At what point does a cell or cells become a living thing?

Answer 1

That depends how you define life and what a living thing is.

As soon as the cell is capable of reproducing and is self sustaining then it is technically alive. In a developing embryo as soon as the cell begins it's first mitotic division it is alive - but there are arguments that could be made for gametes being alive.


All cells capable of sustaining themselves are alive in the organisim. Some cells become so specialised that they are no longer capable of independent division, such as neurones, but are nonetheless alive


Some cells remove all of their nuclear material and are therefore not alive in our definition (e.g. red blood cells, condrocytes that have specialised) but are still 'cells.' They were 'alive' and are not 'dead' so this blurs the line between our definition.


At what point a cell become life in a religious or phillosphicall sence depends on your background and what you believe.


An organism is greater than the sum of its parts and it is perhaps more help full to look at the larger organ or system to look for life.

Answer 2

Cells are considered the basic unit of life and are living entities on their own. When cells come together to form an organism, they collectively exhibit characteristics of life such as growth, reproduction, and response to stimuli. Thus, a single cell can be considered a living thing, but multicellular organisms demonstrate a higher level of complexity and organization.

Answer 3

Yes cells do make living things. There is blood cells and skin cells and many more!

Answer 4

Yes, because the cells are alive...