BRAINCAKEPlant Cells
Plant cells are eukaryotic cells. They contain all the main organelles of animal cells: a nucleus, cell surface membrane, cytoplasm, mitochondria, rough and smooth ER, Golgi apparatus, ribosomes and lysosome-like vesicles. They also have several structures that animal cells lack.
Structures found in plant cells but not animal cells
• a cell wall made mainly of cellulose, outside the cell surface membrane, which supports the cell and stops it bursting
• plasmodesmata, fine channels through the cell walls that connect the cytoplasm of neighbouring cells
• a large permanent vacuole surrounded by a membrane called the tonoplast, containing cell sap
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Key terms in this lesson
- plasmodesmata
- Fine channels through plant cell walls that connect the cytoplasm of neighbouring cells, allowing transport and communication between them.
- chloroplast
- An organelle found in plant cells of green tissues that is the site of photosynthesis.
- amyloplast
- A plant organelle that stores starch, found for example in storage organs such as potato tubers.
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