EXPLORE THE ANIMAL CEL:

Have you ever wondered what will happen to a cell, if one of its functions

were missing? Well… here is a great opportunity for you to find out!

So, come here to explore all the interesting bits and pieces that make up

the animal cell!

The first feature we will look at is the Nucleus. The nucleus is covered with a cell membrane. Without a nucleus, the cell will go chaos, or it will not be able to control itself. The second organelle we see is the vacuole. Most vacuoles look like small sacs filled with fluid. If there were a lack of vacuoles, the cell will not have a place to store necessary items, such as water, food, and wastes. The next organelle looks like little round grains, these are ribosomes. With no ribosomes, the cell would not be able to develop, and it would not get enough proteins. Moving on, we see the cytoplasm. The cytoplasm is the gel-like material, which does most of the work in a cell. Devoid of the cytoplasm, the cell’s structure would collapse. Now we see what is called the cell membrane. The cell membrane is a thin layer made up of proteins and lipids. Without the cell membrane, materials will not be able to pass in and out of the cell, thus the cell will not be safe. After the cell membrane, comes the cytoskeleton. The cytoskeleton is made up of series of fibers. If an animal cell contains no cytoskeleton, then the cell will eventually become weak. Another structure of the animal cell is the lysosomes. Lysosomes have an easy job-they recycle. Therefore, if a cell does not contain a lysosome, the cell will be filled up with broken down particles, moreover, waste products. Furthermore, now we see the mitochondria. The mitochondria is like a rod shape organelle, surrounded by two membranes. Without this very important structure, the cell will not get enough energy. Next, we see the Golgi Body. You can think the Golgi Body as a packaging machine. Without the Golgi Body, the cell will not get enough materials. Finally yet importantly, we reach the Endoplasmic Reticulum (or E.R.). The Endoplasmic Reticulum is like a chain of tunnels that transport proteins. Without the ER, cells will not be able to communicate.

AS YOU CAN SEE, ALL THESE FUNCTIONS/ORGANELLES ARE VERY IMPORTANT TO AN ANIMAL CELL. IF ONE OF THESE ORGANELLES WERE MISSING, OR WERE DESTROYED, THE CELL WILL HAVE A POSSIBLE CHANCE OF DYING.