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Life Spans of Human Cells
Life Spans of Various Human Cells
Like all organisms, cells have a given life span from
Cell Type Life Span Cell Division
birth to death. In multicellular organisms, such as
humans, the health of the organism depends on cells
Lining of esophagus 2-3 days
Can divide
not exceeding their life span. This is especially true
Lining of small intestine 1-2 days Can divide
of cells that tend to divide rapidly. If these cells did
Lining of large intestine 6 days Can divide
not die on schedule, overcrowding of cells would Red blood cells Less than
occur, causing uncontrolled growth that would be
Cannot divide
120 days
life-threatening.
The data table shows the life spans of various
White blood cells 10 hours Cannot divide
to decades
human cells. It also contains information about the
ability of the cells to multiply through cell division.
Smooth muscle Long-lived Can divide
1. Inferring White blood cells help protect the body Cardiac (heart) muscle Long-lived Cannot divide
from infection and disease-producing organisms.
Skeletal muscle
Long-lived Cannot divide
How might their function relate to their life span?
Neuron (nerve cell) Long-lived Most do not
2. Comparing and Contrasting Based on the
divide
data, how are the consequences of injuries to the
heart and spinal cord similar to each other? How
are they different from the consequences of injuries 4. Going Further Cancer is a disease related to ced
life span and cell division. If cancer cells were
to smooth muscle?
added to the data table, predict what would be
written under the columns headed "Life Span" and
3. Formulating Hypotheses Propose a hypothesis
"Cell Division." Explain the reasoning underlying
to account for the data related to the cell life spans
your predictions
of the lining of the esophagus, small intestine, and
large intestine.