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The cell is the basic structural and functional unit of all forms of life. Every cell consists of cytoplasm enclosed within a membrane; many cells contain organelles, each with a specific function. The term comes from the Latin word cellula meaning 'small room'. Most cells are only visible under a microscope.
Many components of animal cells are recycled by transferring them inside or embedded in sections of membrane. For instance, in endocytosis (more specifically, macropinocytosis), a portion of the cell's plasma membrane pinches off to form vesicles that will eventually fuse with an organelle within the cell. Without active replenishment, the ...
Cell biology (also cellular biology or cytology) is a branch of biology that studies the structure, function, and behavior of cells. [1] [2] All living organisms are made of cells. A cell is the basic unit of life that is responsible for the living and functioning of organisms. [3] Cell biology is the study of the structural and functional ...
The function and significance of vacuoles varies greatly according to the type of cell in which they are present, having much greater prominence in the cells of plants, fungi and certain protists than those of animals and bacteria. In general, the functions of the vacuole include: Isolating materials that might be harmful or a threat to the cell
The mitochondrion is commonly called "the powerhouse of the cell", [30] for its function providing energy by oxidising sugars or fats to produce the energy-storing molecule ATP. [ 31 ] [ 32 ] Mitochondria have two surrounding membranes , each a phospholipid bilayer , the inner of which is folded into invaginations called cristae where aerobic ...
Little was known about the function of the nucleolus until 1964, when a study [10] of nucleoli by John Gurdon and Donald Brown in the African clawed frog Xenopus laevis generated increased interest in its function and detailed structure. They found that 25% of the frog eggs had no nucleolus, and that such eggs were not capable of life.
Some cells in some multicellular organisms lack mitochondria (for example, mature mammalian red blood cells). The multicellular animal Henneguya salminicola is known to have retained mitochondrion-related organelles despite a complete loss of their mitochondrial genome.
In cell biology, the centrosome (Latin centrum 'center' + Greek sōma 'body') (archaically cytocentre [1]) is an organelle that serves as the main microtubule organizing center (MTOC) of the animal cell, as well as a regulator of cell-cycle progression. The centrosome provides structure for the cell.