Chemotaxis

Imagine you are playing hide-and-seek with your friends, but you can’t see them so you need to use your nose (or your ears) to find them. Chemotaxis is kind of like that, but instead of finding your friends, cells (like bacteria or white blood cells) use chemicals to find where they need to go inside your body.

When a cell needs to go somewhere, it releases chemicals called chemokines. These chemicals act like a map, giving the cell information on where it needs to go. Then, the cell follows the map by moving in the direction of the highest concentration of the chemokines.

Just like how you might follow your nose to find your way to your friend’s hiding spot, cells use chemotaxis to follow the chemical signals to reach their destination. It helps them move around your body to find the places where they are needed.