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Cells are the building blocks of our body. They are the smallest living units.
The cells are the smallest living units of a multicellular organism like us. We have many varieties of cells in our body with each type having its unique position and purpose in the body. |
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They carry out the basic functions of life
- They make energy for the body from food
- They respire and supply body with oxygen
- They move around and adapt to the environment to help the body
- They eliminate wastes from the body
- They have specialized functions such as produce hormones etc for coordination
- They divide to replace the dead or damaged cells
All cells have similar construction Cells have two main components: 1. The cell membrane: the outer protective covering (skin) of a cell. Its biggest attribute is that it allows selective entry or exit of substances.
- Cell eating (called phagocytosis)
- Cell drinking (called pinocytosis)
- Throw out (called exocytosis) which can be excretion (waste) or secretion (such as hormones, mucus).
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2. Cytoplasm: fluid enclosed by the membrane. It makes up the body of the cell. The fluid part contains water, processed and unprocessed food, wastes, useful nutrients etc. The cytoplasm has many organelles (the organs of a cell). Some of the major organelles are: |
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Nucleus: The brain of the cell. It controls and coordinates all the cell activities. It contains nucleolus that is important in cell division. |
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Mitochondria: It is the powerhouse of the cell. It produces energy for the cell. |
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Endoplasmic reticulum (ER): Transport system of the cell. It has ribosomes associated with it for making protein. |
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Golgi apparatus: The post office that packages and adds address to each substance to be transported inside or outside the cell. |
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Vacuoles: They are the containers for storage and transport. |
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Specialized structures for specific function Some cells develop special structures to fulfill specialized functions. All cells do not have them. |
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Cilia are present in cells lining the respiratory tract and help in its clearing and filtering. |
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Flagella are present mainly for movement of the cells. For example the sperm cells. |
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Cells are team workers Each cell has its own function. However, in our body many alike cells together form a group and work together to perform a specific function for the entire body. Such a group of cells is called a tissue. |
There is no generalization possible in medicine. The pages included in this website are purely educational and have been presented for information purpose only. Each section has been prepared with utmost care but should not be used as a substitute for your own physician's advice and care. Please see 
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