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AP Biology > Components of a cell > Flashcards

Components of a cell Flashcards

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AP® Biology flashcards Biology 101 flashcards
1
Q

What is the cell wall and its function?

A 
A rigid cell covering around the cell, inside is cross-linked polysaccharides and proteins
Made of either:
- Cellulose
- Chitin
- Peptidoglycan
Functions:
- Structure
- Protection
- Shape
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2
Q

What is the central vacuole and its function?

A
  • Large plant organelle in the middle of the cell
    Functions:
  • Regulates cells storage compartment,
  • Holds water,
  • The site for macromolecular degrading in cell growth
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3
Q

What is the centrosome?

A

A region in an animal cell made of two centrioles

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4
Q

What is the chloroplast and its function?

A

A Plant organelle that carries out photsynthesis

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5
Q

What are cilium and its function?

A

Plural for cilia, hair like structures that extend from the plasma membrane
Functions:
- Used to move entire cells or substances outside surface of the cell

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6
Q

What is cytoplasm and what is it comprised of?

A 
The entire region between the plasma membrane and the nuclear envelope,
 Consists of:
- Cytosol
- Organelles
- Cytoskeleton,
- Various chemicals
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7
Q

What is the cytoskeleton and its function?

A

A network of proteins fibers made of microfilaments, microtubules, and intermediate filaments
Functions:
- Maintain the shape of the cell/structure
- Hold organelles in place/move organelles
- Allow the travel of vesicles in cells
- Enable unicellular organisms to move independently
- Anchors cells in place

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8
Q

What is a desmasome?

A

A link between to epithelial cells that keep tissues together,

  • Allows water to pass between the junction
  • Gives some space between connected cells, which is good for stressed cells
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9
Q

What is endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and its function?

A

The largest membranous structure (multiple interconnected membranes) in a eukaryotic cell,
- It buds of the nucleus
Function:
- Modify proteins and synthesize lipids
- Transport structures like proteins to the Golgi apparatus

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10
Q

What is the extracellular matrix?

A 
Material that provides mechanical protection and anchoring tissues for other cells
Such as:
- Primary collagen,
- Glycoproteins,
- Proteoglycans
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11
Q

What is the flagellum and its function?

A

Long hair-like structures that extend from the plasma membrane
Function:
- Used to move the cell

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12
Q

What is a gap juntion?

A

A channel between two adjacent animal cells:
- Allows ions, nutrients, and low molecular weight substances to pass between cells
Function:
- Allows cells to communicate
(Kind of like a bridge between cells)

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13
Q

What is the Golgi apparatus and its function?

A

Eukaryotic organelle made of flattened stacked membranes
Function:
- Modifies proteins made in the RER
- Sorts, tags, and packages lipids and proteins for distribution
- Synthesizes molecules that need to be secreted from the cell

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14
Q

What is an intermediate filament and its function?

A

A Component of the cytoskeleton, and composed of several intertwined strands of fibrous protein
Function:
- resist tension,
- Supports cell-cell junctions
- Anchors cells to extracellular structures

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15
Q

What is a lysosome and its function?

A

An animal cell organelle found in the cytoplasm
Functions:
- digestive component of the cell
- digests proteins, lipids, polysaccharides (carbs), nucleic acid and aged organelles

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16
Q

What is a microfilament and its function?

A

Narrowest element of the cytoskeleton system
Function:
- Provides a rigid shape to the cell and enables cellular movement

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17
Q

What is a microtubule and its function?

A

Widest element of the cytoskeleton system
- Is also the structural element of centrioles, flagella and cilia
Function:
- Helps the cell resist compression
- Provides a path for vesicles to move along
- Acts as the spindelfibers in mitosis

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18
Q

What is mitochondria and its function?

A

Organelle responsible for cellular respiration,

- produces ATP for energy

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19
Q

What is a nucleoid?

A

Central part of a prokaryotic cell where the unique chromosome is found

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20
Q

What is the nucleolus and its function?

A

Darkly staining body in the nucleus,
Function:
- Assembles the subunits of the ribosomes from rRNA

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21
Q

What is the nucleus and its function?

A

An organelle that houses the cells DNA
Function:
- Holds genetic info
- Directs synthesis of ribosomes and proteins

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22
Q

What is peroxisome and its function?

A

A small, round organelle that contains hydrogen peroxide
Function:
- Oxidizes fatty acids and amino acids
- Detoxifies many poisons

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23
Q

What is the plasma membrane and its function?

A

A phospholipid bilayer with embedded proteins
Function:
- Seperates the internal content of the cell from external content

24
Q

What is the plasmodesma and its function?

A

Channels between two adjacent plant cells, similar to a gap junction,
Function:
- Allows ions, nutrients, hormones, some RNA and proteins, and low weight substances to pass between cells
- Enables communication between cells

25
Q

What is a ribosome and its function?

A

A cell structure that carries out protein synthesis made of rRNA and protein but not membrane bound

26
Q

What is the rough endoplasmic reticulum (RER) and its function?

A

Region of ER where ribosomes are embedded
Function:
- Site of protein synthesis

27
Q

What is the smooth endoplasmic reticulum (SER) and its function?

A 
Region of ER that has very few ribosomes
Function:
- Synthesizes lipids (like steroids or phospholipids)
- metabolizes carbs
- Detoxifies drugs and toxins
- Stores calcium ions
28
Q

What is a tight junction and its function?

A

A firm seal between tow adjacent animal cells created by a protein adherence
- No water or ions can travel between cells connected like this

29
Q

What is a vacuole and its function?

A

A membrane bound sac, like a larger vesicle
Function:
- Cellular storage and transport

30
Q

What is a vesicle?

A

A small membrane bound sac
Function:
- Storage and transport
- capable of fusing with the plasma membrane and membranes of the ER and the Golgi apparatus

31
Q

What is the difference between the protein formed the cytoplasm and the Rough endoplasmic reticulum?

A
  • In the cytoplasm, the proteins may stay in the cytosol or go to other organelles,
  • In the rough endoplasmic reticulum, the proteins are secreted from the cell
  • integrated into the cell membrane
  • Or become part of the ER, Golgi, or Lysosomes
32
Q

What is the secretory pathway?

A

The pathway taken by a protein to get from the endoplasmic reticulum to the cell membrane or a lysosome

33
Q

What are the organelles or strucutes included in the secretory pathway?

A

ER -> Golgi apparatus -> Lysosomes/Cell membrane

34
Q

What are the unique components of a plant cell compared to an animal cell?

A
  • Chloroplasts
  • Cell wall
  • Plasmodesmata
35
Q

What organelle is the site for lipid synthisis?

A

Smooth Endoplasmic reticulum

36
Q

What is an Erythrocyte?

A

A red blood cell

37
Q

How are Erythrocytes specialized?

A
  • Lack organelles so they can transport more blood,

- Biconcave disc shape so they have more surface area

38
Q

What experiment can you do to test for the organelles in a cell?

A

Staining technique

39
Q

What factors can affect structure/function?

A
  • Shape
  • Size
  • Subcomponents/ abundance of organelles
40
Q

What organelle is abundant in cells that specify in movement?

A

Mitochondria

41
Q

What is it called when a cytoskeletal structure can change its length?

A

Dynamic instability

42
Q

What side of the microtubule or microfilament does the change in length occur for dynamic instability?

A

The plus side

43
Q

What structures do have dynamic instability?

A

Microtubules/filaments

44
Q

What is the purpose of dynamic instability?

A
  • Allows movement in a cell
  • Spindle fibers in mitosis
  • Maintains the shape of a cell
45
Q

What are microtubules made of?

A

Dimers called tubulin

46
Q

What are microfilaments made of?

A

Actin monomers

47
Q

What are motor proteins?

A

Proteins that are involved in movements:

  • Myosin
  • Actin
48
Q

Why are cells small?

A

To maintain a good SA:V,

  • The volume of a cell determines its metabolic rate
  • The Surface Area determines the amount of substance that can go to and from the cell
49
Q

What happens to the metabolic rate compared to the surface area as a cell grows in size?

A
  • The metabolic rate and need for resources grows faster than the surface area of the cell,
  • Some large cells create folds to compensate for a lower SA
  • As size increases, SA:V decreases = lower efficiency
50
Q

How can cells overcome an issue in efficiency without getting smaller?

A
  • Folding to increase SA
  • Compartmentalize reactions (organelle)
  • Change the shape of the cell
51
Q

What does the volume of a cell allow us to predict?

A

How quickly substances diffuse into the cell

52
Q

What does the surface area of a cell allow us to predict?

A

How much a cell interacts with the extracellular environment

53
Q

What is compartmentalization?

A

Cells have organelles that have specific functions in order to increase efficiency in the cell

54
Q

What is endomembrane system?

A

A series of infoldings from the plasma membrane that created organelles in a cell

55
Q

What is included in the endomembrane system?

A
  • Golgi
  • Nucleus
  • ER
  • Vesicles
  • Vacuoles

AP Biology (19 decks)

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