flagellum
Bacterial propulsion appendage
A flagellum is a long, whip-like appendage that propels certain cells through liquid environments.
Bacteria use flagella to swim toward nutrients or away from toxins.
Sperm cells have flagella that drive them toward the egg.
The plural is flagella.
The word shares a root with flagellate, meaning to whip.
Strike or bind
- scourgeCause of mass suffering
- whipStrikes or aerates
- flogBeat with a whip
- flailSwing limbs erratically
thong · cat-o'-nine-tails · knout · bullwhip · penitent · mortification · discipline · switch
Single-celled prokaryotic life
- prokaryoteCell without nuclear membrane
- motilitySelf-generated movement capacity
- chemotaxisMovement toward chemical cues
- taxisHired city cars
hook · filament · salmonella · swimming · swarming · biofilm
Rhythmic rise and fall
- beatingRepeated striking or pulsing
- rotationTurning on an axis
- propulsionForce driving movement forward
- locomotionAbility to travel independently
swimming · waving · oscillation · thrust · wavelike · helical · corkscrew · bundle
Motile cell appendage
- protozoaSingle-celled eukaryotic organisms
- algaePrimitive aquatic photosynthesizers
- microtubuleCylindrical cell structure protein
- undulationRhythmic rise and fall
chlamydomonas · euglena · giardia · beating · waveform
Instrument for viewing minute objects
- nanoscaleBillionth-meter dimension
- ultrastructureMicroscopic cellular organization
- magnificationDegree of visual enlargement
- stainingApplying dye or pigment
fluorescent · visualization · imaging · specimen · slide · observation
Motile cell appendage
- centrioleMicrotubule-based division organizer
- microtubuleCylindrical cell structure protein
- cytoskeletonInternal protein support structure
- membraneThin tissue sheet
lash
Strike or bind
flail · thong · cat-o'-nine-tails · knout · bullwhip · penitent · mortification · discipline · switch · crop
bacterium
Single-celled prokaryotic life
- prokaryoteCell without nuclear membrane
- motilitySelf-generated movement capacity
- chemotaxisMovement toward chemical cues
taxis · hook · filament · salmonella · swimming · swarming · biofilm
undulation
Rhythmic rise and fall
- beatingRepeated striking or pulsing
- rotationTurning on an axis
- propulsionForce driving movement forward
locomotion · swimming · waving · oscillation · thrust · wavelike · helical · corkscrew · bundle · tumbling
cilium
Motile cell appendage
- protozoaSingle-celled eukaryotic organisms
- algaePrimitive aquatic photosynthesizers
- microtubuleCylindrical cell structure protein
undulation · chlamydomonas · euglena · giardia · beating · waveform
microscope
Instrument for viewing minute objects
- nanoscaleBillionth-meter dimension
- ultrastructureMicroscopic cellular organization
- magnificationDegree of visual enlargement
staining · fluorescent · visualization · imaging · specimen · slide · observation
cilium
Motile cell appendage
- centrioleMicrotubule-based division organizer
- microtubuleCylindrical cell structure protein
- cytoskeletonInternal protein support structure
membrane · assembly · biogenesis · rootlet · transition zone
- TrypanosomesTrypanosoma brucei, Trypanosoma cruzi, undulating membrane
- animal partsappendage, forelimb, hind leg, hind legs, hindlegs
- appendagesfins, fin, flipper, flippers, tail
- cell biologycell membrane, cell division, cytoplasm, ribosome, mitochondria
- microbiologybacteria, bacterium, microbe, microbes, microorganisms
- biostructurescell membrane, cell wall, cytoskeleton, mitochondria, nucleus
flagellumnon-motile
Incapable of self-movement
immotile · pseudopod · anchored · stationary · sessile
flagellate, flagellation, flagella, flagellant, flagellates, flagellated, flagellants, flagellating