Lesson 1: Cell Structure and Function Vocab

Individual living things

One of the major theories of biology, which states that all organisms are made up of cells; cells are capable of self-reproduction and come only from preexisting cells

Proton, neutron, electron

Smallest particle of an element that displays the properties of that element

Union of two or more atoms of the same element; also, the smallest part of a compound that retains the properties of the compound

Proteins, sugars, amino acids, etc

Smallest unit that displays the properties of life; composed of cytoplasm surrounded by a plasma membrane

Group of similar cells combined to perform a common function

Combination of two or more different tissues performing a common function

Membrane-bound organelle within a eukaryotic cell that contains chromosomes and controls the structure and function of the cell

Deoxyribonucleic acid
nucleic acid polymer produced from covalent bonding of nucleotide monomers that contain the sugar deoxyribose; the genetic material of nearly all organisms

A double layer of lipid, containing some proteins, that surrounds biological cells and some oftheir internal structures

Small, often membranous structure in the cytoplasm having a specific structure and function

Structure that surrounds a plan, protistan, fungal, or bacterial cell and maintains the cell's shape and rigidity

Membrane surrounding the cytoplasm that consists of a phosophlipid bilayer with embedded proteins; functions to regulate the entrance and exit of molecules from cell