Protoplast facts for kids
Protoplast in modern biology, is what is left of a cell when the cell wall is dissolved. That leaves the cell's nucleus and the surrounding protoplasmic materials.
Definition: a protoplast is a plant, bacterial or fungal cell that had its cell wall completely or partially removed using either mechanical or enzymatic means.
Because cell walls are made differently in the different kingdoms, different enzymes are used to remove them.
Enzymes for the preparation of protoplasts
Cell walls are made of a variety of polysaccharides. Protoplasts can be made by degrading cell walls with a mixture of the appropriate polysaccharide-degrading enzymes:
| Type of cell | Enzyme |
|---|---|
| Plant cells | Cellulase, pectinase, xylanase |
| Gram-positive bacteria | Lysozyme (+EDTA) |
| Fungal cells | Chitinase |
The reason for removing the cell walls is to allow many different experimental techniques to be used.
Protoplasts are widely used for DNA transformation (for making genetically modified organisms), since the cell wall would otherwise block the passage of DNA into the cell. In the case of plant cells, protoplasts can be regenerated into whole plants.
Images for kids
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Fused protoplast (on left), containing both chloroplasts (from a leaf cell) as well as a coloured vacuole (from a petal).
See also
In Spanish: Protoplasto para niños
