CBSE Syllabus: NCERT Biology Textbook For Class 12th
Unit VI: Reproduction
Chapter 1: Sexual Reproduction in Flowering Plants
Flower structure; development of male and female gametophytes; pollination—types, agencies, and examples; outbreeding devices; pollen-pistil interaction; double fertilisation; post-fertilisation events—development of endosperm and embryo, development of seed, and formation of fruit; special modes—apomixis, parthenocarpy, and polyembryony; significance of seed dispersal and fruit formation.
Chapter 2: Human Reproduction
Male and female reproductive systems; microscopic anatomy of testis and ovary; gametogenesis—spermatogenesis and oogenesis; menstrual cycle; fertilisation; embryo development up to blastocyst formation and implantation; pregnancy and placenta formation (elementary idea); parturition (elementary idea); lactation (elementary idea).
Chapter 3: Reproductive Health
Need for reproductive health and prevention of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs); birth control—need and methods, contraception and medical termination of pregnancy (MTP); amniocentesis; infertility and assisted reproductive technologies—IVF, ZIFT, and GIFT (elementary idea for general awareness)
Unit VII: Genetics and Evolution
Chapter 4: Principles of Inheritance and Variation
Heredity and variation: Mendelian inheritance; deviations from Mendelism—incomplete dominance, codominance, multiple alleles, and inheritance of blood groups; pleiotropy; an elementary idea of polygenic inheritance; the chromosome theory of inheritance; chromosomes and genes; sex determination—in humans, birds, and honeybees; linkage and crossing over; sex-linked inheritance—haemophilia, colour blindness; Mendelian disorders in humans: thalassemia, chromosomal disorders in humans, Down's syndrome, Turner's, and Klinefelter's syndromes.
Chapter 5: Molecular Basis of Inheritance
Search for genetic material and DNA as genetic material; structure of DNA and RNA; DNA packaging; DNA replication; central dogma; transcription, genetic code, and translation; gene expression and regulation—lac operon; genome, human and rice genome projects; and DNA fingerprinting.
Chapter 6: Evolution
Origin of life; biological evolution and evidence for biological evolution (palaeontology, comparative anatomy, embryology, and molecular evidence); Darwin's contribution and the modern synthetic theory of evolution; mechanism of evolution—variation (mutation and recombination) and natural selection with examples and types of natural selection; gene flow and genetic drift; Hardy-Weinberg's principle; adaptive radiation; and human evolution.
Unit VIII: Biology and Human Welfare
Chapter 7: Human Health and Diseases
Pathogens: parasites causing human diseases (malaria, dengue, chikungunya, filariasis, ascariasis, typhoid, pneumonia, the common cold, amoebiasis, and ringworm) and their control; Basic concepts of immunology—vaccines, cancer, HIV, and AIDS. Adolescence—drug and alcohol abuse.
Chapter 8: Microbes in Human Welfare
Microbes in food processing, industrial production, sewage treatment, and energy generation, and microbes as biocontrol agents and biofertilisers. Antibiotics: production and judicious use.
Unit IX: Biotechnology and its Applications
Chapter 9: Biotechnology—Principles and Processes
Genetic Engineering (Recombinant DNA Technology).
Chapter 10: Biotechnology and its Applications
Application of biotechnology in health and agriculture: human insulin and vaccine production, stem cell technology, gene therapy, genetically modified organisms (Bt crops), transgenic animals, biosafety issues, biopiracy, and patents.
Unit-X Ecology and Environment
Chapter 11: Organisms and Populations
Population interactions—mutualism, competition, predation, and parasitism; population attributes—growth, birth rate and death rate, and age distribution. (Topics excluded: organism and its environment, major abiotic factors, responses to abiotic factors, and adaptations)
Chapter 12: Ecosystem
Ecosystems: Patterns and components; productivity and decomposition; energy flow; pyramids of number, biomass, and energy (topics excluded: ecological succession and nutrient cycles).
Chapter 13: Biodiversity and its Conservation
Biodiversity: concept, patterns, and importance; loss of biodiversity; biodiversity conservation; hotspots, endangered organisms, extinction, Red Data Book, sacred groves, biosphere reserves, national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, and Ramsar sites.
