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Year 10
AQA
Foundation

Stem cells in animals

I can explain what stem cells are, and give examples of where they are found in animals.

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New
New
Year 10
AQA
Foundation

Stem cells in animals

I can explain what stem cells are, and give examples of where they are found in animals.

Download all resources
Share activities with pupils

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. An early animal embryo is made of unspecialised cells; these are embryonic stem cells.
  2. Embryonic stem cells can differentiate to become all types of cells in the animal’s body.
  3. As an animal develops into an adult, some cells remain unspecialised; these are adult stem cells.
  4. Adult stem cells can differentiate to become most but not all types of cells in the animal’s body.
  5. An example of adult stem cells in humans (e.g. in bone marrow; these can divide and differentiate to make blood cells).

Common misconception

Adult stem cells don't exist or can differentiate in the same way as embryonic stem cells.

Give examples of adult stem cells and the types of cells they will differentiate into, using examples that pupils might be familiar with.

Keywords

  • Embryo - Formed from a zygote by cell division; it is the early stages of development.

  • Unspecialised cell - A cell with no specific function, but has the capability to turn into different types of cells.

  • Embryonic stem cell - A cell from an embryo which can differentiate into any type of cell.

  • Differentiation - The process of an unspecialised cell becoming specialised through the mechanism of turning genes on and off.

  • Adult stem cell - Can differentiate into related cells.

Turn the last task into a big research task of different adult stem cells, pupils could present it or make a poster.
Teacher tip

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
How are multicellular organisms organised?
cells, tissues, organ systems
cells, organs, organ systems
Correct answer: cells, tissues, organs, organ systems
cells, organs, tissues
cells, organ system, organs, tissues
Q2.
Put the following in order starting with the smallest.
1 - gamete
2 - zygote
3 - embryo
4 - foetus
5 - baby
Q3.
What features does an egg cell have?
An image in a quiz
lots of chloroplasts
Correct answer: outer jelly layer
lots of mitochondria
Correct answer: nutrient store
Q4.
True or false? When a cell such as a muscle cell divides by mitosis, stem cells are produced.
true
Correct answer: false
Q5.
Who is correct?
Andeep: Any cell can become a stem cell.
Alex: All cells were originally a stem cell.
Izzy: All stem cells can become any cell.
Correct answer: Sam: Cells become specialised by genes being switched on and off.
Q6.
True or false? Only animals have specialised cells.
True
Correct answer: False

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
True or false? Embryo cells are unspecialised and can become any type of specialised cell.
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: true
false
Q2.
Cells that remain unspecialised in an organism are called stem cells.
Correct Answer: adult
Q3.
What can adult stem cells found in bone marrow not differentiate into?
white blood cells
Correct answer: nerve cells
platelets
red blood cells
Q4.
By what process do adult stem cells renew?
Correct Answer: Mitosis
Q5.
Who is correct?
Correct answer: Sofia: Specialised cells cannot change back into stem cells.
Correct answer: Laura: Only embryonic stem cells can differentiate into any type of cell.
Izzy: All genes are turned on in all cells.
Correct answer: Andeep: Specialised cells divide by mitosis to produce cells of the same type.
Q6.
What is the name of the process by which cells become specialised?
Correct Answer: Differentiation