Unit 2 Flashcards
Chapters 6+7
Light Microscopes
Allow for images of living processes in which light is passed through a stained specimen
Electron Microscopes
Can get a detailed and much more magnified image as electrons are traveling through the unstained speciman
Cell Fractionation
The process that deconstructs cell parts (organelles) by separating them by force
Centrifuge
The machine that spins the specimen being fractionated
Supernatant
The liquid separated from the dense pellet after cell fractionation. This part contains the cell parts not being studied
Eukaryotic Cells
Cells that have compartmentalized sections (organelles) that carry out specific processes, a nucleus, and are often multicelled organisms
Prokaryotic Cells
Cells that are much smaller, contain no organelles or nucleus, and usually exist as a unicellular organism
Nucleoid
The unbound region in a prokaryotic cell where DNA is stored
Flagella/Cilia
Extracellular expenditures that are responsible for cellular movement in prokaryotes (and select eukaryotes)
Nuclear Envelope
The membrane that separates the nucleus from the cytoplasm
Nuclear Pores
Microscopic pores on the nucleus that regulates which substances exit and enter the nucleus, most commonly mRNA
Nuclear Lamina
The fluid area between the double membrane of the nucleus that helps maintain its shape
Nucleolus
The dense area within the nucleus responsible for rRNA synthesis
Ribosomes
Non-membrane bound structures that are responsible for protein synthesis in all cells
Endomembrane System
The collection of organelles that regulate protein traffic (Nuclear envelope, ER, Golgi, Lysosome, Vauole, Plasma Membrane)
Vesicle
Membrane-bound proteins that transport materials across the cell
Glycoproteins
Proteins covalently bonded to carbohydrates used for cell signaling
Golgi Apparatus
The membrane-bound organelle that modifies ER products and sorts them into transport vesicles
Lysosome
Organelle found in animal cells that uses hydrolytic enzymes to break down large macromolecules
Phagocytosis
The process in which the cell engulfs another cell, forming a food vacuole. The lysosome then fuses with the food vacuole to digest the molecules inside
Autophagy
When lysosomes digest and recycle organelles that aren’t being used by the cell by breaking them down
Vacuole
Large vesicles originating from the ER/Golgi that are used for storage
Mitochondria
Double membrane-bound organelles that carry out cellular respiration and contain their own proteins, ribosomes, and DNA
Chloroplasts
Double membrane-bound organelles found in plants where photosynthesis occurs. They contain chlorophyll, thylakoids, ribosomes, DNA, and stroma
Endosymbiont Theory
This theory proposes that mitochondria and chloroplasts were once their own prokaryotic cells that were engulfed by a larger eukaryotic cell. This theory is supported by the fact that mitochondria and chloroplasts have a double-membrane, contain free ribosomes and DNA, and grow and reproduce (split) independently within the cell
Plastids
Name given to organelles specific to plants
Peroxisomes
Specialized oxidative organelles that monitor hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) levels by decomposing H2O2 into water and oxygen