Plant+Cells+-+AK

=Introduction= toc Are you one of those people who want to go get food from the fridge, but just can’t bring yourself to get up and go get it? Well, I am. We humans, we have to grow our own food, harvest our own food, buy our own food, and then, finally, we can eat it.

Plant cells, on the other hand, all they have to do is wait for the sun to come out, than wait for the rain. The whole process of photosynthesis revolves around the chlorophyll of a plant harvesting sunlight and making it into food for the plant. Don’t you wish you could just stand in the sun for a little while, and after a few minutes, not be hungry anymore? However, that is just //one// of a plant cell’s many superpowers. There are so many other organelles, that have jobs just as important as chlorophyll. Although there are many qualities that plant cells share with other types of cells, you can’t compare any to the work that plant cells can do, just by themselves.

=What Organelles Are Inside Of A Plant Cell?= In Plant Cells, there are two organelles that protect the cell. One is the Cell Membrane, and the other is the Cell Wall. The cell membrane surrounds the cytoplasm, and helps it hold all of the organelles in. It decides which substances go in, and which go out. The cell wall is the first layer of protection for the cell. It surrounds the cell membrane, and is a rigid layer of nonliving material that protects the cell.

Do you know how your brain controls your whole body, your movements, your thoughts, your senses? Well Plant Cells have brains too. So do all other cells. The brain of a cell is called a Nucleus. The nucleus is an oval structure in the center of a cell. It is the control point, that directs all of the cell’s activities.

Imagine a cell is like the United States. For instance, the nucleus is the president, the cell membrane/cell wall is the Military, the vacuoles are the stores (the hardware/grocery stores), and the Mitochondria are the electricians, the engineers, and the scientists, making new energy for everyone. As you can see, a cell is just another form of a country. It has its government, its protection, and its jobs.

**Mitochondria**: harvest sunlight and make it into energy **Cytoplasm**: the fluid that surrounds the nucleus **Nucleus**: the control point of the cell **Chloroplast**: harvests energy from the sun and makes it into food **Vacuole**: a large water-filled sac that stores food and materials **Cell wall**: the protective shield that surrounds the cell **Cell membrane**: a shield just inside the cell wall that holds all of the organelles of the cell in **Ribosomes**: produce proteins **Golgi Bodies**: deliver materials to separate parts of a cell, after receiving them from the Endoplasmic Reticulum. Golgi bodies also let loose materials outside the cell. **Lysosomes**: recycle parts of the cell, and break down materials if needed **Endoplasmic Reticulum**: carry materials and proteins to different organelles and parts of the cell **Chromatin**: strands that help the nucleus direct the cell **Nucleolus**: makes ribosomes **Lignin**: the substance that makes wood hard and stiff **Cellulose**: forms fibers in many species of plants

=What Do Plant Cells Do?= Although they do many things, one of the main jobs that plant cells do is conduct photosynthesis. Photosynthesis gives energy and nutrients to plants so they can live and grow. Chlorophyll is the organelle that’s job is to create photosynthesis.

You need proteins, just as a plant cell does. Your body gets its proteins from food, and plant cells get theirs from food and sunlight. There are plenty of other organelles that help in the process of making proteins, but ribosomes are the ones that do the actual producing. One type of protein is called an **enzyme**. Enzymes aid in initiating and speeding up reactions from chemicals inside of the cell. Most proteins aid with cell growth and repair.

Do you want to know how all of this healthy stuff gets around? The answer is **Xylem** and **Phloem**. Xylem moves water and minerals from the roots to other plant parts. Phloem moves food from green cells to cells throughout the plant.

=How Does Photosynthesis Work?= Photosynthesis (fo-to-sin-thi-sis) is the process of harvesting energy from the sun and using it to help a plant live and grow. Chlorophyll (clo-ro-fill) captures and harvests energy from the sun, and keeps and stores it as chemical energy. Glucose makes extra water molecules, and it is the main source of nutrition for plants, fueling their cells for function and growth.

Stomata takes a big part in the process of photosynthesis. Stomata are open spaces in plant leaves that open and close, taking in carbon dioxide, and letting out oxygen for people to breath. When stomata close and don’t reopen, photosynthesis comes to a halt, because carbon dioxide can’t get into the plant, and the plant starts to die.



** This is a diagram of a plant cell and the organelles inside of it. All of the organelles help a plant cell to do its job. ** = = =How Are Plant Cells The Same/Different As Other Cells?= We all know that plant cells are obviously, a type of cell, but do YOU know the differences that make a plant cell it’s own, and the similarities that define it as “the building blocks of a living thing?”

All cells can form tissues, by forming together with cells of their own kind, and creating a surface. This is one way that a plant cell has similarities with other types of cells.

Many different types of cells have organelles, obviously, and many organelles are found in other cells as well as plant cells. Mitochondria, for example, are found in both animal cells and plant cells. Mitochondria are very similar to chloroplasts, which also produce energy for the cell, but chloroplasts are only found in plant cells, not animal.

Organelles like the cell wall and the large vacuole are also only found in plant cells. Animal cells have vacuoles too, but the difference is that plant cells have one very large vacuole, while on the other hand, animal cells have several small vacuoles. = = =How Do Plant Cells Defend Themselves?= There are two ways in which plant cells defend themselves. There are many bacteria cells and pathogens that try to penetrate plant cells, so obviously, the plant cells have to have ways to protect themselves from these harmful substances.

First of all, if a plant cell detects any sign that there is a chance a harmful substance can attack, it increases its cell wall’s defense.

Second, when pathogens try to sneak in and attack plant cells, they are ready for them. Plant cells can produce antibodies just like our bodies can, fighting off the pathogens, and adapting, so that they can not attack again.

=Conclusion= Once you really look at it, you would not be here without plant cells. You would not be reading this, thinking about this, or be doing anything else. You would not even be breathing.

Plants do so many jobs, like photosynthesis. It is a miracle that we can figure out all of the organelles that do the work. To some people, a plant cell is just a cell. But although it has similarities, it also is unique.

But really, just think; without plant cells a plant would not grow, and without a plant growing and giving off oxygen, we as people would not be able to breath. You owe your life to plants’ waste. But that is just one of the many reasons that you should respect plants and their cells. People kill plants, thinking it makes no difference, but look at all of the things plants can do. They have their own ways of growing that is much, much easier than ours.

=References:=

Works Cited “Cell Models:An Interactive Animation.” CELLS alive. Quill Graphics, 2014. Web. 18 Dec. 2014. . Padilla, Michael J., Ioannis Miaoulis, and Martha Cyr. Prentice Hall Science Explorer. Boston: Pearson Prentice Hall, 2007. Print. “Plant Cell Illustration With Hyperlinked Labels.” Wayne’s Word. W.P.Armstrong, 2012. Web. 21 Jan. 2015. . Spilatro, Steven R. “How would stomata closure affect photosynthesis?” Department of Biology, Marietta College. Marietta College, 1998. Web. 21 Jan. 2015. . Stille, Darlene R. Plant Cells: The Building Blocks of Plants. Minneapolis: Compass Point, 2006. Print. “Ten Facts About Cells.” about education. About.com, 2014. Web. 22 Dec. 2014. .