Why does the cell change its shape?
1 Answer
Because of the changes in the connections between the proteins in the cytoplasm.
Explanation:
The cytoplasm of the cell is made of proteins and these proteins have two levels of being connected together.
If an area of the cell under the cell membrane needs to move, like when forming an endocytic vesicle, the cytoplasm there changes from a state of being bit solid to a state of being a bit liquid. This is called (gel to sol)l transformation.Gel is for gelatin and sol if for solution. This sol cytoplasm under the membrane enables the membrane to go inside a little so the vesicle can start forming.
Once the vesicle is in, the cytoplasm under the cell membrane goes back to the gel state.
This transformation from gel to sol and vice versa is what explains the change in cell shape, and of course the significance is for the cell to interact with the surrounding by getting its needs or defending itself.
