By Catherine Beyer. The ankh is the most well known symbol to come out of ancient Egypt. In their hieroglyphic system of writing the ankh represents the concept of eternal life, and that is the general meaning of the symbol. Construction of the Image:
The outer layer of the double membrane is much more permeable than the inner layer, which features a number of embedded membrane transport proteins. Enclosed by the chloroplast membrane is the stroma, a semi-fluid material that contains dissolved enzymes and comprises most of the chloroplast's volume. Since, like mitochondria, chloroplasts possess their own genomes (DNA), the stroma contains chloroplast DNA and special ribosomes and RNAs as well.
Hence, the name chloroplast indicates that these structures are chlorophyll containing plastids. Like mitochondria, chloroplasts have their own DNA, are responsible for energy production, and reproduce independently from the rest of the cell through a division process similar to bacterial binary fission.