Photosynthesis
  5. 3.5Cellular Respiration

4Cell Communication and Cell Cycle6 topics

Analyze how cells send, receive, and regulate signals and how feedback controls cellular processes and division.

  1. 4.1Cell Communication
  2. 4.2Introduction to Signal Transduction
  3. 4.3Signal Transduction Pathways
  4. 4.4Feedback
  5. 4.5Cell Cycle
  6. 4.6Regulation of Cell Cycle

5Heredity5 topics

Connect meiosis, inheritance patterns, genetic diversity, and environmental influences to variation in phenotype.

  1. 5.1Meiosis
  2. 5.2Meiosis and Genetic Diversity
  3. 5.3Mendelian Genetics
  4. 5.4Non-Mendelian Genetics
  5. 5.5Environmental Effects on Phenotype

6Gene Expression and Regulation8 topics

Follow genetic information from replication through gene expression while examining regulation, mutation, specialization, and biotechnology.

  1. 6.1DNA and RNA Structure
  2. 6.2DNA Replication
  3. 6.3Transcription and RNA Processing
  4. 6.4Translation
  5. 6.5Regulation of Gene Expression
  6. 6.6Gene Expression and Cell Specialization
  7. 6.7Mutations
  8. 6.8Biotechnology

7Natural Selection12 topics

Use evidence, population genetics, phylogeny, and speciation to explain common ancestry and evolutionary change over time.

  1. 7.1Introduction to Natural Selection
  2. 7.2Natural Selection
  3. 7.3Artificial Selection
  4. 7.4Population Genetics
  5. 7.5Hardy–Weinberg Equilibrium
  6. 7.6Evidence of Evolution
  7. 7.7Common Ancestry
  8. 7.8Continuing Evolution
  9. 7.9Phylogeny
  10. 7.10Speciation
  11. 7.11Variations in Populations
  12. 7.12Origins of Life on Earth

8Ecology7 topics

Examine energy flow, population dynamics, communities, biodiversity, and the effects of environmental disruption across ecosystems.

  1. 8.1Responses to the Environment
  2. 8.2Energy Flow Through Ecosystems
  3. 8.3Population Ecology
  4. 8.4Effect of Density on Populations
  5. 8.5Community Ecology
  6. 8.6Biodiversity
  7. 8.7Disruptions in Ecosystems