Lignin

Lignin (n): an amorphous polymer related to cellulose that provides rigidity and together with cellulose provides the woody cell walls of plants and the cementing material between them.

Lignin is an organic substance that helps to form cell walls in plant cells. It also binds cells together. There is no set chemical formula for lignin; however, lignin is generally classified as a dendritic network polymer of phenyl propene basic units. There are two basic categories of lignin: sulfur-bearing and sulfur-free.

This word comes from the Latin lignus, meaning "wood."

Bibliography

1. Internation Lignin Institute. "About Lignin." ILI.com. 2013. ILI. 5 November 2013. <http://www.ili-lignin.com/aboutlignin.php>

Hydrocarbons

Here's a definition that will blow your mind.

Hydrocarbons (n.): methane and other organic compounds composed only of carbon and hydrogen.

Bibliography

1. Reece, J. B., Taylor, M. R., Simon, E. J., & Dickey, J. L. Biology: Concepts and Connections. San Francisco: Benjamin Cummings, 2009.

Giant Pink Slugs

This one doesn't exactly classify as a vocabulary word, but I thought it was interesting.

Recently, on Mount Kaputar in New South Wales, Australia, scientists have confirmed that this species of hot pink land slugs are exclusive to the mountaintop. It is not the first time the slug, officially named Tribionphorus aff. graefei, has been spotted--natives have been seeing the slugs come out after rainfall for a while. The slug--which can grow to 8 inches long--is confined to a 10 by 10 kilometer area. The reason for this is because their habitat is the rain forest. The eruption of Mount Kaputar 17 million years ago created this small patch of rainforest that the slugs require. The slug's unique coloration is thought by scientists to be a form of camouflage, because the fallen leaves of the eucalyptus tree are red.

Bibliography

1. Cubby, Ben. "One will really amaze you, the other just eats his mates." The Sydney Morning Herald. May 29, 2013. The Sydney Morning Herald. June 5, 2013. http://www.smh.com.au/environment/conservation/one-will-really-amaze-you-the-other-just-eats-his-mates-20130528-2n9ik.html

2. Davis, Shoshana. "Giant pink slugs only found in remote area of Australia." CBSNews. June 3, 2013. CBS. June 5, 2013. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-205_162-57587347/giant-pink-slugs-only-found-in-remote-area-of-australia/

Piezolytes

Note: I cannot find an official definition for "piezolyte" so I will use my own.

Piezolyte (n.): an organic molecule, found in organisms in shallow and deep water where it encounters hydrostatic pressure and osmotic pressure, that helps deep sea organisms to cope with the pressure.

In addition, I also need to define osmosis.
Osmosis (n.): a process by which molecules of a solvent tend to pass through a semipermeable membrane from a less concentrated solution to into a more concentrated one, thus equalizing the concentrations on each side of the membrane.

Piezolyte comes from the Greek piezo or piezein, "to press, squeeze," and the Greek lytos, "soluble." Osmosis comes from the Greek osmos, "a push." A piezolyte is a specialized form of osmolyte. An osmolyte, in intracellular liquid, regulates cell properties like cell volume in response to osmotic pressure. Piezolytes do the same thing but in response to both osmotic pressure, which is the pressure that would have to be applied to a pure solvent to prevent it from passing into a given solution by osmosis, and hydrostatic pressure, which is the pressure exerted by liquid at rest.  Piezolytes have been found in both deep sea microbes and deep sea crustaceans. It is still unknown exactly how piezolytes help deep sea organisms to live in habitats with crushing pressure.

Bibliography

Axel. "A term in phsyiology: piezolyte for an osmolyte whose cellular levels respond to hydrostatic and osmotic pressure." Latintos. 13 May 2012. Axel. 21 March 2013. <http://golatintos.blogspot.com/2012/05/term-in-physiology-piezolyte-for.html>