Cells in an Onion Root
Seen on the right is an onion root viewed under a microscope. Every single dot in the image is actually a cell. There are many things that can be noted in this cell. First, the cell wall, the lines throughout the cell gives it a rigid structure. Upon looking closely, all cells appear different. In fact, each cell is going through mitosis, in which a cell divides into two, or cellular division. In actuality, this process is more similar to nuclear division as the chromosomes within the nucleus replicate and divide. There are five main stages to this: Interphase, Prophase, Metaphase, Anaphase, and Telophase. Unfortunately, as the cells were too numerous, we were unable to give an amount of cells in each stage. However, we could there were very few cells in telophase, telling us that the process was relatively quick. There were many cells in interphase, so going through that stage would take a while. Most people use onion roots when studying mitosis, because it gives a visible image of the cells and their stages. The image is specifically of the tip of the onion root cell. If we viewed the other parts of the onion, perhaps we would find that certain processes occur differently or at different rates. Although, onions may seem boring, looking at them through a microscope shows a new world that would bring a tear to your eye.
On a side note, have you ever noticed that cells multiply by dividing?
Seen on the right is an onion root viewed under a microscope. Every single dot in the image is actually a cell. There are many things that can be noted in this cell. First, the cell wall, the lines throughout the cell gives it a rigid structure. Upon looking closely, all cells appear different. In fact, each cell is going through mitosis, in which a cell divides into two, or cellular division. In actuality, this process is more similar to nuclear division as the chromosomes within the nucleus replicate and divide. There are five main stages to this: Interphase, Prophase, Metaphase, Anaphase, and Telophase. Unfortunately, as the cells were too numerous, we were unable to give an amount of cells in each stage. However, we could there were very few cells in telophase, telling us that the process was relatively quick. There were many cells in interphase, so going through that stage would take a while. Most people use onion roots when studying mitosis, because it gives a visible image of the cells and their stages. The image is specifically of the tip of the onion root cell. If we viewed the other parts of the onion, perhaps we would find that certain processes occur differently or at different rates. Although, onions may seem boring, looking at them through a microscope shows a new world that would bring a tear to your eye.
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