Chapter 2: Structure of cells and Organelles

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1. Cell is the basic structural and functional units of every organism.

2. There are of two distinct types of cells : prokaryotic cell and eukaryotic cell.

3. Organisms of the domains Bacteria and Archaea consist of prokaryotic cells. Protists, fungi, animals, and plants all
consist of eukaryotic cells.

4. All cells share certain basic features:

- All living cells are surrounded by a plasma membrane. (cell surface membrane)

- Inside all cells is a semifluid, jellylike substance called cytosol, in which subcellular components (organelles) are suspended.
- All cells contain chromosomes, which carry genes in the form of DNA.
- All cells also have ribosomes, tiny organelles that make proteins using the instructions contained in genes.
5. A major difference between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells is the location of their chromosomes.
6. In a eukaryotic cell, chromosomes are contained in a membrane-enclosed organelle, the nucleus.
7. In a prokaryotic cell, the DNA is concentrated in a region that is not membrane-enclosed, called the nucleoid.

8. All cellular organisms are divided into two

natural groups which known as prokaryotes and
eukaryotes.

9. In prokaryotes, the DNA is not enclosed by

nuclear membranes and located in a region in
cytoplasm call nucleoid. The cell therefore lack
true nucleus.

10. The cell of eukaryotes contain true nucleus. In a

eukaryotic cell, most of the DNA is in membrane
bounded organelle called nucleus.
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Eukaryotic cell
1. In eukaryote cells, the chromosomes are contained within a membranous nuclear envelope.
2. The region between the nucleus and the plasma membrane is the cytoplasm.
 All the material within the plasma membrane of a prokaryotic cell is cytoplasm.
3. Within the cytoplasm of a eukaryotic cell are a variety of membrane-bound organelles of specialized form and function.
 These membrane-bound organelles are absent in prokaryotes.
4. Eukaryotic cells are generally much bigger than prokaryotic cells.
5. The plasma membrane functions as a selective barrier that allows the passage of oxygen, nutrients, and wastes for the whole
volume of the cell.
6. The volume of cytoplasm determines the need for this exchange.
7. Rates of chemical exchange across the plasma membrane may be inadequate to maintain a cell with a very large cytoplasm.
8. The need for a surface sufficiently large to accommodate the volume explains the microscopic size of most cells.
9. Larger organisms do not generally have larger cells than smaller organisms—simply more cells.
Internal membranes compartmentalize the functions of a eukaryotic cell. 3
1. A eukaryotic cell has extensive and elaborate internal membranes, which partition the cell into compartments, forming different
organelles. (Prokaryotic cell lacking membrane-bounded organelles)
2. The compartments created by membranes provide different local environments that facilitate specific metabolic functions,
allowing several incompatible processes to go on simultaneously in a cell.

Nucleus
. The nucleus control the cell’s activities.
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Structure and Functions of Organelles
Nucleus
Structure:
1. The nucleus contains most of the genes in a eukaryotic cell. (Some genes are located in mitochondria and chloroplasts.)
2. The nucleus averages about 5 microns (m) in diameter. It is generally the most conspicuous organelle.
3. The nucleus is separated from the cytoplasm by a double membrane called the nuclear envelope.
4. The two membranes of the nuclear envelope are separated by a space of 20–40 nm.
5. The nuclear envelope is perforated by nuclear pores that are about 100 nm in diameter.
6. Within the nucleus, the DNA and associated proteins are organized into discrete units called chromosomes, structures that carry
the genetic information.
7. Each chromosome is made up of fibrous material called chromatin, a complex of proteins and DNA.
8. A prominent structure within the non-dividing nucleus is the nucleolus (plural, nucleoli), as a mass of densely stained granules
and fibres adjoining part of the chromatin.

9. In the nucleolus, ribosomal RNA (rRNA) is synthesized and assembled with proteins from the cytoplasm to form ribosomal
subunits. The subunits pass through the nuclear pores to the cytoplasm, where they combine to form ribosomes.
10. The nucleus directs protein synthesis by synthesizing messenger RNA (mRNA) according to instructions provided by the
DNA.

Functions of nucleus:
1. Carry the genetic information in discrete unit called chromosomes.
2. As control center for all the activities of the cell.
3. Nucleolus synthesis ribosomal RNA (rRNA).
4. Direct protein synthesis by forming mRNA.

Within the nucleus are the chromosomes, which appear as a mass of chromatin (DNA and associated
proteins), and one or more nucleoli (singular, nucleolus), which function in ribosome synthesis. The
nuclear envelope, which consists of two membranes separated by a narrow space, is perforated with
pores and lined by the nuclear lamina.
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Ribosomes
1. Ribosomes are tiny (about 20 nm in diameter) and not membrane bounded organelles.
2. Ribosomes consists of two subunits - one large subunit and one small subunit.
3. There are two basic types of ribosomes, 70S and 80S ribosomes (S = Svedberg unit).
4. The 70S ribosomes are found in prokaryotic cells, mitochondria and chloroplasts.
5. The 80S ribosomes occur in eukaryotic cells.
6. Ribosomes containing rRNA and protein, are the organelles that carry out protein synthesis.

7. Ribosomes are either bound to the endoplasmic reticulum (bound ribosomes) or dispersed freely in the cytoplasm (free
ribosome).

8. Free ribosomes, are suspended in the cytosol and synthesize proteins that function within the cytosol. (e.g.
enzymes for biochemical reactions in cytosol of cell)
9. Bound ribosomes, are attached to the outside of the endoplasmic reticulum or nuclear envelope.
10. Bound ribosomes generally make proteins that are meant for insertion into membranes, protein for packaging
within certain organelles such as lysosomes, or proteins for export from the cell (secretion).

11. Cells that have high rates of protein synthesis have particularly large numbers of ribosomes. For example, a human pancreas
cell, which makes many digestive enzymes, has a few million ribosomes.

12. Bound and free ribosomes are similar in structure and can alternate between the two roles, depending on the needs of cells.

This electron micrograph of part of a pancreas cell shows many ribosomes, both free (in the
cytosol) and bound (to the endoplasmic reticulum). The simplified diagram of a ribosome shows
its two subunits.
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The Endomembrane System
1. Many of the internal membranes in a eukaryotic cell are part of the endomembrane system.
2. The endomembrane system includes the nuclear envelope, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus, lysosomes, vacuoles,
and the plasma membrane.

3. This system carries out a variety of tasks in the cell, including synthesis of proteins, transport of proteins into membranes and
organelles or out of the cell, metabolism and movement of lipids, and detoxification of poisons.
4. These membranes are either directly continuous or connected via transfer of vesicles (sacs made of membrane)
 In spite of these connections, these membranes are diverse in function and structure.
 The thickness, molecular composition and types of chemical reactions carried out by proteins in a given membrane may
be modified several times during a membrane’s life.

Relationships among organelles of the endomembrane system.

Endoplasmic Reticulum
1. The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) accounts for half the membranes in a eukaryotic cell.

2. The ER consists of interconnected network of membranous tubules and sacs called cisternae.

3. The ER membrane separates the internal compartment of the ER, called the ER lumen (cavity) or cisternal space, from the
cytosol.
4. The ER membrane is continuous with the nuclear envelope. There are two connected regions of ER that differ in structure and
function – smooth endoplasmic reticulum and rough endoplasmic reticulum.
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Smooth ER
1. Smooth endoplasmic reticulum is a network of membranous tubules, and its outer surface lacks ribosomes.

2. The smooth ER is rich in enzymes and plays a role in a variety of metabolic processes.

3. One of the chief functions of smooth ER is lipids synthesis, including oils, phospholipids, and steroids. These include the sex
hormones of vertebrates and the various steroid hormones secreted by the adrenal glands.

4. The cells that synthesize and secrete these hormones—in the testes and ovaries, for example—are rich in smooth ER, a
structural feature that fits the function of these cells.

5. In the smooth ER of the liver, enzymes help detoxify poisons and drugs such as alcohol and barbiturates.

6. Smooth ER stores calcium ions. Muscle cells have a specialized smooth ER that pumps calcium ions from the cytosol and
stores them in its cisternal space. When a nerve impulse stimulates a muscle cell, calcium ions rush from the ER into the
cytosol, triggering muscle contraction.

. Rough ER is studded with ribosomes on the outer surface of the membrane and thus appears rough through the electron
microscope.

Rough ER
1. Rough endoplasmic reticulum is a network of membranous sac, and studded with ribosomes on the outer surface of the
membrane.

2. The main role of rough ER in cell is transport proteins made by the ribosomes through cisternae.

3. Rough ER is especially abundant in cells that secrete proteins.

4. Most secretory proteins transport in rough ER are glycoproteins, proteins to which a carbohydrate is attached.

5. The carbohydrates are attached to the proteins in the rough ER lumen by enzymes which present in the rough ER membrane.

6. After secretory proteins are formed, secretory proteins depart from the rough ER wrapped in the membranes of vesicles that bud
like bubbles from a specialized region called transitional ER.

7. Secretory proteins are then packaged in transport vesicles that carry them to other components of the endomembrane system.
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Golgi apparatus
1. Many transport vesicles from the ER travel to the Golgi apparatus for modification of their contents.

2. The Golgi apparatus is especially extensive in cells specialized for secretion.

3. The Golgi apparatus consists of a stack of flattened membrane-bound sacs called cisternae, together with a system of
associated vesicles called Golgi vesicles.

4. The membrane of each cisterna separates its internal space from the cytosol.

5. The two sides of a Golgi stack are referred to as the cis face and the trans face.

5. One side of the Golgi, the cis face, is located near the ER. The cis face receives material by fusing with transport vesicles from
the ER.

6. A vesicle that buds from the ER can add its membrane and the contents of its lumen to the cis face by fusing with a Golgi
membrane.

7. The other side, the trans face, forming vesicles that pinch off and travel to other sites.

8. Products of the endoplasmic reticulum are usually modified during their transit from the cis region to the trans region of the
Golgi apparatus. ( For example, glycoproteins formed in the ER have their carbohydrates modified first in the ER itself, then as
they pass through the Golgi. The Golgi removes some sugar monomers and substitutes others, producing a large variety of
carbohydrates.)

9. The functions of Golgi apparatus are as follows:

- To store, modify and transport the materials contained within it.

- Secretion of cell products. (e.g trypsinogen from pancreatic cells, mucin from goblet cells of trachea)

- Involved in manufactures some macromolecules such as polysaccharides. For example, pectins and other polysaccharides are
made in the Golgi apparatus of plant cells and then incorporated along with cellulose into their cell walls.

- Formation of lysosomes. Hydrolytic enzymes synthesis by ribosomes of rough ER are transported to Golgi apparatus to be
modify and packaged into lysosomes.
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Lysosomes .
1. A lysosome is a membrane-bound sac of hydrolytic enzymes like proteases, nucleases and lipases that an animal cell uses to
digest macromolecules such as proteins, nucleic acids and lipids respectively.

2. Lysosomal enzymes work best in the acidic environment (pH 5) found in lysosomes.

3. Rupture of one or a few lysosomes has little impact on a cell because the lysosomal enzymes are not very active at the neutral
pH of the cytosol. However, massive rupture of many lysosomes can destroy a cell by autodigestion.

4. Lysosomal enzymes and membrane are synthesized by rough ER and then transferred to the Golgi apparatus for further
modification. The Golgi vesicles containing the processed enzymes later bud off from Golgi apparatus to form lysosomes.

5. The lysosome itself is protected from the hydrolytic enzyme because proteins on the inner surface of the lysosomal membrane
are spared by digestion by their three-dimensional conformations, which protect vulnerable bonds from hydrolysis.

6. The functions of lysosomes are as follows:

a) Lysosomes carry out intracellular digestion.
- Amoebas eat by engulfing smaller organisms by phagocytosis.
- The food vacuole formed by phagocytosis fuses with a lysosome, whose enzymes digest the food.
- Digestion products, including simple sugars, amino acids, and other monomers, pass into the cytosol and become nutrients for
the cell.
- Some human cells also carry out phagocytosis. Among them are macrophages, a type of white blood cell that helps
defend the body by engulfing and destroying bacteria

b) Autophagy
- Lysosomes can play a role in recycling of the cell’s organelles and macromolecules. This recycling process is called
autophagy, it help to renew the cell.
- During autophagy, a damaged or unwanted organelle enclosed by a single membrane.
- A lysosome fuses with the resulting vesicle, to form an ‘autophagic vacuole’
- the hydrolytic enzymes then digesting the macromolecules and returning the organic monomers to the cytosol for reuse.

c) Autolysis
- The lysosomes play a critical role in the programmed destruction of cells called autolysis in multicellular organisms.
This process plays an important role in animal development.
- The hands of human embryos are webbed until lysosomes digest the cells in the tissue between the fingers. This important
process is called programmed cell death, or apoptosis.
- Cells of tadpole’s tail is digest and reabsorbed by autolysis during metamorphosis. This cause shrinking of tail in tadpole when
convert to adult frog.

Apoptosis help
in fingers and
toes formation
during
embryonic
development

Lack of
apoptosis in
humans can
lead to webbed The moldiness of the tadpole
fingers called tail in frog
syndactyly
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Lysosomes digest (hydrolyze) materials taken into the cell and recycle intracellular materials. (a) Top In this macrophage (a type of white
blood cell) from a rat, the lysosomes are very dark because of a specific stain that reacts with one of the products of digestion within the
lysosome (TEM). Macrophages ingest bacteria and viruses and destroy them using lysosomes. Bottom This diagram shows one lysosome
fusing with a food vacuole during the process of phagocytosis. (b) Top In the cytoplasm of this rat liver cell, a lysosome has engulfed two
disabled organelles, a mitochondrion and a peroxisome, in the process of autophagy (TEM). Bottom This diagram shows a lysosome fusing
with a vesicle containing a damaged mitochondrion.

① Digestion of material taken by endocytosis. ② Autophagy (Process by which unwanted structures within the cell are
engulfed and digested within lysosome). ③ Release of enzymes outside the cell
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Vacuoles
1. Vesicles and vacuoles (larger versions) are membrane-bound
sacs with varied functions.
 Food vacuoles are formed by phagocytosis and fuse
with lysosomes.
 Contractile vacuoles, found in freshwater protists,
pump excess water out of the cell to maintain the
appropriate concentration of salts.
 A large central vacuole is found in many mature plant
cells.
 The membrane surrounding the central vacuole,
the tonoplast, is selective in its transport of solutes
into the central vacuole.
 The functions of the central vacuole include
The central vacuole is usually the largest compartment in a plant cell; stockpiling proteins or inorganic ions, disposing of
the rest of the cytoplasm is generally confined to a narrow zone metabolic byproducts, holding pigments, and
between the vacuolar membrane (tonoplast) and the plasma
storing defensive compounds that defend the plant
membrane (TEM).
against herbivores.
 Because of the large vacuole, the cytosol occupies
only a thin layer between the plasma membrane
and the tonoplast. The presence of a large vacuole
increases surface area to volume ratio for the cell.

Mitochondria and chloroplasts are the main energy transformers of cells.

1. Mitochondria and chloroplasts are the organelles that convert energy to forms that cells can use for work.
3. Chloroplasts, found in plants and algae, are the sites of photosynthesis.
 They convert solar energy to chemical energy and synthesize new organic compounds such as sugars from CO 2 and H2O.
4. Mitochondria and chloroplasts are not part of the endomembrane system.
 In contrast to organelles of the endomembrane system, each mitochondrion or chloroplast has two layers membranes
separating the innermost space from the cytosol.
 Their membrane proteins are not made by the ER, but rather by free ribosomes in the cytosol and by ribosomes within the
organelles themselves.
5. Both organelles have small quantities of DNA that direct the synthesis of the polypeptides produced by these internal ribosomes.
6. Mitochondria and chloroplasts grow and reproduce as semiautonomous organelles.

Mitochondria

1. Almost all eukaryotic cells have mitochondria.

 There may be one very large mitochondrion or hundreds to thousands of individual mitochondria.
 The number of mitochondria is correlated with aerobic metabolic activity.
 A typical mitochondrion is 1–10 microns long.
 Exist in different shapes, usually are ova and rod shape.
 Mitochondria are quite dynamic: moving, changing shape, and dividing.
2. Mitochondrion is bounded by two layers of membranes. There are smooth outer membrane and a convoluted inner
membrane with infoldings called cristae.
 The inner membrane divides the mitochondrion into two internal compartments.
 The first is the intermembrane space, a narrow region between the inner and outer membranes.
 The inner membrane encloses the mitochondrial matrix, a fluid-filled space with DNA, ribosomes (70S), and enzymes.
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 Some of the metabolic steps of cellular respiration are catalyzed by enzymes in the matrix.
 The cristae present a large surface area for the enzymes that synthesize ATP.

2. Mitochondria are the sites of cellular respiration, carry out aerobic respiration by generating ATP from the catabolism
of sugars, fats, and other fuels in the presence of oxygen.

3. Found abundant in muscle cells, liver cells, sperm cells and

The inner and outer membranes of the mitochondrion are evident in the drawing and micrograph (TEM). The cristae
are infoldings of the inner membrane. The cutaway drawing shows the two compartments bounded by the membranes:
the intermembrane space and the mitochondrial matrix. Free ribosomes are seen in the matrix, along with one to
several copies of the mitochondrial genome (DNA). The DNA molecules are usually circular and are attached to the
inner mitochondrial membrane.

Chloroplast
1. The chloroplast is one of several members of a generalized class of plant structures called plastids.

2. Amyloplasts are colorless plastids that store starch in roots and tubers.

3. Chromoplasts store pigments for fruits and flowers.

4. Chloroplast is lens-shaped organelles, about 3–6 μm in length, are found in leaves and other green organs of plants and in algae.

5. Chloroplasts contain the green pigment chlorophyll as well as enzymes and other molecules that function in the photosynthetic
production of sugar.

6. Chloroplast consisting of two membranes separated by a narrow intermembrane space.

7. Inside the chloroplast is another membranous system in the form of flattened, interconnected sacs called thylakoids.

8. In some regions, thylakoids are stacked like poker chips; each stack is called a granum (plural = grana).

9. The fluid outside the thylakoids is the stroma, which contains the chloroplast DNA and ribosomes (70S) and enzymes.

10. The membranes of the chloroplast divide the chloroplast into three compartments: the intermembrane space, the stroma, and the
thylakoid space. This compartmental organization enables the chloroplast to convert light energy to chemical energy.
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11. Chloroplast is the site of photosynthesis. Found abundant in mesophyll cells, especially palisade mesophyll cells.

A chloroplast is enclosed by two membranes separated by a narrow intermembrane space that

constitutes an outer compartment. The inner membrane encloses a second compartment containing
the fluid called stroma. Free ribosomes and copies of the chloroplast DNA are present in the stroma.
The stroma surrounds a third compartment, the thylakoid space, delineated by the thylakoid
membrane. interconnected thylakoid sacs (thylakoids) are stacked to form structures called grana
(singular, granum), which are further connected by thin tubules between individual thylakoids (TEM).

Peroxisomes
1. The peroxisome is a specialized metabolic compartment bounded by a single membrane.

2. Peroxisomes contain enzymes that transfer hydrogen from various substrates to oxygen.

3. An intermediate product of this process is hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), a poison that can harm to cell. The peroxisome contains
catalase enzyme that converts H2O2 to water.

4. Some peroxisomes break fatty acids down to smaller molecules that are transported to mitochondria as respiratory substrates for
cellular respiration.

5. Peroxisomes in the liver detoxify alcohol and other harmful compounds.

6. Specialized peroxisomes called glyoxysomes are found in the fat-storing tissues of plant seeds. These organelles contain
enzymes that initiate the conversion of fatty acids to sugar, which the emerging seedling uses as a source of energy and
carbon until it can produce its own sugar by photosynthesis.
Peroxisomes are roughly
spherical and often have a
granular or crystalline core
that is thought to be a dense
collection of enzyme
molecules. This peroxisome is
in a leaf cell. Notice its
proximity to two chloroplasts
and a mitochondrion. These
organelles cooperate with
peroxisomes in certain
metabolic functions (TEM).
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Cytoskeleton
1. In the early days of electron microscopy, biologists thought that the organelles of a eukaryotic cell floated freely in the
cytosol. But improvements in both light microscopy and electron microscopy have revealed the cytoskeleton, a network of
fibers extending throughout the cytoplasm.

2. The cytoskeleton organizes the structures and activities of the cell.

.

The cytoskeleton provides support, motility, and regulation.

1. The cytoskeleton provides mechanical support and maintains cell shape.

2. The cytoskeleton provides anchorage for many organelles and cytosolic enzymes.

3. The cytoskeleton is dynamic and can be dismantled in one part and reassembled in another to change the shape of the cell.

4. The cytoskeleton also plays a major role in cell motility, including changes in cell location and limited movements of parts of
the cell.

5. The cytoskeleton interacts with motor proteins to produce motility.

6. Cytoskeleton elements and motor proteins work together with plasma membrane molecules to move the whole cell along fibers
outside the cell.

7. Motor proteins bring about movements of cilia and flagella by gripping cytoskeletal components such as microtubules and
moving them past each other.

8. The same mechanism causes muscle cells to contract.

9. Inside the cell, vesicles can travel along “monorails” provided by the cytoskeleton.

10. The cytoskeleton manipulates the plasma membrane to form food vacuoles during phagocytosis.

11. Cytoplasmic streaming in plant cells is caused by the cytoskeleton.

12. There are three main types of fibers making up the cytoskeleton: microtubules, microfilaments, and intermediate filaments.
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Microtubules 1. Microtubules, the thickest fibers, are hollow rods about 25 microns in diameter and 200 nm to 25
microns in length.
 Microtubule fibers are constructed of the globular protein tubulin.
 Each tubulin molecule is a dimer consisting of two subunits.
 A microtubule changes in length by adding or removing tubulin dimers.
2. Microtubules give shape and support the cell and serve as tracks to guide motor proteins carrying
organelles and vesicles to their destination.

3. Microtubules are also responsible for the

separation of chromosomes during cell division.
4. In many cells, microtubules grow out from a
centrosome near the nucleus.
5. In animal cells, the centrosome has a pair of
centrioles, each with nine triplets of microtubules.
arranged in a ring.

Centrosome containing a pair of centrioles. Most animal cells have a centrosome, a region near the nucleus where the cell’s microtubules are
initiated. Within the centrosome is a pair of centrioles, each about 250 nm (0.25 μm) in diameter. The two centrioles
are at right angles to each other, and each is made up of nine sets of three microtubules.

Arrangement of triplet microtubules of centriole

(9+0 pattern)
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6. A specialized arrangement of microtubules is responsible for the beating of cilia and flagella.

7. Many unicellular eukaryotic organisms are propelled through water by cilia and flagella.

8. Cilia or flagella can extend from cells within a tissue layer, beating to move fluid over the surface of the tissue.
For example, cilia lining the windpipe sweep mucus carrying trapped debris out of the lungs.

9. Cilia usually occur in large numbers on the cell surface. There are usually just one or a few flagella per cell.

flagellum
cilium

10. Both cilia and flagella have the same ultrastructure.

11. Each motile cilium or flagellum has a group of microtubules sheathed in an extension of the plasma membrane. Nine doublets
of microtubules are arranged in a ring, with two single microtubules in its center. This arrangement is referred as
“9 + 2” pattern, is found in nearly all eukaryotic flagella and motile cilia.

12. The microtubule assembly of a cilium or flagellum is anchored in the cell by a basal body, which is structurally very similar
to a centriole, with microtubule triplets in a “9 + 0” pattern.

13. Flexible “wheels” of proteins connect outer doublets to each other and to the two central microtubules. The outer doublets are
also connected by motor proteins.
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14. The bending of cilia and flagella is driven

Figure 6.25 How dynein “walking” moves flagella and cilia
by the arms of a motor protein, dynein.
Microtubule
 Addition and removal of a phosphate group doublets ATP
causes conformation changes in dynein.
 Dynein arms alternately grab, move, and
release the outer microtubules.
 Protein cross-links limit sliding. As a result,
the forces exerted by the dynein arms cause
the doublets to curve, bending the cilium or
flagellum.

Dynein arm

(a) Powered by ATP, the dynein arms of one microtubule doublet

grip the adjacent doublet, push it up, release, and then grip again.
If the two microtubule doublets were not attached, they would slide
Outer doublets ATP relative to each other.
cross-linking
proteins

1 3

Anchorage
in cell

(b) In a cilium or flagellum, two adjacent doublets cannot slide far because
they are physically restrained, so they bend. (Only two of the nine outer
(c) Localized, synchronized activation of many dynein arms probably
doublets in Figure 6.24b are shown here.)
causes a bend to begin at the base of the Cilium or flagellum and
move outward toward the tip. Many successive bends, such as the
ones shown here to the left and right, result in a wavelike motion.
In this diagram, the two central microtubules and the cross-linking
proteins are not shown.
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Microfilaments
1. Microfilaments are solid rods about 7 nm in diameter.
 Each microfilament is built as a twisted double chain of actin subunits.
 Microfilaments can form structural networks due to their ability to branch.
2. The structural role of microfilaments in the cytoskeleton is to bear tension, resisting pulling
forces within the cell.
3. They form a three-dimensional network just inside the plasma membrane to help support the
cell’s shape, giving the cell cortex the semi solid consistency of a gel.

4. Microfilaments are important in cell motility, especially as part of the contractile apparatus
of muscle cells.
 Thousands of actin filaments and thicker filaments made of a protein called myosin interact
to cause contraction of muscle cells.

Interaction of myosin and actin filaments in

muscle cell contraction.

o In Amoeba and some of our white blood cells, localized contraction brought about by actin and myosin also drives amoeboid
movement of the cells.
o The cell crawls along a surface by extending cellular extensions called pseudopodia and moving toward them.

Amoeboid movement.

5. In plant cells, actin-myosin interactions drive cytoplasmic streaming.

o This creates a circular flow of cytoplasm in the cell, speeding the distribution of materials within the cell.

Cytoplasmic streaming in plant cells

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Intermediate filaments

1. Intermediate filaments range in diameter from 8–12

nanometers, larger than microfilaments but smaller than
microtubules.

2. Intermediate filaments are a diverse class of cytoskeletal units,

built from a family of proteins called keratins.

3. Intermediate filaments are specialized for bearing tension.

4. Intermediate filaments are more permanent fixtures of the

cytoskeleton than are the other two classes.

5. They reinforce cell shape and fix organelle location.

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Cell wall
1. The cell wall, found in prokaryotes, fungi, and some protists, has multiple functions.
2. In plants, the cell wall protects the cell, maintains its shape, and prevents excessive uptake of water.
3. The basic design consists of microfibrils of cellulose embedded in a matrix of proteins and other polysaccharides.
4. A mature cell wall consists of a primary cell wall, a middle lamella with sticky polysaccharides that holds cells together, and
layers of secondary cell wall.
5. When the cell matures and stops growing, it strengthens its wall. Some plant cells do this simply by secreting hardening
substances into the primary wall.
6. Other cells add a secondary cell wall between the plasma membrane and the primary wall.
7. The secondary wall, often deposited in several laminated layers, has a strong and durable matrix that affords the cell protection
and support. Wood, for example, consists mainly of secondary walls.
8. Plant cell walls are perforated by channels between adjacent cells called plasmodesmata.
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