Movement

A living cell is metabolically very active:

• materials constantly enter or leave the cell, or move from one part of the cell to another;

• genetic information flows from the nucleus to the cytoplasm; and 

•  proteins and other substances which are manufactured or broken down are transported within or out of the cell.

As a result, the contents of the cell are not only actively functioning but also constantly moving. This can be seen as protoplasmic streaming or cyclosis, where the cell's protoplasm flows around the cell constantly in one direction.

   The cytoplasm of the cell has a network or skeleton of very fine fibres called microfilaments and very fine tubules called microtubules. The contracting of the microfilaments produces a current that causes protoplasmic streaming. The microtubules produce paths along which materials move within the cell. They also move chromatids and chromosomes during cell division