Cell Biology: Organelles and Functions

A set of 10 vocabulary flashcards defining key organelles and their functional roles as described in the lecture notes.

Lysosomes

Membrane-bound sacs filled with digestive enzymes, also known as the 'suicide bags' of a cell because they can digest their own cell if it is damaged.

Mitochondria

Known as the powerhouses of the cell, these organelles release energy in the form of $ATP$ for various chemical activities.

$$ATP$$

Short for Adenosine triphopshate, this molecule is known as the energy currency of the cell.

Chromoplasts

A type of plastid described as coloured plastids.

Leucoplasts

White or colourless plastids that primarily store materials like starch, oils, and protein granules.

Chloroplasts

Importantly for photosynthesis, these are plastids containing the pigment chlorophyll as well as various yellow or orange pigments.

Vacuoles

Storage sacs for solid or liquid contents which are small in size in animal cells but can occupy $50-90\%$ of the cell volume in plant cells.

$$RER$$

The structure responsible for making the digestive enzymes found within lysosomes.

$DNA$ and ribosomes

The specific structures that mitochondria possess, allowing them to make some of their own proteins.

Turgidity and rigidity

Physical properties provided to the plant cell by the central vacuole which stores many important substances.