All the living organisms, even the enormous ones, start their journey from a single cell. The process through which cells originate from existing living cells is called as cell division. Each cell have the ability to divide into two daughters cells (In mitosis), which again can grow and divide. This after many cycles (of growth… Read More »
All the living organisms on this planet are made up of cells. They can be divided into two groups : Prokaryotes and Eukaryotes. Prokaryotes are single celled or colonial organisms, where the cell is surrounded by cell membrane or plasma membrane and lacks a defined nucleus (as found in eukaryotic cell). These cells are of… Read More »
Every living creature on this planet Earth needs to extract energy from the dietary food, a process termed as Catabolism ( breaking down of complex molecules into simpler molecules to yield maximum energy, eg: Glucose gets converted by a process involving Glycolysis, Krebs cycle and electron transport chain – to yield ATP). The opposite cellular… Read More »
Everything on this Earth – living and non-living, is made up of atoms. An atom is the smallest unit of matter that has the characteristic properties of a chemical element. Two or more different or similar atoms will combine to form “Molecules” with the help of chemical bonds. Many molecules, joined together in an organized manner… Read More »
Ion channels have three important properties: They are selective to specific ions They open and close to specific stimuli such as electrical, chemical, or mechanical signals They conduct ions across the membrane. The fastest flow of ions across channels is comparable to the fastest turnover of enzymes such as carbonic anhydrase or catalase. The turnover… Read More »
Plasma membrane is the outermost covering of a human (animal) cell that not only protects the internal organelles but also separates them form the external environment. However, it is more than just a barrier which separates cell from their neighbors. It performs quite a number of other tasks with the help of some proteins, glycolipids… Read More »
Our earth is a wonderful place where many different kinds of organisms co-exist. The diversity observed among living forms is huge- ranging from minute Algae to tall trees, micro organisms like bacteria to gigantic Blue whales. The thing that unifies all of them is that all have a basic unit of life called as “Cells”.… Read More »