Cellular Extensions
Cellular Extensions - Related Videos
28:40
Proboscis Extension Response (PER) Assay in Drosophila
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Cited by 120 •
2007
Proboscis extension response or PER is a taste behavior assay that has been used in flies as well as in honeybees. When the proboscis makes contact with an attractive substance, the fly extends its proboscis to consume the substance. Solutions of various sugars are very attractive to the fly.
03:32
Using a Macrophage Conditioned Medium to Promote Neuron Extensions
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2025
This video demonstrates an assay for promoting the growth of neuron projections known as neurite outgrowth using the macrophage-conditioned medium. Co-culture neurons and macrophages with cAMP and harvest the macrophage-derived conditioned medium. Growing the neurons with the conditioned medium promotes neurite outgrowths. These outgrowths are fluorescently labeled and visualized using a fluorescence microscope.
05:00
Cellular Respiration - Concepts
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2019
Autotrophs and Heterotrophs Living organisms require a continuous input of energy to maintain cellular and organismal functions such as growth, repair, movement, defense, and reproduction. Cells can only use chemical energy to fuel their functions, therefore they need to harvest energy from chemical bonds of biomolecules, such as sugars and lipids. Autotrophic organisms, namely plants, algae, and photosynthetic and chemosynthetic bacteria, convert inorganic materials into such biomolecules by...
05:44
Cellular Respiration - Student Protocol
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2019
Quantifying Respiration using Microrespirometers ExpandNOTE: In this experiment, you will measure the rate of cellular respiration for germinating seeds by measuring the rate of exchange for oxygen. As oxygen is consumed to provide energy, germinating seeds release carbon dioxide. This carbon dioxide is absorbed by potassium carbonate and thus the overall gaseous pressure of the respirometer will be reduced. HYPOTHESES: The experimental hypothesis is that germinating seeds will show a greater...
07:03
Initiating Rapid Neurite Extension and Formation Functional Neuronal Connections
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2025
This video demonstrates a technique for the rapid initiation and extension of a neuron and creation of new connections with a target neuron using a microfluidic device and micromanipulation. This could be used for therapies that aim to reconnect neuronal circuits after trauma or in neurodegenerative diseases.
FAQs
Actin or microtubule remodeling gives the plasma membrane distinct structural support and allows extensions to form with different properties. Because these cytoskeletal systems are coordinated with membrane shaping, cells can produce projections suited to sensing, attachment, movement, communication, or interaction with neighboring cells. This coordination connects internal organization with the specialized behavior required during development.
Their different structures provide distinct ways for cells to engage with their surroundings. Some extensions increase surface interaction or sensing, whereas others support movement, communication, or long-range cellular organization. These functional differences allow developing cells to respond to local conditions while contributing to tissue architecture, polarity, and coordinated morphogenesis.
Extensions must be assembled and remodeled as cells change position, polarity, and relationships with neighboring cells. Their dynamics help cells explore surroundings, establish directional organization, and transmit signals that affect differentiation and morphogenesis. A static projection would not provide the same adaptability, so extension behavior is closely linked to changing developmental environments.
By projecting beyond the main cell body, extensions help cells sense or attach to their surroundings while they move and organize. Their activity can support directional migration, establish cell polarity, and shape how cells interact within a developing tissue. These effects connect individual cell behavior with larger patterns of tissue architecture and morphogenesis.
A useful investigation can follow three connected features: how an extension assembles, how its structure changes over time, and how those changes affect cell behavior or tissue organization. Comparing these features across extension types can clarify links between cytoskeletal remodeling, polarity, migration, signaling, differentiation, and morphogenesis without treating each projection as an isolated structure.
Examining extension formation and dynamics can reveal how disrupted cellular projections affect migration, polarity, tissue architecture, signaling, or differentiation. These connections provide a framework for relating changes at the cell surface to abnormal morphogenesis. The approach is therefore useful for identifying how failures in cellular organization may produce developmental abnormalities at the tissue level.