Cell
Basic functional unit of all living things
Cytoplasm
Consists of specialized bodies (organelles) suspended in a fluid matrix (cytosol)
Plasma Membrane
Separates internal metabolic events from the external environment; controls the movement of materials into and out of the cell (selective permeability); lipid bilayer with hydrophilic heads and hydrophobic tails, proteins, cholesterol to provide some rigidity, and a glycocalyx of glycolipids (lipids + oligosaccharides) and glycoproteins (proteins + oligosaccharides)
Peripheral Proteins
Proteins that attach to the inner or outer surface of the membrane
Integral Proteins
Proteins that extend into the membrane
Transmembrane Proteins
Integral proteins that span completely through the membrane; held in place by hydrophilic/hydrophobic regions
Fluid Mosaic Model
Describes structure of the plasma membrane; scattered proteins within a flexible matrix of phospholipids
Channel Proteins
Provide open passageways through the membrane
Ion Channels
Allow the passage of ions across the membranes; gated channels open and close in response to specific stimuli i.e. Na+ and K+
Porins
Allow the passage of certain ions and small polar molecules; aquaporins increase the passage rate of water molecules
Carrier Proteins
Bind to specific molecules, undergo a change in shape, and then transfer the molecules across the membrane; i.e. the passage of glucose
Transport Proteins
Use ATP to transport materials through active transport; i.e. sodium-potassium pump maintaining higher sodium and potassium concentrations on opposite sides of the membrane
Recognition Proteins
Give each cell type a unique identification so it can distinguish between "self" and "foreign" cells
Receptor Proteins
Provide sites that hormones or other trigger molecules can bind to in order to activate a cell response
Nucleus
Bounded by the nuclear envelope (consisting of two phospholipid bilayers); contains DNA in chromatin form; serves as the site of chromosome separation during cell division
Chromatin
Threadlike form of DNA
Chromosomes
Chromatin condenses during cell division into rod-shaped bodies
Nucleolus
Concentrations of DNA within the nucleus that are in the process of manufacturing components of ribosomes
Ribosomes
Consist of RNA molecules and proteins; the two subunits move across the nuclear envelope into the cytoplasm to be assembled; ribosomes assist in the assembly of amino acids into proteins
Rough Endoplasmic Reticulum
Stacks of flattened sacs with ribosomes; as ribosomes assemble polypeptides, polysaccharides are attached to them to create glycoproteins
Smooth Endoplasmic Reticulum
Without ribosomes; synthesizes lipids and hormones
Golgi Apparatus
Flattened sacs arranged like a stack of bowls; modify and package proteins and lipids into vesicles; these vesicles bud out from the Golgi apparatus, migrate to the surface, and merge with the plasma membrane to release contents
Lysosomes
Vesicles from the Golgi apparatus that contain digestive enzymes; break down food, debris, and foreign invaders; they DO NOT occur in plant cells
Peroxisomes
Break down substances (i.e. hydrogen peroxide, fatty acids, and amino acids)
Mitochondria
Carry out aerobic respiration to obtain ATP from carbohydrates
Chloroplasts
Carry out photosynthesis to convert energy from sunlight into carbohydrates
Microtubules
Made of tubulin; provide support and motility for cellular activities; found in spindle apparatus of mitosis, and in cilia and flagella
Microfilaments
Made of actin; involved in motility of cell
Flagella and Cilia
Structures that protrude from the cell membrane and make wavelike movements; flagella are long, few and move in snakelike motion; cilia are short, numerous, and move with back-and-forth movement; "9 +2" array of microtubules
Centrioles and Basal Bodies
Act as microtubule organizing centers (MTOCs); a centrosome outside the nuclear envelope gives rise to microtubules making the spindle apparatus in cell division; basal bodies are at the base of cilia and flagella and are made of nine triplets of microtubules
Transport Vesicles
Move materials between organelles or between organelles and the plasma membrane
Food Vacuoles
Store nutrients temporarily; may merge with lysosomes which digest food with their enzymes
Storage Vacuoles
In plants; store starch, pigments, toxic substances (i.e. nicotine)
Central Vacuole
Large bodies in plant cells; exert turgor pressure on cell walls when full and maintain rigidity this way
Contractile Vacuole
Collect and pump excess water out of cell
Cell Wall
Provide support outside the plasma membrane; made of cellulose in plants; made of chitin in fungi
Solute
Substance being dissolved
Solvent
Substance that the solute is being dissolved in; i.e. water
Hypertonic Solution
The solution that has a higher concentration of solutes than the other solution
Hypotonic Solution
The solution that has the lower concentration of solutes than the other solution
Isotonic Solution
The solution has the same concentration of solutes as the other solution
Passive Transport
Movement of substances from higher to lower concentration; does not require energy
Simple Diffusion
Random movement from high to low concentration
Osmosis
Diffusion of WATER molecules across a selectively permeable membrane
Plasmolysis
Movement of water out of a cell resulting in the cell's collapse
Facilitated Diffusion
Diffusion of solutes or water through channel proteins
Active Transport
Movement of solutes against a gradient, requiring the expenditure of energy
Exocytosis
Vesicles fuse with the plasma membrane and release their contents to the outside
Endocytosis
The plasma membrane engulfs a substance and enters the cytoplasm in a vesicle; phagocytosis (undissolved, solid material) and pinocytosis (dissolved, liquid material), receptor-mediated (specific molecules bind to receptors)
Phagocytosis
A type of endocytosis in which a cell engulfs large particles or whole cells
Pinocytosis
process by which a cell takes in liquid from the surrounding environment