Cell Structure & Function
- Sporulation
- Fertilization
- Blastulation
- Gastrulation
- Germ Layers
- Cell Determination
- Cell Differentiation
- Cell Growth
- Cell Death
- Cell Wall
- Extracellular Matrix
- Cell Junctions
- Tight Junctions
- Desmosomes
- Adhesion Plaques
- Gap Junctions
- Chemical Synapses
- Cytoplasm
- Cytoskeleton
- Glycolysis
- Microtubules
- Microfilaments
- Intermediate Filaments
- Centrioles
- Muscle Contractions
- Cytoplasmic Ribosomes
- Some Lab Sites
- General Links
- Mitochondria
- Endoplasmic Reticula
- Golgi
- Lysosomes
- Peroxisomes (Animals)
- Glyoxysomes (Plants)
- Chloroplasts
- Vacuoles
- Other
- Some Lab Sites
Sporulation in Bacteria and Other Fungi
This is the process of undergoing meiosis to produce haploid cells in bacteria and fungi.
In this process, gametes join in a way that permits their nuclei to fuse. In complex multicellular organisms, the resulting cell becomes the developmental progenitor for the entire organism.
In this early stage in animal development, the first cavity (blastocoel) is formed, when the embryonic cells form a hollow ball called a blastula.
In this stage of animal embryonic development, an external layer of cells fold inward to the interior to form the beginning of the digestive tract. This is the earliest formation of the gut in an organism.
Germ Layers: endo-, meso-, exoderm
Endoderm: In animal development, this is the embryonic germ layer that gives rise to the tissues of the digestive tract and many glands.
Mesoderm: In animal development, cells in this embryonic germ layer become the looser packed connective, fibrous, and muscle tissues.
Ectoderm: In animal development, this is the embryonic germ layer of cells that gives rise to the outer epidermis and nervous system tissues.
This is the earliest embryonic commitment of cells to a specific developmental program that often occurs well before any visible change in morphology or function. Cells can be influenced to follow a certain pathway based on the induction of regulatory genes or position in the embryo.
Cells can develop specialized morphology and functions in a process called differentiation. Genetic and environmental cues coordinate these morphological changes and regulate gene expression that allows cells to specialize.
Also called programmed cell death, apoptosis is a systematic, energy-requiring termination of functions in a cell, prior to its disassembly. Unlike cell death due to trauma or necrosis, in which the cell ruptures, spilling its contents into the surrounding space, apoptosis is a more orderly process. Chromatin becomes fragmented (also called DNA laddering) and the nucleus condenses. Finally, the cell collapses and is consumed. This is a normal and important part of organismal development, as well as a defense strategy in plants.