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What is an Animal Cell?

What is an Animal Cell? 

    If you want to know what an animal cell is, you first need to know what a cell is. Cells connect to create tissue and perform functions. The term "cell" was first used by Robert Hooke in 1665. Hooke was an influential English scientist and philosopher during the 17th century (Shapin, 1989). It is also important to understand the unified cell theory when talking about what a cell is. The unified cell theory was proposed by Matthias Schleiden and Theodor Schwann in 1830. It outlines three important things about cells:  

  1. 1. All living things are composed of one or more cells.  

  1. 2. The cell is the basic unit of life.  

  1. 3. All new cells come from ones that already exist through cellular division. 


  2. Types of cells 

    There are two kinds of cells, prokaryotic and eukaryotic. Prokaryotic cells are single celled or unicellular organisms. This type of cell includes things like bacteria cells. However, Eukaryotic cells are multicellular organisms that include plant cells, fungal cells, and animal cells. All animal cells are multicellular or eukaryotic. Being eukaryotic means that they have a membrane bound nucleus as well as other membrane bound organelles. However, prokaryotic cells have no nucleus or any other membrane-bound organelles unlike the animal cell. According to the National Human Genome Project, “An organelle is a sub-cellular structure that has one or more specific jobs to perform in the cell, much like an organ does in the body.” That means that an organelle is a structure inside of the cell that performs actions to help keep it running (Human Genome Project, 2023). 

     

    Organelles and Their Functions in an Animal Cell 


  3. Animal cells have 12 main organelles: cytoplasm, cytoskeleton, cilia, flagella, nucleus, lysosomes, vesicles, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus, ribosomes, mitochondria, and peroxisomes. The cytoplasm is a gel-like substance between the outside membrane of the animal cell and the nucleus. Its basic job is to protect all the organelles within the cell from damage. The cytoskeleton are small protein fibers that help the cell keep its shape and keep organelles in certain positions. The cilia is slender and protrudes from the larger cell body, this helps the cell move through the fluid surrounding it. The flagella is remarkably similar to the cilia in that it protrudes from the cell and contributes to the overall movement of the cell. However, the flagella are more lash like than the cilia. The nucleus houses DNA for the cell and directs certain functions. The lysosomes rid cells of waste, and they use enzymes for digestion and disposal. Vesicles are membrane bound sacs that are used for storage and transport. An interesting fact about vesicles is that they can fuse with other membranes within the cell system. You may also hear the term vacuoles in association with vesicles. Vacuoles are just larger vesicles. The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is a series of interconnected tube-like structures that work together to modify proteins and synthesize lipids. The ER has two parts including the rough ER (RER) and the smooth ER (SER). The RER has ribosomes (responsible for protein synthesis) attached to its surface. The SER is continuous with the RER but lacks the ribosomes the RER has. The Golgi apparatus is responsible for sorting, tagging, packing, and distributing lipids and proteins that are picked up by the ER. The mitochondria make ATP (cell’s main energy carrying molecule). Finally, peroxisomes detoxify poisons that may enter the cell. These are all important organelles that are pivotal to the function of an animal cell.  

     References 

    Human Genome Project. (2023). Organelle. National Human Genome Research Institute. 

    Fowler, Samantha. Rouch, Rebecca. Wise, James. (2013). Concepts of Biology. Open stacks.  

    Shapin, Steven. (1989). Who was Robert Hooke? In Robert Hooke: New Studies, ed. M. Hunter and S. Schaffer., 253-285. Woodbridge, Suffolk: The Boydell Press. 

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