Mitochondria speech

Hello Ms. Gaughan’s biology class, thank you for coming to vote for who

would take the place of our former leader, the nucleus. Even though all organelles in

the cell are needed to keep the cell running, some parts do more for the cell and

should be in charge. Mike the mitochondria could not be here today because he is

busy helping power cells in other animal cells today. I am here to represent him and

his campaign.

The mitochondria are commonly known as the powerhouse of the cell, but

what does that really mean? Being the powerhouse of the cell means that the

mitochondria create all of the energy for the cell. The mitochondria are made up of

two membranes, cristae and the mitochondrial matrix. There is an inner and outer

membrane in the mitochondria. The outer membrane has pores that let ions and

small molecules through to the inner membrane. The inner membrane then uses

electrons to spark the process of ATP synthesis. Inside of the inner membrane is the

mitochondrial matrix and cristae. The mitochondrial matrix contains DNA and

ribosomes that help the mitochondria create ATP. Adenosine triphosphate, more

commonly known as ATP, is a molecule that carries energy to all other parts of the

cell. Without the mitochondria, there would be no ATP for any other organelles of

the cell to function.

Even though all organelles in the cell rely on each other, some organelles of

the cell are more fit to take over for the nucleus. The cell membrane is like the

border control. They let things in and out of the cell, and mark where the borders of
the cell are, and that’s it. Don’t get me wrong the cell membrane has an important

job, but sometimes they screw up. Sometimes the cell membrane lets in bad

substances that can cause diseases and harm the cell organelles, and not even

realize that they could damage the cell. The cell membrane also relies on proteins

and lipids to function, while the mitochondria has it’s own DNA, and could survive

on its own if it needed to. Now ribosomes create proteins for the rest of the cell,

which is actually a really important job. The only problem is that since the nucleus is

leaving, there won’t be any more ribosomes left in the cell to carry proteins since all

ribosomes are created in the nucleolus, which is inside the nucleus. Now the

cytoskeleton gives the cell it’s shape and holds all of the cell organelles in place, but

that is the only thing it does. Why would the cytoskeleton be the new leader of the

cell? It doesn’t produce anything and at least the cell membrane lets things in and

out of the cell, the cytoskeleton just doesn’t do much.

If cells didn’t have the mitochondria, then there would be no energy for the

cell to do anything and the cells would die. If there were no cells in the world, then

there would be no life on earth. The mitochondria break down carbohydrates, like

glucose, to make the energy, and without any organelle to break down

carbohydrates, everything else wouldn’t be able to do anything. (Incase it is

mentioned by an opponent talk about how mitochondrial disease is genetic and very

rare, and that you cannot just get mitochondrial disease)

Thank you for listening about why you should vote for Mike the

mitochondria, and remember, “We put the POW! In powerhouse of the cell!”
 Works cited

Nature News, Nature Publishing Group,

www.nature.com/scitable/topicpage/mitochondria-14053590.

“Mitochondria and chloroplasts.” Khan Academy,

www.khanacademy.org/science/biology/structure-of-a-cell/tour-of-

organelles/a/chloroplasts-and-mitochondria.

“Mitochondrial Diseases Signs And Diagnosis.” Cleveland Clinic,

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/15612-mitochondrial-

diseases.

The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. “Ribosome.” Encyclopædia Britannica,

Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., 6 Sept. 2016,

www.britannica.com/science/ribosome.

“Structure of the plasma membrane.” Khan Academy,

www.khanacademy.org/science/biology/membranes-and-transport/the-

plasma-membrane/a/structure-of-the-plasma-membrane.

Antranik. “Bodyweight Training.” Antranikorg, antranik.org/intro-to-cellular-

respiration-the-production-of-atp/.
“The cytoskeleton.” Khan Academy,

www.khanacademy.org/science/biology/structure-of-a-cell/tour-of-

organelles/a/the-cytoskeleton.