Cells pull particles inward and engulf them in spherical vesicles in an energy-requiring process called endocytosis. Phagocytosis ("cellular eating") is one of three major types of endocytosis. Cells use phagocytosis to take in large objects, such as other cells (or their debris), bacteria, and even viruses.
The objective of phagocytosis is often destruction. Cells use phagocytosis to eliminate unwelcome visitors, like pathogens (e.g., viruses and bacteria). Many immune system cells, including...

Cells pull particles inward and engulf them in spherical vesicles in an energy-requiring process called endocytosis. Phagocytosis (“cellular eating”) is one of three major types of endocytosis. Cells use phagocytosis to take in large objects—such as other cells (or their debris), bacteria, and even viruses.The objective of phagocytosis is often destruction. Cells use phagocytosis to eliminate unwelcome visitors, like pathogens (e.g., viruses and bacteria). It is perhaps unsurprising, that many...

The ER, Golgi apparatus, endosomes, and lysosomes work in tandem to modify, sort, and package proteins and lipids. An integrated membrane trafficking network facilitates the back and forth shuttling of molecules within different organelles in the same cell or across the cell membrane.
The transport of soluble and membrane proteins is mediated by transport vesicles that collect cargo from one cellular compartment and deliver it to another by fusing with the target organelle membrane. The Rab...

Overview

The resting membrane potential of a neuron (-70mV) is sustained due to the selective ion permeability of the membrane. At the resting potential, the membrane is slightly permeable to ions like sodium (Na+) and chloride (Cl−) and highly permeable to potassium ions (K+). Differences in the ions' concentration inside the cell compared to the outside are maintained by membrane transport proteins like channels and pumps.
At rest, the K+ is the main ion that moves across the membrane through...

Cells use energy-requiring bulk transport mechanisms to transfer large particles, or large amounts of small particles, into or out of the cell. The cells envelop the particles in spherical membranes called vesicles or vacuoles. Vesicles that transport material into the cell are built from the cell membrane. These vesicles encapsulate external molecules and transport them into the cell in a process called endocytosis.