Synopsis A cell is the smallest unit of living matter that is able to function independently, consisting of protoplasm—a complex living material—and made up of three basic parts, a nucleus, cytoplasm and a cell membrane. There is a great amount of variability in cells with respect to their shape. Some of them change their shape frequently, while others have typical shapes, For instance, amoebae, leucocytes, diatoms, desmids and acetabularia are to name a few.The size of a cell also varies as per the number of chromosomes. Though it is the basic and the smallest part of a living matter, it has its own independent world of complexities and functionalities. Like any living organism, it too, has to pass many stages of life, like, formation, breakage, death, reformation etc. All these points and the chemical processes, a cell undergoes, are the subject of Cell Biology.An authoritative and compact Encyclopaedia of Cell Biology, hopefully, it would prove to be beneficial for students and scholars alike.