Molecular Cell Biology [Fifth Edition]

Like ourselves, the individual cells that form our bodies can grow, reproduce, process information, respond to stimuli, and carry out an amazing array of chemical re- actions. These abilities define life. We and other multicellular organisms contain billions or trillions of cells organized into complex structures, but many organisms consist of a single cell. Even simple unicellular organisms exhibit all the hall- mark properties of life, indicating that the cell is the funda- mental unit...