A cell is the smallest component of living organisms. It is the basic, structural and functioning unit of all life. A cell is the smallest component of life that divides or reproduces aside from a virus. A virus, however, uses a cell to divide and reproduce, so a cell is the smallest component of life that can reproduce independently with its own internal resources.
Cells consist of a nucleus, which contains chromosomes of DNA, a cytoplasm containing the cells organelles including mitochondria, lysosomes and ribosomes, and each cell is surrounded by a cell membrane that is much like our skin in the role it plays for the cell. Cells in plants also have an outer cell wall in addition to the cell membrane.
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