BIOL 213: Molecular Cell Biology - Introduction and Cell Structure

Vocabulary practice flashcards covering cell biology fundamentals, historical landmarks, procaryotic and eucaryotic cellular organelles, endosymbiotic origins, and model organisms based on BIOL 213 lecture material.

Cell Theory

A foundational biological theory stating that all living organisms are composed of one or more cells, the cell is the most basic unit of life, and all cells arise only from pre-existing cells.

Theodor Schwann and Matthias Jakob Schleiden

The two scientists credited with formulating the first two tenets of cell theory in 1838–1839, establishing that plant and animal structures are composed of cells or cell products.

Rudolf Virchow

The scientist who added the third tenet to cell theory in 1855, stating that all cells arise only from pre-existing cells.

Robert Remak

The scientist who proposed in 1852 that new cells are created through cell division (binary fission), prior to Virchow's publication of the third tenet of cell theory.

Procaryotic Cell

A diverse category of cells that lack a distinct nucleus and membrane-bound organelles, divided into the domains Bacteria and Archaea.

Bacterial Cell Shapes

Common structural forms of bacteria, including spherical cells (e.g., Streptococcus), rod-shaped cells (e.g., Escherichia coli, Salmonella), and spiral cells (e.g., Treponema pallidum).

Archaea

One of the two primary domains of procaryotic organisms, distinct from bacteria.

Eucaryotic Cell

A complex cell containing a membrane-bound nucleus and specialized intracellular membrane-enclosed organelles.

Nucleus

The primary information store of a eucaryotic cell, surrounded by a double-membrane nuclear envelope and containing genetic material in the form of DNA.

Mitochondria

Membrane-bound organelles that generate usable chemical energy from food to power eucaryotic cells.

Endosymbiotic Origin of Mitochondria

The evolutionary process in which an ancestral eucaryotic cell engulfed an aerobic bacterium that survived and lived in symbiosis with its host.

Chloroplasts

Chlorophyll-containing organelles surrounded by a double membrane that capture energy from sunlight to produce organic molecules via photosynthesis in plants and algae.

Endosymbiotic Origin of Chloroplasts

The process where an early eucaryotic cell engulfed a photosynthetic bacterium, giving rise to chloroplasts in photosynthetic eucaryotes.

Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER)

An extensive labyrinth of membrane-enclosed channels where cell-membrane components and molecules destined for export are synthesized.

Golgi Apparatus

A stack of flattened membrane-enclosed sacs that receives, chemically modifies, and packages molecules made in the endoplasmic reticulum before routing them to other destinations.

Lysosome

A membrane-enclosed organelle containing digestive enzymes that break down intracellular waste, worn-out organelles, and ingested material.

Peroxisome

A small membrane-enclosed organelle that provides a contained environment for reactions utilizing hydrogen peroxide to detoxify harmful molecules.

Cytosol

The concentrated aqueous gel portion of the cytoplasm excluding the membrane-enclosed organelles.

Cytoskeleton

A network of protein filaments in the cytoplasm—comprising actin filaments, microtubules, and intermediate filaments—responsible for cell shape, structural support, movement, and organelle transport.

Escherichia coli (E. coli)

A rod-shaped bacterium widely studied as a key procaryotic model organism in molecular biology.

Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Brewer's yeast, used as a simple eucaryotic model organism to study basic eucaryotic cell functions such as cell cycle and division.

Arabidopsis thaliana

A small plant chosen as the primary model organism for studying plant genetics and molecular biology.

Drosophila melanogaster

The fruit fly, widely used as a model organism in animal genetics and developmental biology.

Caenorhabditis elegans

A nematode worm used as a model organism to investigate genetic regulation of development and cellular differentiation.

Danio rerio

The zebrafish, a model vertebrate organism useful for studying embryonic development due to its transparent early life stages.

Robert Hooke

The scientist who used a primitive microscope in 1665 to describe tiny pores in cork, introducing the term 'cells'.

Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP)

A protein introduced in 1994 by Chalfie and collaborators as a molecular marker to track protein localization and dynamic behavior in living cells.

Walther Flemming

The biologist who in 1879 described chromosome behavior during mitosis in animal cells with detailed clarity.

Camillo Golgi

The histologist who first visualized and described the Golgi apparatus in 1898 using silver nitrate staining.