Cellular Structure
Almost all forms have chloroplasts. These contain chlorophylls a and b, giving them a bright green color (as well as the accessory pigments beta carotene and xanthophylls), and have stacked thylakoids.
All green algae have mitochondria with flat cristae. When present, flagella are typically anchored by a cross-shaped system of microtubules and fibrous strands, but these are absent among the higher plants and charophytes, which instead have a 'raft' of microtubules, the spline. Flagella are used to move the organism. Green algae usually have cell walls containing cellulose, and undergo open mitosis without centrioles.
Read more about this topic: Green Algae
Famous quotes containing the word structure:
“A structure becomes architectural, and not sculptural, when its elements no longer have their justification in nature.”
—Guillaume Apollinaire (1880–1918)