Question #041ce
1 Answer
To protect the plant cell and provide turgidity allowing the plant to stand upright.
Explanation:
The cell wall is mainly made of cellulose, which is tough and fibrous and forms a net-like structure that forms the cell wall. (Extra: cellulose is also used in lignin which helps strengthen the plant further and help it stay upright, also gives plants that 'crunchy' texture like in lettuce).
The cell wall provides protection for the plant cell as it is a much tougher and thicker layer compared to the plasma membrane. it helps the plant cell hold its more uniform shape.
The cell wall works in tandem with the large central vacuole in the plant cell to keep the cell and plant as a whole turgid. When the vacuole is filled with water, it pushes up against the rigid cell wall (the cell wall isn't very malleable and doesn't stretch well) and creates the turgidity allowing a plant to stand upright.
