Biology: The Core

Third Edition

Chapter 3
The Cell: The Fundamental
Unit of Life
Lecture Presentation
by Wendy Kuntz,
Kapi’olani Community
College
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3.1 All living organisms consist of cells

• Some living organisms

have just one cell.
• Some living organisms
have trillions of cells.

Cells are the

fundamental units of
life.

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3.1 Cells can be grouped into two
categories (1 of 2)
• Prokaryotic cells • Eukaryotic cells
– Small, simple cells – Larger, complex cells
– No organelles – Membrane-enclosed
– First appeared 3.5 BYA organelles
– Unicellular – First appeared 2.1 BYA
– Unicellular or multicellular
Are you a prokaryote
or a eukaryote?

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3.1 Cells can be grouped into two
categories (2 of 2)
• Prokaryotic cells • Eukaryotic cells
– Bacteria and Archaea – Plants, Animals,
Fungi, and Protists

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3.1 Bacteria have some unique features
and some features common to all cells

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3.2 Animals and Plants are made of
eukaryotic cells that contain organelles
• Compared to prokaryotic cells, eukaryotic cells are
relatively large (10-fold bigger) and more complex.

• Eukaryotic cells
contain organelles,
which are membrane-
enclosed structures
that perform specific
functions.

Prokaryotes do not contain organelles!

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3.2 Plant and animal cells have many
organelles in common
• All eukaryotic cells are fundamentally alike.
• All eukaryotic cells share:
– Plasma membrane, Nucleus, Mitochondria

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3.2 Structure of an idealized animal cell

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3.2 Structure of an idealized plant cell

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3.2 Animal and plant cells have some
unique organelles
• Animal cells have • Plant cells have
lysosomes. chloroplasts, cell walls,
and central vacuoles.

Looking at cells under a

microscope, you see cell
walls and chloroplasts.
What type of cells are
these?

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3.3 Every cell is surrounded by a
plasma membrane
• All cells are surrounded by
a plasma membrane.
• Membranes regulate the
passage of materials.

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3.3 Membranes are made of lipids
• Plasma membranes are made from two layers of
phospholipids and integrated proteins.

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3.3 Structure of a plasma membrane

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3.4 Membranes regulate the passage of
materials
• Cells are surrounded by a
plasma membrane.
• Organelles may have their
own outer and internal
membranes.

The most important function of any membrane

is to regulate the flow of materials.

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3.4 Membranes regulate what substances
can enter and leave the cell
• Every membrane is
selectively permeable.
• Some substances flow
freely.
• Others pass under certain
circumstances.
• Some cannot pass.

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3.4 Transport across membranes can
be passive or active
• Passive transport requires no energy.
– Substances move along a concentration gradient from
high to low.
• Active transport requires energy.
– Substances move against a concentration gradient
from low to high.

Active transport is like trying to get

into a crowded club!

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3.4 Passive transport: Diffusion
• Diffusion is the
movement of molecules
from an area of higher
concentration to an area
of lower concentration.

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3.4 Passive transport: Osmosis
• The diffusion of water is
called osmosis.
• Water will always flow
from an area of higher
water concentration to an
area of lower water
concentration.

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3.4 Passive transport: Facilitated
diffusion
• Large molecules can move
through embedded transport
proteins via facilitated
diffusion.
• Substances still move from
an area of higher
concentration to an area of
lower concentration.

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3.4 Active transport requires energy to
move substances
• Active transport involves
moving a substance from an
area of lower concentration to
an area of higher concentration.
• Moving a substance against its
concentration gradient always
requires an expenditure of
energy.

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3.4 Active transport is usually driven by a
protein that sits within the membrane

Here, you can see a protein called the sodium-potassium (Na+/K+) pump
moving three potassium ions into the cell.

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3.4 Cells can also transport substances by
fusing a portion of the cell membrane
• Exocytosis is the export from the cell.
• Endocytosis is the import into the cell.

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3.5 Only eukaryotic cells contain
organelles surrounded by membranes
• The most prominent
membrane-enclosed
organelle is the nucleus.
• Every eukaryotic cell
(including plant and animal
cells) contains a nucleus.

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3.5 The nucleus contains most of the
cell’s DNA stored in chromosomes
• The nucleus, surrounded by an envelope and containing
DNA, directs the activities of the cell.

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3.5 The nucleus is surrounded by a double
membrane called the nuclear envelope
• Protein-lined nuclear pores in the nuclear envelope allow
certain molecules, such as RNA, to pass through.

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3.5 The nucleus houses the
chromosomes
• DNA molecules are wrapped around proteins to form
fibers called chromatin.

• Each very long chromatin fiber twists and folds to form a

chromosome.

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3.5 The nucleus contains a darker area
called a nucleolus
• The nucleolus is a
particular location within
the nucleus.
• This area produces
ribosomal RNA (rRNA),
an important component
of a ribosome.

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3.6 DNA directs a cell’s activities
through the production of proteins
• DNA in the nucleus
contains the instructions
for making proteins.
• Proteins are very
important molecules in
our cells. They are
involved in virtually all cell
functions.

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3.6 Several organelles are involved in
protein manufacture

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3.6 Protein production involves two
steps:
1. Transcription in the nucleus results in the production
of RNA from DNA.
2. Translation at the ribosomes results in the production
of proteins.

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3.6 After transcription, RNA travels
from the nucleus to a ribosome
• Ribosomes are where proteins are made.
• Some ribosomes are bound to the membrane of the rough
ER.
• Other ribosomes float freely in the cytoplasm.

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3.6 The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is
filled with membranes
• The smooth ER contains enzymes that produce lipids
(such as steroid hormones).
• The rough ER contains ribosomes that produce many
kinds of proteins.

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3.6 Proteins are finalized and packaged
in the golgi apparatus
• The Golgi apparatus finishes, sorts, and ships cell
products.
• The Golgi apparatus finishes cell products in vesicles,
small bubbles made of membrane.

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3.6 Lysosomes are a type of vesicle
that contains digestive enzymes
• Lysosomes can dissolve large food molecules, old cellular
components, or invasive organisms such as bacteria.

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3.7 Two organelles help provide energy
for the cell
• Chloroplasts are found
in all plant cells and the
cells of some algae.
• Mitochondria are found
in both plant and animal
cells (mitochondrion is
singular).

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3.7 Chloroplasts are the organelle of
photosynthesis
• In photosynthesis, the
energy of sunlight is used
to create molecules of
sugar.
• Chloroplasts require a
supply of water and
carbon dioxide (CO2).
• The sugars produced by
photosynthesis provide
the energy to power the Within a cell, chloroplasts
cell. are visible as green blobs.

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3.7 The chloroplast

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3.7 Mitochondria are the organelle of
cellular respiration
• Cellular respiration uses oxygen (O2) to harvest energy
from molecules of sugar.
• The harvested energy is stored as chemical energy in
molecules of ATP, which can then be used to power many
other cellular processes.

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3.7 The mitochondrion

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3.8 Vacuoles function in the general
maintenance of the cell
• Vacuoles are
intracellular sacs.
• Some are for storage,
such as for food,
nutrients, or pigments.
• Some pump water out of
a cell.
• Many plant cells have a
very large central
vacuole.

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3.8 Some cells have moving
appendages
• Flagella propel the cell
through their whip-like
motion.
• Cilia move in a
coordinated back-and-
forth motion.

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3.8 Some cells are supported by a rigid
cell wall surrounding the membrane
• Plant, fungus, and some prokaryotic cells have a rigid
cell wall.
• Plants can stand upright in part because their rigid cell
walls are made of cellulose.

Note: Animal cells

do not have a cell
wall!

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3.8 Animal cells maintain their shape
with an internal cytoskeleton
• The cytoskeleton is a network of protein fibers that
provides mechanical support, anchorage, and
reinforcement.

An animal cell’s
cytoskeleton network
can be quickly
dismantled and
reassembled, providing
flexibility.

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3.8 Animal cells stick together
• Animal cells produce a sticky extracellular matrix that
helps hold cells together.

When animal cells

are held together by
the extracellular
matrix they form
tissue.

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