The
cell wall is a feature of
bacteria,
plant cells, and
fungal cells.
Cell walls of plant cells
The cell walls of plant cells cause them to be more rigid and uniform than animal cells. Made of insoluble
cellulose fibres meshed in to a matrix of
carbohydrates called
pectates and
hemicelluloses, it gives the plant strength and support. The cell wall is generally permeable to anything entering the cell in solution unless impregnated with lignin
? in wood or suberin
? in cork
tissue to produce
wood.
Bacterial cell walls
Cell walls of bacteria are primarily used for protection against hostile envorinments or against the
immune system of the
host of
pathogenic bacteria. It contains
peptidoglycan, which can be made visible in
gram positive bacteria by
gram staining. The cell walls of bacteria are also vital for containing the high [osmotic pressure]
? inside bacterial cells caused by the high concentration of solutes
? in the
cytoplasm, which can often be as high as 15 atmospheres. Many
antibiotics target the cell wall of bacteria, including
penicillin and its derivatives.
Fungal cell walls
The cell walls of fungal cells are composed of chitin?, the same protein that gives strength to the exoskeletons? of insects. They serve a similar to those of plant cells, giving fungal cells rigidity and strength to hold their shapes.
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