Centrioles — Structure & Function

What Function Does A Centriole Have?

Inside an animal cell, you will find a pair of centrioles. Their job is to help the cell split up its DNA during cell division.

They are made up of teeny-tiny tubes called microtubules, which have a cylindrical shape.

You can typically find a pair of them near the nuclear envelope of the nucleus in an animal cell, positioned perpendicularly to each other (like a T-shape).

The organelle duplicates and becomes active during the cell division portion of the cell cycle. During a period called prophase, the two pairs move to opposite sides of the cell. The pairs then form the mitotic spindle (or meiotic spindle in meiosis) which produces long, thin strands called spindle fibers. The spindle fibers attach onto a cell's chromosomes and drag them to opposite poles of the cell during anaphase.

Problems with the organelle or the spindle fibers can cause major problems with cell division and could even lead to birth defects.

Key Vocabulary:

1. Centriole
2. Microtubule
3. Spindle fibers
4. Cell division

How Centrioles Help Cells

Centrioles are organelles found in eukarytoic cells.

Each animal cell contains two of them. They are found near the cell nucleus but are only visible during cellular reproduction, which we'll get into later. They help the cell organize its division when it comes time to reproduce.

Centrioles are made of microtubules, much like the cytoskeleton. In case you forgot, microtubules are hollow tubes made from proteins called tubulins that help a cell maintain its shape. Each centriole is made of microtubules organized in a very specific arrangement, as seen in the picture above. It kinda looks like a Twizzler.

Animal cells have two each, and they are always arranged at a right angle with each other.

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$\color{#8925AE}{\text{Centriole}}$ : An organelle that helps to organize cell division

(Video) Centrosomes and Centrioles

by Medic Tutorials

The centrosome is one of many important organelles. It has two sub-units called centrioles. This video explains the structure of these sub-units, how they're laid out to form the centrosome, and the purpose of the centrosome itself in the cell.