Shrink-Ray-O-Santos By Gabriel S The year is 2014. Cells have become a hit topic in the world of science. Mr Santos has finally invented a way to shrink humans to 1 nano-meter. Mr. Santos quit his job at SDA and watched “Honey, I shrunk the kids” several hundred times. He has recently created a tour guide to give students with a not-so-good grade at SDA a 1 hour long tour inside of a typical cat cell. He has selected 3 students to go along with him, Nigel, Colin, and Algernon. All the students have a borderline grade (D+). In order to pass the Biology class, they’ll have to go on this tour with Mr. Santos as their tour guide. “All right kids, let’s get a move on, I don’t want this to take too long, I need to get to Red Robin soon” Mr. Santos says with eagerness. “wooooooo” All of the kids say enthusiastically. ZZZZZRRRRBFROOOOOOFFFFFF, the shrink-ray-o-santos makes an ear piercing noise as it shrinks the students down. “wow, I feel so small” Nigel exclaims. Several minutes of walking go on until the tour group comes up to the first part of the cell, the Golgi. How about we start our cell journey with the Golgi Apparatus, also known as the Golgi Complex, but we'll just use the code name "Golgi" for now. The Golgi is found in most Eukaryotes. I like to call this cell part, the "Post Office", because it sorts out all the proteins into the packages they belong in, before being shipped out to other parts of the cell. The Golgi is found in the cytoplasm of both animal and plant cells. It is particularly important because it sorts out the proteins that the cell has in order for it to function. “Any questions kids?” Mr Santos asks... No response is given due to the fact that all the kids are busy poking the cell floor. “sigh... Why don’t we just move on then. Let’s head over to the Nucleus” Mr. Santos says. The kids follow eagerly. Where would we be without the Nucleus. The Nucleus is also found in all Eucaryote cells. The Nucleus is essentially the information center, it has the instructions to control eating, movement, and reproduction. Its main function or role is to hold and store the cell's DNA. The Nucleus is the largest cellular organelle in any living animal. Nucleus's are generally located in the center of the cytoplasm, it's most likely not going to be near the cell wall because that might be a dangerous place for it to be placed because it could be damaged easily. “So how are you guys liking the experience so far” Mr. Santos asks. “It smells odd in here” Colin states. “Hey! What’s that over there!” Algernon is seen pointing at a organelle in the distance. “Why don’t we head over there and find out” Mr. Santos says. Lysosomes are also very important to allEukaryote cells. The Lysosome is a membrane-bound cell organelle found in all animal cells. The Lysosome breaks down proteins and transfers them either to another organelle to be used, or a waste disposal organelle. I like to call this organelle "The stomach of the cell", because it breaks down proteins and enables the cell to use them. “POP QUIZ!” Mr. Santos yells out. The students look at him with confused faces. “What does a Lysosome do?”. A fairly easy and simple questions still leaves the students confused. “It.... It... I don’t know” Says Nigel. Mr Santos looks toward the other two students, but he can tell from their faces that they have no idea. No hope is left for these three students. Another extremely important organelle found in animal cells is the mitochondrion. It’s essentially the power plant of the cell because it generates most of the adenosine triphosphate (ATP) that the cell uses to operate. Some cells only have a single mitochondria while others have several to help power the cell, even up into the thousands! The mitochondria has specialized compartments in it to help it carry out it’s function. The outer membrane, Inter-membrane space, inner membrane, matrix, and the cristae are all parts of the mitochondria. “Why don’t we just get this over with, it’s obvious you guys are still in shock by the fact that you’re inside a cell” Mr. Santos says. Now onto the endoplasmic reticulum (ER... We’ll just refer to it using that..). The ER is found in all animal cells and forms a connection network of tubes called the cisternae. I like to call this organelle the “packaging system”. The ER is highly dependent on other organelles like the golgi and ribosomes. There are two main types of ERs, the rough ER, and the smooth ER. Both use the same type of membrane, but have different shapes, and the rough ER has ribosomes attached to it. The smooth ER acts as a storage container, like proteins, steroids, and ions that the cell may need at a later time. “Why don’t we change gears a little bit and focus on something other than an organelle, the ribosomes!” Mr. Santos says with enthusiasm. The kids still look like they just witnessed a bear eat a mailbox. Ribosomes are found all over the area in the cytoplasm. These ribosomes make protein that are used in the cell. Other areas ribosomes are found is in the ER (endoplasmic reticulum). Ribosomes are composed of two pieces. They are named 60-S (large) and 40-S (small). The RNA is sent to the ribosomes and the two pieces collide together with the RNA and lock together, this starts protein synthesis. “Since we’re basically standing in it, I might as well talk about the Cytoplasm” Mr. Santos says while he stares at his shoes with a gooey substance covering it. The Cytoplasm is a gel like substance that fills a cell. The cell organelles are cemented in the cytosol. The microfilaments and microtubules form a skeleton while the cytosol fills in the gaps and spaces between the skeleton. Enzymes, fatty acids, sugars, and amino acids are found in the cytosol to keep the cell working functioning. Products that the cell doesn’t need are also dissolved before being sent to the vacuole. “Well, I hope you guys got something useful out of this trip through a cat cell. Maybe this will prepare you for the final, which will essentially make or break your borderline passing grade.” Mr. Santos says with disappointment. “Wait... Where did Nigel go....?” Mr Santos asks. “I think he’s still back by the Cytoplasm” Answers Colin. “NIGEL!, where are you Nigel?!” Mr Santos yells. Nigel floats back to the surface through the Cytosol face down... Dead... In the Cytosol...
Word Count: 1200 Words required: 500 Passing grade: C- Grade achieved: A+ This was the first assignment I actually enjoyed making, if you actually cared to read it.