Cell specialisation

what’s the function of a muscle cell

contraction

how is a muscle cell specialised?

very long (have space to contract) contain lots of mitochondria to generate energy needed for contraction

what’s the function of a root hair cell?

absorbing water and minerals

how are root hair cells specialised

give the plant a large surface area (to absorb lots of water), thin cell wall (for water to pass through), large vacuole (storing water)

what’s the function of sperm cells

reproduction - get male DNA to the female

how are sperm cells specialised

long flagellum and streamlined head to help it swim into the egg, lots of mitochondria to provide it with energy, carries enzymes in its head to digest through the egg cell membrane

what’s the function of a nerve cell?

to carry electrical signals from one part of the body to another

how are nerve cells specialised

elongated cells, have branched connections at their ends to connect to other nerve cells and form a network throughout the body

what’s the function of a xylem cell

to transport water and minerals from the roots up the plant stem into the leaves

how is the xylem cell specialised

xylem cells are hollow in the centre so that stuff can flow through, strengthen by lignin, cells are long to form tubes

what’s the function of the phloem cell

to transport food substances that the plant has produced by photosynthesis to where they are needed

how are phloem cells specialised

contain sieve tubes that have few organelles to leave a large hollow tube for transport, cytoplasm of one sieve tube connects to the next, companion cells provide the energy to transport substances