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The cell nucleus (from Latin nucleus or nuculeus 'kernel, seed'; pl.: nuclei) is a membrane-bound organelle found in eukaryotic cells.Eukaryotic cells usually have a single nucleus, but a few cell types, such as mammalian red blood cells, have no nuclei, and a few others including osteoclasts have many.
The nucleus is spherical and separated from the cytoplasm by a double membrane called the nuclear envelope, space between these two membrane is called perinuclear space. The nuclear envelope isolates and protects a cell's DNA from various molecules that could accidentally damage its structure or interfere with its processing.
The nucleus stores the cell's DNA, which is divided into linear bundles called chromosomes; [19] these are separated into two matching sets by a microtubular spindle during nuclear division, in the distinctively eukaryotic process of mitosis.
There has long been evidence that the cytoplasm behaves like a sol-gel. [11] It is thought that the component molecules and structures of the cytoplasm behave at times like a disordered colloidal solution (sol) and at other times like an integrated network, forming a solid mass (gel). This theory thus proposes that the cytoplasm exists in ...
The nuclear envelope is studded by a great number of nuclear pores that give access to various molecules, to and from the nucleoplasm and the cytoplasm. Small molecules can diffuse easily but other larger molecules need to be transported across. [1] The nuclear pore complex consists predominantly of proteins known as nucleoporins (Nups).
The cytosol consists mostly of water, dissolved ions, small molecules, and large water-soluble molecules (such as proteins). The majority of these non-protein molecules have a molecular mass of less than 300 Da. [11]
In many animal cells, centrioles and spindles keep nuclei centered within a cell for mitotic, meiotic, and other processes. Without such a centering mechanism, disease and death can result. While mouse oocytes do have centrioles, they play no role in nucleus positioning, yet, the nucleus of the oocyte maintains a central position.
Nucleoplasm is quite similar to the cytoplasm, with the main difference being that nucleoplasm is found inside the nucleus while the cytoplasm is located inside the cell, outside of the nucleus. Their ionic compositions are nearly identical due to the ion pumps and permeability of the nuclear envelope, however, the proteins in these two fluids ...