Vacuoles By: Dante DeAngelo

Structure There's a membrane that surrounds a mass fluid. Vacuoles are larger in plant cells than animal cells. The cell is the basic unit of life. Plant cells (unlike animal cells) are surrounded by a thick, rigid cell wall.

Construction Vacuoles are organelles found in cells. They store various substances essential to the life of the cell. They also store waste to later remove from the cell.

Purpose Vacuoles, like vacuums remove harmful waste to the cell. They store water and essential nutrients for later use. For this reason, they are called “storage bubbles”.

Plant Cells  Vacuoles make up about 80% of the volume of a full grown plant cell.  They are more important in plant cells than any other types of cells.  They are surrounded by a membrane called a tonoplast.  They store water and food for the plants to use for other processes.  They store waste products of the cell.  They are called central vacuoles because their function is vital to the plant’s survival and because they are so large  When central vacuoles lack water, the plant droops  Vacuoles push cytoplasm toward the cell membrane, exposing chloroplasts to light

Fungi Cells  Fungal cell vacuoles perform many functions, similar to plant cell vacuoles  They help remove waste product from the rest of the cell  They help maintain the cell’s pH levels so that it can function optimally  Can have multiple vacuoles  Stores amino acids

Animal Cells  Misconception: Some people, to make things simple, say that animal cells do have vacuoles but animal cells do not have vacuoles. Instead, they contain vacuole-like organelles called vesicles  Vesicles: similar function as vacuoles but much smaller than a plant’s central vacuole  Vesicles perform 2 important functions:  Exocytosis: disposal of solids and liquids such as proteins, lipids and bacteria out of cells  Endocytosis: taking solids and liquids such as proteins, lipids and bacteria into cells  One cell can have multiple vesicles

Vacuole Disease: Nasal Parakeratosis  Mostly found in Labrador Retrievers between the age of 6 months to 2 years.  Genetic disorder causes the dogs nose to dry out, especially on the dorsal surface.  Causes the dogs nose to bleed and change color but it can be treated with Vaseline, propylene glycol or salicylic acid.

Contractile Vacuoles  Found in protists  Appear to have spokes and a hub  Spokes collect excess water  Hubs dispose of water (releases it to the outside of the cell)  Necessary in fresh water protests so that they do not burst  Osmoregulation- maintains osmotic equilibrium  Expand and contract as they take in and release liquid  In amoebas vacuoles move as the amoeba moves  In Ciliates vacuoles have a definite path in the cell  In Euglena and other flagellates vacuoles remain  stationary

Conclusion  Vacuoles are vital in plant cells  They make up an extremely large part of the plant cell- up to 80 percent  They help remove waste from the cell  Vacuoles are also important for storage in cells  Animal cells have vesicles, not vacuoles but they perform similar functions

Works Cited cleaners/ cleaners/ /eustruct/lyso.html /eustruct/lyso.html 8. ractile-vacuolehttp:// ractile-vacuole