The Cell Vocabulary

Active Transport: requires energy or ATP; moves materials from low to high
concentration; against concentration gradient.

Carrier Proteins: change shape to move material from one side of the membrane to
the other

Cell in Hypertonic Solution: cells shrink because of water flow from higher water
potential to lower

Cell in Hypotonic Solution: animal cell swells or bursts because water moves from
higher water potential to lower water potential

Cell in Isotonic Solution: nothing happens to the cell because the concentration of
the solutions outside and inside the cell are equal; water moves in the cell at the
same rate that it exits the cell

Cell Membrane: polar heads are hydrophilic "water loving;" nonpolar tails are
hydrophobic "water fearing;" makes membrane "selective" in what crosses

Cell Wall: inflexible boundary found outside the cell

Cells: basic units of life

Channel Proteins: embedded in the cell membrane and have a pore for materials to
cross

Chloroplasts: converts light into sugar and starches

Cilia: hairlike extensions from the plasma membrane

Cytoplasm: a fluid that lies outside the nucleus and surrounds the organelles

Cytoskeleton: network of thin, fibrous tubules that give the organelles support in the
cell

Diffusion: diffusion is a passive process which means no energy is used to make the
molecules move, they have a natural Kinetic Energy

Endocytosis: moving things in the cell

Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER): transportation system for the cell; can be smooth or
rough

Eukaryotic Cells: organism whose cells contain a nucleus; eu=true

Exocytosis: moving things out of the cell

Facilitated Diffusion: molecules will randomly move through the pores in Channel
Proteins; requires no energy

Flagella: long, projections that move in whip-like motion

Golgi Apparatus: post office; pancake like structures that modify and repackage
proteins then ship them to other parts of the cell

Homeostasis: balanced internal condition of cells; also called equilibrium;

maintained by plasma membrane controlling what enters and leaves the cell

Lysosomes: janitors/garbage trucks; digestive organelle that contains enzymes that

break down worn or broken parts

Mitochondria: electric company; powerhouse of the cell; supplies the cell with all the
energy it needs

Nucleolus: produces ribosomes; found inside the nucleus

Nucleus: control center of the cell; contains DNA

Osmosis: diffusion of water across a membrane; moves from high water potential
(low solute) to low water potential (high solute)

Phagocytosis: cell eating; extentions of cytoplasm engulf large particles such as

food, bacteria, etc. into vesicles; the cell then absorbs it

Phospholipids: make up the cell membrane; contains 2 fatty acid chains that are
nonpolar; head is polar and contains a -PO4 group
Pinocytosis: cell drinking; many cells take up liquid from their surrounding
environment; they form tiny pockets to form vacuoles

Plasma Membrane: flexible and allows for change of shape; controls materials
entering and leaving; helps maintain a homeostasis in the cell

Prokaryotic Cells: A single celled organism lacking a nucleus; pro=before/1st;

kary=nucleus

Ribosomes: factory; enzyme and protein synthesis occurs here; they can be free
floating or bound to ER

Rough ER: has ribosomes attached to it

Semipermeable Membrane: small molecules and larger hydrophobic molecules

move through easily

Simple Diffusion: requires no energy; molecules move from area of high to low
concentration

Smooth ER: no ribosomes

Vacuole: storage unit; larger in plant cells than in animal cells because plants need
more water storage