Cell Wall And Vacuoles: 5 Interesting Facts You Should Know

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In this article, we came to know about different facts about Cell Wall and Vacuoles. Both the cell organelles are present in the plant cells.

Cell Wall is the outermost layer of cells that protect the cell from the outer stress from the environment. Vacuoles is the single membrane bound organelle that is present in the cell cytoplasm.

Both the Cell Wall and Vacuole are integral parts of plant cells. Vacuoles act as a storage compartment in the plant cell. Vacuoles are also present in animal cells but in small in shape but many in numbers.

Do Vacuoles have a cell Wall?

A Vacuole is a single membrane fluid filled sac found in the plant and fungi cell. Plant Vacuoles are large and single in number in plant cell as compared to animal cells. The outer layer of vacoule is known as tonoplast.

Vacuoles formation take place win the fusion of multiple membrane vesicles. The size of Vacuoles depends upon the requirement of the cell. It acts as a waste material management organelle.

Vacuoles also play an important role in autophagy (process of destruction of damaged cellular components stored in vacuoles within the cell). It will help to maintain an equilibrium between biogenesis (production) and degradation.

In animal cells, vacuoles perform the process of exocytosis (exo means outside and cytosis mesns cells i.e. outside of the cell) and endocytosis (endo means inside and cytosis means cell i.e. inside of cell).

What is the relationship between Vacuole and Cell Wall?

In the plant cells, both the cell organelles Cell Wall and Vacuole help to regulate water movement or we can say osmosis. Both keep plant cells to withstand strong enough for some days in water scarcity.

Cell walls support plants to have strong and upright structure and while Vacuoles help to regulate how cells store water and other molecules. The central vacuole stores salts, proteins, minerals, and different types of pigments that help in structure role and plant growth.

Difference between Cell Wall and Vacuole

  • A vacuole is the cavity present in the cytoplasm, single layered and having cell sap inside it. Cell Wall is the present at the outermost region above the cell membrane.
  • The number of Vacuoles in plant cells is one and in animal cells are many in number but of small size. The Cell Wall in the plant cells is only single in number.
  • Vacuoles are found in both types of cell animals and plant cells but cell Wall is present in plant and fungal cells.
  • Vacuole may be present as a permanent structure in plant cells and temporary in animal cells but Cell Wall is a permanent structure.
  • Vacuoles are present in the centre of plant cells and distributed all over the animal cells but cell Wall is present outside of the cell and enclose the whole cell inside it.
  • Vacuoles function as water storing organelle and also store nutrients, ions, waste material.
  • Vacuoles are important for maintaining turgor pressure of a cell and also perform in exocytosis and endocytosis. The cell Wall acts as a protective layer against environmental stress.

Why are Vacuoles important in a cell?

  • Vacuoles have cell sap inside it that help to maintain the turgor pressure of the plant cells.
  • It acts as storing bags for water, minerals, ions and waste materials.
  • The cells which undergo division use their stored food from the vacuoles to get the energy. And this is the reason in actively dividing cells, vacuoles are absent.
  • Due to the presence of minerals ions and different types of proteins, vacuoles provide structural support to the plant.
  • Plant Vacuoles are playing an important role in molecular degradation (destroyed) and storage of different types of ions, minerals and proteins.
  • Vacuoles often store such pigments that help to give colours to the flowers.
  • Vacuoles are helpful in the process of exocytosis and endocytosis.
  • Vacuoles play a major role to maintain the acidic internal pH of the cell.
  • Help in germination of plant and its organs to grow quickly by increasing vacuole size and use its water for the growth purpose.
  • Protein bodies present in the cell having proteins that are required for germination are actually modified vacuoles.
  • Vacuoles play an important role in process of autophagy (process of self destruction).
  • Helpful in the lysis (breakdown) and recycling of misfolded proteins that required to formation of the cell.

Where are the cell walls and vacuole found?

Cell Wall is a structural layer enclosed the cell present outside of the biological membrane that provides structural support and protection. Vacuole is the single membrane bound organelle that is found in the cytoplasmic matrix of a cell.

The vacuole present centrally in the plant cell and occupy most of the plant cell space. In the animal cell, vacuole are distributed all over the cell and relatively small sized and many in number as in plant cells.

Cell Wall and vacuole diagram in the plant cells

cell wall and vacuoles
Plant cell from Wikipedia

Importance of large vacuole to the cell Wall

The large central vacuole is covered by the its own membrane called tonoplast having water and dissolved substances. The primary role is to maintain the pressure against inside of the cell Wall and help to give cell shape and support to the plant.

Conclusion

To wrap up the article, we state that cell Wall and vacoule both are integral part of plant cell. Vacoule play an important role in animal cells as well. Bothcell wall and vacuoles helpful to maintain the cell structure and provide support to the cell.

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