Explain why animal cells lack cell walls but possess a cytoskeleton.
Answer
Animal cells lack cell walls because they are surrounded by a flexible plasma membrane allowing varied shapes, while the cytoskeleton provides structural support, maintains cell shape, facilitates movement and intracellular transport.
Step-by-step solution
- In plant, fungal and some protist cells a rigid cell wall made of cellulose or chitin surrounds the plasma membrane, giving structural rigidity.
- Animal cells have only a flexible plasma membrane; absence of a cell wall allows them to change shape and form diverse tissues such as muscle or nerve.
- To compensate for lack of a rigid wall, animal cells have a cytoskeleton composed of microfilaments, intermediate filaments and microtubules that gives structural support and facilitates movement of organelles.
- Thus animal cells lack cell walls but possess a cytoskeleton.
Common mistake: Confusing absence of cell wall with absence of any structural support, ignoring the role of cytoskeleton
Concept tested: Cell structure
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