Chapter 1 - Cells

Characteristics of living things

● All living organisms are composed of cells.
● The simplest organisms are made of one single cell.
● More complex organisms like animals and plants are made of many cells and are called
multicellular organisms.
● In multicellular organisms, many different types of cells are specialized to carry out
particular functions.

Biology is the study of living things (organisms), Living organisms have 7 features that make
them different from objects that are not alive.

7 features that make living organisms different from objects that are not alive:
- Movement
- Respiration
- Sensitivity
- Growth
- Reproduction
- Excretion
- Nutrition

Movement = an action by an organism causing a change of position or place

Respiration = The chemical reactions in cells that break down nutrient molecules and release
energy
Sensitivity = The ability to detect and respond to changes in the environment
Growth = A permanent increase in size
Reproduction = The processes that make more of the same kind of organism
Excretion = Removal from organisms of toxic materials and substances in excess of
requirements
Nutrition = Taking in of materials for energy, growth, and development

Cells
Microscope diagram:
Palisade cell:

Cell structure

Animal cell:
Plant cell:

Additional features found in plant and animal cells:

Rough endoplasmic reticulum = A membrane-bound structure that si important for the
modification and transport of proteins. The RER is encrusted with ribosomes.
Ribosomes = Smal organelles that can be free floating in the cytoplasm or bound ot RER.
Important for the synthesis of proteins
Vesicles = Membrane-bound bags that contain fluids or chemicals

Cell membrane
- All cells have a cell membrane
- Inside the cell membrane is a jelly-like substance called cytoplasm, inside the cytoplasm
are many small structures called organelles, one of these organelles is the nucleus
- Forms a boundary between the cytoplasm and the outside of the cell
- Is a very thin layer of protein and fat
- It is partially permeable

Partially permeable = Only allow some substances through it but not others.

Cell well
- Found only in plant cells
- All plant cells are surrounded by a cell wall made mainly of cellulose (cellulose belongs
to a group of substances called polysaccharides)
- Helps the cell keep its shape
- It is freely permeable

Cytoplasm
- Jelly like substance which contains all of the organelles
- Many substances is dissolved in the cytoplasm, especially proteins
 - Many of the cell's chemical reactions take place in the cytoplasm (called metabolic
reactions)

Vacuole
- A Vacuole is a space in a cell surrounded by a membrane and contains a solution
- Found only in plant cells
- Filled with cell sap
- Helps keep the cell’s shape

Cell sap = is a store of dissolved sugars, mineral ions, and other solutes

Chloroplasts
- Found in some plant cells
- Contains chlorophyll
- Chlorophyll is a green pigment
- It absorbs light energy from chlorophyll to make food in the process of photosynthesis

Nucleus
- The nucleus is where genetic information is stored
- The information is kept on the chromosomes, which are inherited form the organsim’s
parents (chromosomes are made of DNA)
- Largest organelle
- Controls the activities of the cell
- Contains chromosomes (chromosomes carry genes)
- The genes determine which proteins the cell can make

Comparison between plant and animal cells:

Plant cells Animal cells

Have a cellulose cell wall outside the cell Have no cell wall
membrane

Have a cell membrane Have a cell membrane

Have cytoplasm Have cytoplasm

Have a nucleus Have a nucleus

Often have chloroplasts containing Have no chloroplasts

chlorophyll

Often have large vacuoles containing cell sap Have only small vacuoles

Often have starch grains Never have starch grains; sometimes have
glycogen granules
 Are often regular in shape Are often irregular in shape

Cell structures and their functions:

PPT S2
Cell division
- Multicellular organisms begin life as a single fertilized egg cell called a zygote
- It then divides over and over again by Mitosis

Differentiation
- As the developing embryo grows, cells become specialized to carry out particular roles.
- This is called differentiation and is controlled by genes.
- As all cells have the same genes, some must be switched on and some switched off for
this to work.

Specialized cells
Examples of some specialized cells:
Ciliated cell

Root hair cell

Muscle cell
Red blood cell

Xylem
Tissues and organs:

Microscopes
Types of microscopes:
- Compound microscope
- Dissection microscope
- Scanning electron microscope (SEM)
- Transmission electron microscope (TEM)
Compound microscope
 - Compound microscopes are light-illuminated
- The image seen with this type of microscope is two-dimensional
- This microscope is the most commonly used
- You can view individual cells, even living ones
- It has high magnification. However, it has a low-resolution

Dissection microscope
- A dissection microscope is light-illuminated
- The image that appears is three-dimensional
- It is used for dissection to get a better look at the larger specimen
- You cannot see individual cells because it has a low magnification (also called stereo
microscope)

Scanning electron microscope (SEM)

- SEM uses electron illumination
- The image is seen in 3-D
- It has high magnification and high resolution
- The specimen is coated in gold and the electrons bounce off to give you an exterior view
of the specimen
- The pictures are in black and white

Transmission electron microscope (TEM)

- TEM is electron-illuminated
- This gives a 2-D view
- Thin slices of the specimen are obtained
- The electron beams pass through this
- It has high magnification and high resolution

Magnification = Increase of an object’s apparent size

Resolution = Power to show details clearly
+ Magnification and resolution is both needed to see a clear image

Microscope parts:
Ocular lens = magnifies where you look through to see the image of your specimen.
Body tube = connects the eyepiece to the objective lenses
Revolving nosepiece = the part that holds two or more objective lenses and can be rotated to
easily change power
Arm = supports the tube and connects it to the base
Objective lens = Eyepiece lenses
Stage = The flat platform where you place your slides
Stage clips = Stage clips hold the slides in place
Diaphragm = controls the amount of light going through the specimen
Coarse adjustment knob = moves stage (or body tube) up and down
Fine adjustment knob = small, round knob on the side of the microscope used to fine-tune the
focus of your specimen after using the coarse adjustment knob
Light = makes the specimen easier to see
Base = the bottom of the microscope, used for support

History of the microscope:

1590 - First compound microscope
1665 - English physicist, Robert Hooke looked at a sliver of cork through a microscope lens and
noticed some "pores" or "cells" in it
1674 - Anton van Leeuwenhoek built a simple microscope with only one lens to examine blood,
yeast, insects, and many other tiny objects. Leeuwenhoek first person to describe bacteria, and
he invented new methods for grinding and polishing microscope lenses that allowed for
curvatures providing magnifications of up to 270 diameters, the best available lenses at that
time.

Enzymes
 - All chemical reactions that happen in a cell is controlled by enzymes
- Enzymes are biological catalysts
- They are all proteins that are coded for by genes
- The function of enzymes is to catalyse metabolic reactions

+ Carbohydrates break down using carbohydrase or amylase into sugar

+ Proteins break down into amino acids using protease
+ Fats andoils are broken down into fatty acids and glycerol using lipase enzymes

Why do we have enzymes?

- Our body temperature is 37 degrees. This is quite a low temperature for reactions to
take place. Without enzymes the reactions in our bodies would occur too slowly to support our
body’s needs.

How do enzymes work?

- Each enzyme has an active site, the molecule that it wants to help change is called the
substrate, the active site fits the substrate like a lock and a key.
Factors affecting enzymes:
- Temperature
- PH

Denatured vs substrate
Denatured

Substrate

Chapter 2 - Movement in and out of cells

Diffusion
Diffusion = the net movement of molecules and ions from a region of their higher concentration
to a region of their lower concentration down a concentration gradient (as a result of their
random movement)

+ Living organisms obtain many oftheir requirements by diffusion. They also get rid of
many of their waste products in this way.

Osmosis
Osmosis = Osmosis is the movement of solvent from a region of lower solute concentration to a
region of higher solute concentration through a semi-permeable membrane.

Water potential
 - A dilute solution (where there is a lot of water) has a high water potential. A concentrated
solution (where there is less water) has a low water potential.

Cell membranes
+ They let some substances pass through them, but not others. They are partially
permeable membranes.

Osmosis and animal cells

+ Animal cells shrink in a concentrated solution (Pic 2, Pic 1 is animal cell burst in pure
water)

Osmosis and plant cells

- Plant cells do not burst impure water
- Plant cells are surrounded by a cell wall (this is fully permeable)

Turgid: A plant cell in this stage is rather like a blown-up tyre - tight and firm
Turgor pressure: The outward pressure of the cytoplasm on the cell wall
Flaccid: The cell becomes floppy (due to some of the air leaking out)
Plasmolysed: The cell membrane, surrounding the cytoplasm, tears away from the cell wall

+ Plasmolysis usually kills a plant cell because the cell membrane is damaged as it tears
away from the cell wall