Flagella And Cilia

Question 1

What are flagella and cilia

Answer 1

Both flagella (whip-like) and cilia (hair-like) are extensions that protrude from some cell types. Flagella longer.

Question 2

What are flagella used for

Answer 2

Flagella are used primarily to enable cells motility. In some cells they are used as a sensory organelle detecting chemical changes in the cell’s environment.

Question 3

What are stationary cilia used for

Answer 3

Stationary cilia are present on the surface of many cells and have an important function in sensory organs such as the nose.

Question 4

What are mobile cilia used for

Answer 4

Mobile cilia beat in a rhythmic manner, creating a current, and cause fluids or object adjacent to the cell to move. For example, they are present in the trachea to move mucus away from the lungs (helping to keep the air passage clean), and in fallopian tubes to move egg cells from the ovary to the uterus.

Question 5

How are cilia arranged

Answer 5

Each cilium contains two central microtubules (black circles) surrounded by nine pairs of microtubules arranged like a “wheel”. This is knows as the 9+2 arrangement. Pairs of parallel microtubules slide over each other causing cilia to move in a beating motion.