Differentiation and Specialised Cells

• What are specialized cells?


  Cells that have specific roles in the body
• What is the process by which cells become specialized?

  Differentiation
• What are examples of specialized cells in animals and plants?


  • Animal examples: sperm cells, muscle cells, nerve cells
  • Plant examples: root hair cells, phloem cells, xylem cells
• What is the role of a sperm cell?


  To deliver genetic material to an egg cell for fertilization
• Why does a sperm cell have half as much genetic material as a normal adult cell?


  To combine with the egg's genetic material to form a normal cell's worth
• What adaptation helps a sperm cell swim to the egg?


  The flagellum at the end acts like a tail
• How does the streamlined shape of a sperm cell assist its function?


  It helps the sperm cell swim efficiently
• What is the function of mitochondria in sperm cells?


  To provide energy for swimming
• What do sperm cells have at the front to aid in fertilization?


  Digestive enzymes to break into the egg cell
• What are the characteristics of specialized cells?


  • Specific roles in the body
  • Unique shapes and structures
  • Different amounts of organelles
• What is differentiation in the context of cell biology?


  The process by which a cell changes to become specialized
• What is a zygote?


  A fertilized egg cell that is the starting point of human life
• What happens to the zygote after fertilization?


  It divides by mitosis into two cells, then four cells, and so on
• What is the state of cells after several divisions before differentiation?


  They are all identical and not specialized
• What does differentiation typically involve?


  Changing the shape and structure of the cell and its organelles
• What are stem cells?


  Cells that can repeatedly divide and differentiate into specialized cells
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