Re: what is nucleus /what does nucleus contain/what does nucleus do?

Dear Charlotte Barlow:

I am impressed by your questions in that you are interested in science 
and just 13 years old; I am happy to answer your questions. From 
where did you hear the concept "Nucleus"? 

With your age in mind, I am not sure how to answer this in order to 
satisfy your inquiring mind. But first I will try with a simple answer. 
If you want to know more, you just let me know and I will give you a
detailed answer. OK?

1) The nucleus is a subcellular compartment which can be found in any 
eukaryotic cells, such as cells from an apple tree or a dog. If you 
take a drop of blood from your finger tip, spread it on a glass slide, 
fix it a while with 70% ethanol, stain it with trypan blue, and then 
observe it under a microscope, you can find many white blood cells. 
In each white blood cell, you can see a blue dot, which is the nucleus. 
In some cells, the nuclei (pl.) are round, in others they have multiple 
lobes. 
2) The nucleus contains many things. The most important is the DNA, a 
kind of genetic information. Others are proteins that help DNA wrap 
together, help DNA copy itself, and help the genes in the DNA be transcribed 
under regulation to make RNA. 
3) The nucleus serves important functions as: A) a marker that a cell is 
eukaryotic; b) a location that genetic information-DNA is stored; c) a location 
that some DNA (genes) can be transcribed, which then can be translated in 
other parts of the cell.

By the way, I use some new concepts here: DNA, RNA, genetic information. 
If you want to know them, let me know without hesitation.

Now, do you get some ideas about the nucleus? If no, let me know please!

Sincerely,

Zong-Ping XIA

Admin Note:
There are also over a hundred questions and answers in the Mad Sci Archive that 
might be worth looking at, if you want more information:    
Search results for Cell Nucleus