Definition of protoplasm - What it is, Meaning and Concept

The first thing we are going to do before entering the establishment of the meaning of the term protoplasm is to determine its etymological origin.In this sense, we can say that it derives from Greek, from the sum of two words of that language:-”Protos ", Which is synonymous with" original "or" primitive ".-" Plasma ", which can be translated as" figure ".

The word is considered to have been used for the first time by the writer Venancio Fortunato, around 600 AD, to refer to the first creation: that of man, however, the term as we understand it today and we use it is the work of the German biologist Hugo von Mohl, who used it for the first time in 1846 to refer to the white viscous liquid that exists within what the cell is.

The dictionary of the Spanish Royal Academy (RAE) mentions that protoplasma and cytoplasm are two terms that they function as synonyms, referring to the area of ​​the cell (and the organs it houses) located between the nucleus and the plasma membrane.

The experts in biology , on the other hand, recognize some important differences between the two notions.The protoplasm, in this sense, refers to the totality of the cell structure , including the cytoplasm and the carioplasma (the medium internal of certain cells, which houses the nucleoli).

If we stay with this last meaning, therefore, the protoplasm encompasses the cytoplasm and the nucleus .The concept refers to the living material found in the cell, grouped into different structures.Cytoplasm, in this way, is then limited to a certain part of the protoplasm which, in eukaryotic cells, lies between the plasma membrane and the nucleus.

The protoplasm is mostly made up of water .It also has carbohydrates , proteins , enzymes , lipids and electrolytes , components that allow you to develop various functions at the metabolic level.

Each of those organic substances that shape the protoplasm fulfill a very specific function, so if, for example, carbohydrates are responsible for shaping cell walls and also storing the energy that will be the primary source.While, on the other hand, the proteins have the mission to play a fundamental role in the transport of oxygen, the protection and structure of the ones and the hair or accelerate the breakdown of food.

It should not be overlooked that, in addition to water, the protoplasm has other important inorganic substances.This would be the case of salts, which perform a vital task in the formation of structures and as a regulator of PH.

It can be said that the protoplasm is an organized mixture of different chemical substances that can be found as solids or dissolved in the water and that are usually in a permanent process of transformation inside the cell.

Protect the different organs of the body, act as a reservoir of energy , transport oxygen, regulate thermal properties and promote numerous chemical reactions are some of the tasks that the protoplasm fulfills in the body.