Cell: The Unit of Life

Biology · Class 11

Simulation · Biology · Class 11

Cilium axoneme or centriole?

"Cilium axoneme or centriole?" is a free, interactive Class 11 Biology simulation for NEET, built on the NCERT section "Ribosomes, cytoskeleton, cilia, flagella and centrioles" in Cell: The Unit of Life. Build cross-sections from microtubules: a cilium axoneme (9 doublets + central pair, radial spokes) versus a centriole (9 triplets, hub, no central pair); then turn the centriole into a basal body under a cilium. NEET has asked about this idea 2 times in 10 years of papers.

From the lesson Ribosomes, cytoskeleton, cilia, flagella and centrioles in Cell: The Unit of Life. Change the values and watch what happens.

Cilium axoneme or centriole?Biology · Class 11

What it shows

NCERT §8.5.8–8.5.9

Build cross-sections from microtubules: a cilium axoneme (9 doublets + central pair, radial spokes) versus a centriole (9 triplets, hub, no central pair); then turn the centriole into a basal body under a cilium.

Controls

4 to try

  • Segmentedbuild cilium / centriole
  • Slidertubules per peripheral unit 1–3
  • Togglecentral pair
  • Dragrotate the cylinder

Try this

Build a correct 9+2 axoneme and a correct 9+0 triplet centriole; the check rejects either one with the other's pattern.

Common mistake

Centriole has the same 9+2 array as the cilium.

In NEET

10 years of papers

Asked 2 times in 10 years of NEET.

See the past questions: Cell: The Unit of Life (chapter)

The idea behind it

NCERT §8.5.6–§8.5.9

  • George Palade first observed ribosomes under the electron microscope in 1953 as dense particles. They are made of RNA and proteins and have no surrounding membrane.
  • Eukaryotic ribosomes are 80S (60S + 40S subunits); prokaryotic ones are 70S (50S + 30S). The 'S' stands for Svedberg unit, the sedimentation coefficient, which indirectly reflects density and size, so subunit values do not simply add up.
  • The cytoskeleton is an elaborate network of protein filaments (microtubules, microfilaments and intermediate filaments) giving mechanical support, motility and maintenance of cell shape.
  • Cilia are small, oar-like structures that move either the cell or the fluid around it; flagella are comparatively longer and move the cell. Prokaryotic flagella are structurally different from eukaryotic ones.
  • The eukaryotic cilium or flagellum is covered by plasma membrane. Its core, the axoneme, has nine doublets of microtubules around the edge and a pair of single microtubules in the centre: the 9+2 array.
  • The central pair is linked by bridges and enclosed by a central sheath, which connects to one tubule of each peripheral doublet through a radial spoke, giving nine radial spokes. Linkers join neighbouring peripheral doublets. Cilia and flagella arise from centriole-like basal bodies.
  • The centrosome usually has two cylindrical centrioles surrounded by amorphous pericentriolar material, lying perpendicular to each other.
  • Each centriole is built like a cartwheel: nine evenly spaced peripheral fibrils of tubulin, each a triplet, with neighbouring triplets linked. In the proximal region the centre is a proteinaceous hub joined to the triplets by protein radial spokes; there is no central pair of microtubules.
  • Centrioles form the basal bodies of cilia and flagella and give rise to the spindle fibres of the spindle apparatus during division in animal cells.

Questions

4 answers

What does the "Cilium axoneme or centriole?" simulation show?
Build cross-sections from microtubules: a cilium axoneme (9 doublets + central pair, radial spokes) versus a centriole (9 triplets, hub, no central pair); then turn the centriole into a basal body under a cilium.
What mistake does the "Cilium axoneme or centriole?" simulation fix?
A common mistake it clears up: centriole has the same 9+2 array as the cilium.
Has NEET asked about this idea?
Yes. NEET has asked about this idea 2 times in 10 years of papers.
Is this simulation free?
Yes. It is free and runs in the browser on a phone or a laptop. It belongs to the lesson "Ribosomes, cytoskeleton, cilia, flagella and centrioles" in Cell: The Unit of Life (Class 11 Biology).

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