Organelles

Organelles



Organelles

Cells have an internal structure

Your skeleton is made of bones that help keep all your body parts in place. Eukaryotic cells have a skeleton, too. It is called the cytoskeleton. The cytoskeleton is a network of protein fibers. They look like a lot of tiny strings that crisscross a cell. The cytoskeleton is the framework of a cell. It gives a cell shape, support, and strength. The cytoskeleton can change as a cell needs to change (Alberts, 2002, Pp. 176).

What might a cell look like if it had no cytoskeleton?

Several organelles are involved in making and processing proteins.

Proteins are a very important type of molecule that are used in all life functions. Basic life functions include reproduction, repair, and growth of injured cells or body parts. Life functions also include the regulation of circulation and digestion systems. You need proteins to digest the foods you eat or to move your muscles when you ride a bike. Proteins are at work when your heart beats or your eye blinks. Some hormones such as insulin, which controls your blood sugar levels, are also proteins.

Proteins are very important, and many organelles work together to make them. These organelles include the nucleus, endoplasmic reticulum, ribosomes, the Golgi apparatus, and vesicles. Ribosomes are found in both eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells. However, the other organelles—those surrounded by a membrane—are found only in eukaryotic cells.

Nucleus

The nucleus stores and protects the DNA of the cell. DNA contains the genes that are the instructions for making proteins.

Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER)

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is a network of thin, folded membranes that help in the production of proteins and other molecules. The membranes are like a maze; they fold back on themselves and have little spaces inside the folds. There are two types of ER, smooth and rough. The rough ER looks bumpy because it has ribosomes attached to it.

Ribosomes

Ribosomes are tiny organelles that link amino acids together to form proteins. They are found on the surface of the ER and floating freely in the cytoplasm.

Golgi apparatus

Each Golgi apparatus is a stack of layers of membranes. In the Golgi apparatus, proteins are changed, put into packages, and carried to other places in the cell.

Vesicles

Vesicles are small sacs. They carry different molecules to where they are needed. Vesicles are generally short-lived and are formed and recycled as needed.

Describe how organelles work together to make and secrete a protein

Cells made of many organelles that work together to help the cell function, just like the organs in our bodies help us function. If one of the organelles in a cell fails to do its job, then the cell can become sick and even die. This paper discusses four of the ways that organelles work together to perform tasks inside of a cell. The first major job of a cell is to make proteins. All cells made of proteins and need proteins to repair itself, make new cells, and ...