Introduction to Eukaryotic Cells

These flashcards cover key terms and definitions from the lecture on eukaryotic cells.

Lysosomes

Organelles that contain digestive enzymes and maintain an acidic pH to dispose of cellular waste.

Peroxisomes

Organelles that carry out oxidation reactions and produce hydrogen peroxide.

Eukaryotic Cells

Cells that have a membrane-bound nucleus, multiple linear chromosomes, and membrane-bound organelles.

Endomembrane System

A group of membranes and organelles that work together to modify, package, and transport lipids and proteins.

Rough Endoplasmic Reticulum (Rough ER)

A type of endoplasmic reticulum with ribosomes that synthesize proteins and modify them.

Smooth Endoplasmic Reticulum (Smooth ER)

A type of endoplasmic reticulum that synthesizes lipids, detoxifies drugs, and stores calcium ions.

Golgi Apparatus

An organelle that stores, tags, packages, and distributes lipids and proteins.

Lysosome

An organelle that acts as a recycling facility, digesting foreign particles and cellular components.

Mitochondria

Organelles that break down fuel molecules and capture energy for cellular respiration.

Chloroplasts

Organelles involved in photosynthesis that contain thylakoids.

Plasma Membrane

A semi-permeable membrane that defines cell borders and facilitates communication and transport.

Phospholipid Bilayer

A double layer of phospholipids with hydrophobic tails inward and hydrophilic heads outward.

Glycoprotein

A protein with carbohydrate chains attached, involved in cell recognition.

Aquaporin

Channel proteins specialized for the transport of water across the membrane.

Passive Transport

Transport of substances across a membrane that does not require energy.

Active Transport

Transport of substances against their concentration gradient that requires energy.

Endocytosis

A form of active transport where substances are engulfed into the cell by vesicles.

Exocytosis

The process of transporting materials out of the cell via vesicles that fuse with the plasma membrane.

Osmosis

The movement of water across a semipermeable membrane from low to high solute concentration.

Tonicity

The ability of a solution to affect the volume of a cell by osmosis.

Colony-forming units (CFUs)

A method used in microbiology to estimate the number of viable microorganisms in a sample.