Organelles of Eukaryotic Cells

Diagrams of a eukaryotic and prokaryotic cell.
Click on image for full size (24K GIF)
Modified from NIH
Below is a list of organelles that are commonly found in eukaryotic cells.

Organelle Function
Nucleus The “brains” of the cell, the nucleus directs cell activities and contains genetic material called chromosomes made of DNA.
Mitochondria Make energy out of food
Ribosomes Make protein
Golgi Apparatus Make, process and package proteins
Lysosome Contains digestive enzymes to help break food down
Endoplasmic Reticulum Called the "intracellular highway" because it is for transporting all sorts of items around the cell.
Vacuole Used for storage, vacuoles usually contain water or food. (Are you are thirsty? Perhaps your vacuoles need some water!)
Plant cells also have:
Chloroplasts Use sunlight to create food by photosynthesis
Cell Wall For support

A Matter of Scale - interactive showing the sizes of things, from very tiny to huge - from NSF

Organelles of Eukaryotic Cells

Diagrams of a eukaryotic and prokaryotic cell.
Click on image for full size (24K GIF)
Modified from NIH
Below is a list of organelles that are commonly found in eukaryotic cells.

Organelle Function
Nucleus The “brains” of the cell, the nucleus directs cell activities and contains genetic material called chromosomes made of DNA.
Mitochondria Make energy out of food
Ribosomes Make protein
Golgi Apparatus Make, process and package proteins
Lysosome Contains digestive enzymes to help break food down
Endoplasmic Reticulum Called the "intracellular highway" because it is for transporting all sorts of items around the cell.
Vacuole Used for storage, vacuoles usually contain water or food. (Are you are thirsty? Perhaps your vacuoles need some water!)
Plant cells also have:
Chloroplasts Use sunlight to create food by photosynthesis
Cell Wall For support

A Matter of Scale - interactive showing the sizes of things, from very tiny to huge - from NSF

Parts of a Cell

Diagrams of a eukaryotic and prokaryotic cell.
Click on image for full size (24K GIF)
Modified from NIH

The picture at the left is a diagram of what eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells look like under a microscope.

The eukaryotic cell has many different parts called organelles. Each organelle has a different job within the cell.

Part What it does
Nucleus The “brains” of the cell, the nucleus directs cell activities and contains genes.
Mitochondria Make energy out of food
Ribosomes Make protein
Vacuole Used for storage of water or food. (Are you are thirsty? Perhaps your vacuoles need some water!)
Plant cells also have:
Chloroplasts Use sunlight to create food by photosynthesis
Cell Wall For support

A Matter of Scale - interactive showing the sizes of things, from very tiny to huge - from NSF


Page created April 13, 2004 by Lisa Gardiner.
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