vocabulary words.

1. 25 vocab words
Definitions included
By: Tyler Winningham

2. Electron microscope
• A type of microscope that uses beams of
electrons to illuminate objects

3. virions
• Viral particles that have some similarities to
cells in that they contain genetic material and
structural proteins.

4. Prokaryotic cells
• A type of cell that contains generic material
that is not confined to a nucleus: the smallest
of all cells and generally considered to be
neither plant nor animal

5. Nucleoid region
• The region around the nucleus of a cell

6. DNA
• A genetic protein like nucleic acid on plant and
animal genes and chromosomes that control
inheritance

7. Eukaryotic cells
• A type of cell that contains genetic material
within the confines of a membrane-enclosed
nucleus; all plants and animals are made up of
eukaryotic cells.

8. Cell membrane
• Structure composed of proteins and lipids and
that contains the cytoplasm and nucleus.

9. diffusion
• A process by which molecules in solution pass
through the cell membrane from a region of a
higher concentration of molecules to a region
of lower concentration of molecules.

10. osmosis
• A process by which water passes through the
cell membrane from a region of high
concentration to a region of low
concentration; if the cell has relatively little
water inside, water is drawn from outside into
the cell membrane.

11. homeostasis
• The ability of an organism’s cell to remain
stable when conditions around it are
changing.

12. Cell wall
• A structure, found only in plant cells,
composed of cellulose and proving some
support for the entire plant.

13. mitochondria
• A peanut-shaped mitochondria that functions
to break down food nutrients and supply the
cell with energy

14. Vacuoles
• Organelles that serve as a storage
compartment for the cell

15. microtubules
• Organelles that are small, thin hollow tubes,
composed of protein, that give the cells their
shape and assist the movement of
chromosomes during cell division.

16. microfilaments
• A device that are fine fiber-like structures
composed of protein and help the cell move
by waving back and forth

17. ribosomes
• Organelles of very tiny structures that are the
sites where protein molecules are assembled
in the cell.

18. Endomembrane system
• The cell membrane, the endoplasmic
reticulum, the Golgi apparatus, the nucleus
membrane, and the vesicles.

19. Endoplasmic reticulum
• A large webbing or network of double
membranes that are positioned throughout
the cell whose function is to provide the
means for transporting material throughout
the cell

20. lumen
• An inner space within a cell where ions, such
as calcium, are stored and proteins are folded
and modified.

21. Golgi apparatus
• An organelle, shaped like a group of flat sacs
bundled together, whose function is to
remove water from the proteins and prepare
them for export from the cell.

22. Lysosomes
• Organelles that are the digestive units of DNA

23. plastids
• Bodies in plant cells that contain
photosynthesis pigment.

24. Chloroplasts
• Plastids that use the energy of the sun to
make carbohydrates and contain chlorophyll
that gives their green color.

25. Leucoplasts
• Plastids that provide storage for the cell and
are abundant in seeds, providing nutrients for
emerging plants and animals that eat the
seed.

26. Chromoplasts
• Plastids that manufacture pigments that give
fruit their color and also give leaves their
brilliant color in the fall.