Cell Structures
This "powerhouse" of the cell is responsible for generating ATP through cellular respiration.
What is the Mitochondrion?
This rigid outer layer provides support and protection to plant cells.
What is the Cell Wall?
The organelle that contains the cell's genetic material and controls all cell activities.
What is the Nucleus?
The movement of water across a semipermeable membrane from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration.
What is Osmosis?
The two main components of the cell membrane, making it a "fluid mosaic."
What are Phospholipids and Proteins?
This network of membranes transports proteins and other materials throughout the cell and is studded with ribosomes.
What is the Rough Endoplasmic Reticulum (Rough ER)?
This large, membrane-bound sac stores water, nutrients, and waste, and helps maintain turgor pressure.
What is the Central Vacuole?
The double membrane structure that surrounds and protects the nucleus.
What is the Nuclear Envelope or Nuclear Membrane?
The movement of substances across a membrane that requires the input of cellular energy (ATP).
What is Active Transport?
This type of cell, which includes bacteria, lacks a nucleus and other membrane-bound organelles.
What is a Prokaryotic cell?
The jelly-like substance that fills the cell and surrounds the organelles.
What is the Cytoplasm or Cytosol?
This organelle contains chlorophyll and is the site of photosynthesis.
What is the Chloroplast?
This dense region inside the nucleus is responsible for making ribosomes.
What is the Nucleolus?
This general term describes the movement of small molecules from high concentration to low concentration without the use of energy.
What is Diffusion?
Animal cells have these small, star-shaped structures involved in cell division that plant cells lack.
What are Centrioles or Centrosomes?
Often called the cell's "post office," this organelle modifies, sorts, and packages proteins into vesicles for transport.
What is the Golgi Apparatus (or Golgi Complex / Body)?
The primary sugar molecule produced by the process of photosynthesis in the chloroplasts.
What is Glucose?
Before cell division, the uncoiled strands of DNA and associated proteins are known by this name.
What is Chromatin?
The process where a cell engulfs large particles or substances by wrapping its cell membrane around them to form a vesicle.
What is Endocytosis?
The defining characteristic that differentiates Eukaryotic cells from Prokaryotic cells.
What is the presence of a Nucleus (and other membrane-bound organelles)?
These small, membrane-bound sacs contain hydrolytic enzymes and are responsible for breaking down waste materials and worn-out cell parts.
What are Lysosomes?
The name for the pigment that gives plants their green color and captures light energy for photosynthesis.
What is Chlorophyll?
The name of the process where the cell uses the genetic instructions in the nucleus to create a functional protein.
What is Protein Synthesis (or Gene Expression)?
The term for a solution that has a lower concentration of solutes compared to the inside of the cell, causing the cell to swell.
What is a Hypotonic solution?
A Plant cell has a defined, fixed shape due to the cell wall, while an Animal cell has this type of shape, which can change.
What is an Irregular or Flexible shape?