Question

What are the different types of movement exhibited by the cells of the human body?

Answer 1

Movement is the change of location. It is one of the important features of the living body. Plants and animals show different types of movement. The microorganisms use cilia or flagella, tentacles for movement.

Complete answer:
To answer this question, we must know about the cells of the human body.
The cell movement is a complex phenomenon which is due to the actin network under the cell membrane. It has three components –Protrusion of the cellular edge, adhesion and de-adhesion of the cellular body and cytoskeleton contraction which helps in pulling the cell.
The cells of human body exhibit major three types of movements-

Muscular movement- It is exhibited by the muscle cells. It is caused by the contraction of the myofibrils of the muscle cell.
Amoeboid movement- It is exhibited by the leucocytes of the blood. It is involved in phagocytosis i.e. engulfing of the foreign particles and digesting them by the help of digestive enzymes. It is a kind of defence mechanism.
Ciliary movement- It takes place in tubular organs which are lined by ciliated epithelium. The cilia in the reproductive tract of females help in movement of eggs.

Note: Cells migrate in response to the external stimulus like chemical and mechanical signals. For example amoeboid movement of the WBC and macrophages is due to the chemical stimuli which are generated by the foreign particles. Movement of plant cells is done by the process of cytoplasmic streaming.