how do flagella and cilia help pseudopodia to move around? 

Some cells are able to move because they have specialized structures called cilia and flagella. Cilia are tiny hairs along the outside of the cell membrane which can push the cell along, and flagella are much larger hairs which can move back and forth to propel the cell. Both cilia and flagella have the same general structure; they are composed of microtubules. In eukaryotic organisms, the microtubules are arranged in a set of ten pairs. Nine of the pairs form a circle around the center, where the tenth pair is located. Biologists call this arrangement a 9 + 2 configuration.

Flagellum of a euglena
Flagellum of a euglena
(image courtesy of BIODIDAC)

At the connection between the cilia or flagella and the cell membrane is another structure called the basal body. Basal bodies are also composed of microtubules, but they do not have a 9 + 2 configuration. Instead, they have 9 triplets (not pairs) of microtubules arranged in a circle. There are no microtubules in the center of the basal body, so the configuration is said to be 9 + 0. 9 + 0 configuration

Another method of cell movement is through the use of pseudopodia. Pseudopod literally translates as "fake foot," but pseudopodia are not organelles or even true structures. Rather, they are just extensions of the cytoplasm toward which the rest of the cytoplasm tends to flow. An example of an organism that utilizes this type of motion is the amoeba.

  • 1

plz thumps up

  • 1
What are you looking for?