Zoology: Part 2 Levels of Organization

in Animal Complexity
Esther P. Danao, RFT
College Faculty/Program Head
New Hope School of Agriculture and
Fishery, Inc.
 CHAPTER 3

Cells as Units of
Life
The Cell Concept
Brief History
More than 300 years ago the English scientist and inventor
Robert Hooke, using a primitive compound microscope,
observed boxlike cavities in slices of cork and leaves. He
called these compartments “little boxes or cells.”

In the years that followed Hooke’s first demonstration of the

remarkable powers of the microscope to the Royal Society of
London in 1663, biologists gradually learned that cells were
far more than simple containers filled with “juices.”

Single-celled organisms - all functions of life are performed

within the confines of a single cell
Multicellular organisms - which includes all animals, cells
interact, each performing its specialized role in an organized
partnership.
The Cell Concept
Cells Are Basic Fabric Of Life
 The Cell Theory
1. All organisms are made of cells.
2. The cell is the basic unit of life in all living things. nothing less
than a cell is alive.
3. All cells come from preexisting cells. Cells contain the information
necessary for their own reproduction. No new cells are originating
spontaneously on earth today.
4. Cells are the functional units of life. All biochemical processes are
carried out by cells.

There is no life without cells. The idea that a cell represents the
basic structural and functional unit of life is an important unifying concept of
biology.
 In 1838 Matthias Schleiden, a German botanist, announced that all
plant tissue was composed of cells.
 Theodor Schwann, described animal cells as being similar to plant cells.
 In 1840 J. Purkinje introduced the term protoplasm to describe cell
contents.
 The Cell Theory

Protoplasm - was at first described as a granular,

gel-like mixture with special life properties of its
own; cells were viewed as bags of “thick soup”
containing a nucleus.

Rather than being a uniform granular mixture, a

cell’s interior is composed of numerous cellular
organelles within a network of membranes and
suspended within the cytoplasm.
Organelles

Organelles are structures that enable

the cell to live, grow and reproduce.
How Cells Are Studied
 Organization of Cells: Two Types of
Cells

All cells, whether they are prokaryotic or eukaryotic, have some common
features
 Organization of Cells
• All cells have:
– Cell membrane- surrounds all cells; acts as a barrier
between the inside of the cell and its environment;
controls what comes in and what goes out
– Hereditary material – cells receive a copy of
hereditary material (DNA) It controls all of the
activities of the cell and contains the information
needed for that cell to make new cells
– Organelles – structures within a cell that allow it to
live, grow, and reproduce
– Cytoplasm – fluid that surrounds the organelles
within a cell
– Small size – almost all cells are too small to see
with the naked eye
 Prokaryotic cells vs Eukaryotic cells
The interior contents of cells are the cytoplasm. The cytoplasm is
isolated from the surrounding environment by the cell membrane.
There are two fundamentally different forms of cells.

Prokaryotic cells Eukaryotic cells

• relatively simple cells • More complex
• lack nuclear membrane and • Have a nucleus & many organelles
many organelles • Have a membrane-covered organelles
• Bacteria & their relatives are all • Linear DNA stored in nucleus
prokaryotic
Prokaryotic cells vs Eukaryotic cells
 Prokaryotic Cell Structure
• Small, with a plasma membrane surrounded by a rigid cell
wall – in many cell wall is made of peptidoglycan, a
carbohydrate cross-linked w/ polypeptides. Cell wall may be
covered with a capsule made of polysaccharides

• DNA is in a region called

nucleoid

• DNA is circular and

naked (has no protein
associated with it)
 Components of Eukaryotic Cells and
Their Functions
• Eukaryotic cells are enclosed within
a thin, selectively permeable
plasma membrane
• The most prominent organelle is a
spherical or ovoid nucleus, enclosed
with two membrane to form a
double-layered nuclear envelope.
• Within the cytoplasm are many
organelles (mitochondria, Golgi
complexes, centrioles, &
endoplasmic reticulum.
• Plant cells typically contain
plastids, some of which are
photosynthetic organelles, and plant
cells bear a cell wall containing
cellulose outside the plasma
membrane.
The Plasma Membrane

Phospholipid bilayer, two layers

of phospholipid molecules, all
oriented with their water-soluble
(hydrophilic) head regions
toward the outside and their fat-
soluble (hydrophobic) tail
regions toward the inside of the
membrane.
 The Cell Structure & Function:
Eukaryotic Cell

Nuclei contain linear

chromosomes
suspended in
nucleoplasm. The
chromosomes are
normally loosely
condensed, flexible
strands of chromatin,
composed of a complex
of DNA, and DNA-
binding proteins
 Cellular Organelles
Nucleus - the largest and most obvious membrane bound
compartment - controls cell activities
contains the nucleolus - a darkened region where ribosomal
RNA is synthesized
Contains chromosomes – consists of DNA wrapped around
proteins
 The Cell's Command Center -- The
Nucleus
• Largest and most visible organelle in a
eukaryotic cell
• Surrounded by a nuclear membrane for
protection
• Stores DNA that has information on how
to make all the cell’s proteins (almost all
chemical reactions important to the cell’s
life involve protein)
 Protein Factory -- Ribosomes
• Site of polypeptide or protein synthesis
• Perform their function free within cytoplasm when manufacturing polypeptides
• Smallest but MOST abundant organelle
• ALL cells have ribosome (prokaryotes included)
• They become attached to endoplasmic reticulum (ER) when manufacturing
polypeptides destined for the plasma membrane, for lysosomes, or for export
from the cell.
 The Cell’s Delivery System –
Endoplasmic Reticulum
• Membrane-covered compartment that makes lipids and other materials for use inside and outside
the cell
• Breaks down drugs and other damaging chemicals
• Internal delivery system
• Looks like flattened sacks stacked side by side
• a web-like series of membranes within the cytoplasm in the form of flattened sheets, sacs, tubes,
creates many membrane enclosed spaces - spreads throughout the cytoplasm - has connections with
the outer membrane of the nucleus and the plasma membrane

Functions;
• Circulation &
transport
• Storage of proteins
& minerals
• Synthesis of lipids,
carbohydrates &
proteins
• A large surface
area for enzyme
action
 Cell Structure: Two Types of ER
• Rough ER – covered
with ribosomes. This is
one of the sites of
polypeptide
synthesis
• Smooth ER –
functions in synthesis
of lipids and
phospholipids and as a
detoxification site
within cells.
The Cell’s Delivery System –
Endoplasmic Reticulum
 Shipping– Golgi Complex
Packaging -Vesicles
• is composed of a stack of membranous cisternae
that function in modification and packaging of
polypeptide and protein products produced by
rough ER.
• The Golgi is functionally associated with the ER
Shipping– Golgi Complex
Packaging -Vesicles
 Trash Collector– Lysosomes

• Specialized vesicles in animal cells

• Contain enzymes
• Destroy worn-out or damaged
organelles
• Get rid of waste materials and protect
the cell from foreign invaders
• If the membrane of a lysosome opens, the
enzymes will spill out into the cell and kill
the cell. (How a tadpole loses its tail)
 The Powerhouse of the Cell–
Mitochondria
• Conspicuous organelles present in nearly all eukaryotic cells.
• Diverse in size, number, and shape; some are rodlike, and others
are nearly spherical
• Have double membrane structure
• Inner membrane folded into inward projections called cristae
• Two spaces within the mitochondrion – the matrix and the
intermembrane space.
• The site of oxygen consumption within cells
• Mitochondria replicate by binary fission – similar to prokaryotic
cell division
 Plant Cells -- Chloroplasts
• Only found in plants and algae
• Energy-converter
• Has two membranes and structures like
stacked coins and contains chlorophyll – which
makes the chloroplast green
• Chlorophyll traps the energy from sunlight
and uses it to make sugar in the process
photosynthesis.
• Mitochondria then use the sugar to make ATP.
 Cell Wall
• Found in plant cells
• Outside the cell membrane
• Made of cellulose (sugar)
• Provides strength and support to
cell membrane
 Water cooler- Vacuoles
• Most plant cells have very
large vacuoles.
• Membrane-covered
• Stores water and other
liquids
• When full, helps support
the cell
• When empty, the cell
shrivels (causing the plant
to wilt)
References:
Web Links

• [Link]
pdf

• [Link]
e-plasma-membrane-and-the-cytoplasm/
• [Link]
aryotes-bacteria-and-archaea/
• [Link]

Books
• Hickman, Cleveland P., et al. 1988. Integrated Principles of
Zoology. Quezon City: Copyright by Times Mirror/ Mosby
College Publishing and Printed by JMC Press, Inc.