Cytology Flashcards
Two main classification of cells:
Gametes and Somatic
Cells are:
- Structural “building blocks”
- Produced by division of other cells
- The smallest living unit
Gametes
- Produced by gonads (testes or ovaries)
- Male gametes = sperm
- Female gametes = oocyte
Somatic cells
All other cells in the body except reproductive (gamete) cells
Average cell count in the human body:
75 trillion. About 65 trillion are blood cells. 1cm3=1 billion cells
Largest and smallest cell:
Oocyte and sperm
Cell Shapes:
Squamous Spheroid Cuboidal Discoid Columnar Fusiform Polygonal Fibrous Stellate
Squamous
Thin, flat, scaly shape, often with a bulge where the nucleus is.
Line the esophagus and form the epidermis.
Cuboidal
Cube-shaped. About equal in height and width.
Liver cells are cuboidal.
Columnar
Taller than wide.
Line the stomach and intestines.
Polygonal
Irregular angular shape cell
Stellate
Star-like shaped cells.
Many nerve cells are stellate shaped.
Spheroid
Round to oval.
Egg cells and white blood cells.
Discoid
Disc-shaped
Red blood cells.
Fusiform
Spindle-shaped or toothpick-shaped. Elongated with tapered ends.
Smooth muscle cells.
Fibrous
Long, slender, and threadlike.
Skeletal muscle cells and the axons (nerve fibers) of nerve cells.
Name the three surfaces of a cell:
Apical
Basal
Lateral
Basal
The bottom surface of a cell.
Apical
The outside surface of a cell. Can contain specialized surface.
Lateral surface
Surface towards the sides.
Cells are measured in what?
Micrometers (1 millionth of a meter)
How many micrometers are necessary for a cell to be visible to the human eye?
100 micrometers (size of an oocyte)
Average cell size:
10-15 micrometers
Basic components of a cell (cellular anatomy):
Plasma Membrane Cytoplasm *Cytoskeleton *Organelles *Cytosol Nucleus
