Cell

Prokaryotic Vs Eukaryotic
Dr. Priti Desai
 Prokaryotes
• Prokaryotes are single-celled organisms that are the earliest
and most primitive forms of life on earth.
• As organized in the Three Domain System, prokaryotes
include bacteria and archaeans.
• Some prokaryotes, such as cyanobacteria, are photosynthetic
organisms and are capable of photosynthesis.
• Many prokaryotes are extremophiles and are able to live and
thrive in various types of extreme environments including
hydrothermal vents, hot springs, swamps, wetlands, and the
guts of humans and animals (Helicobacter pylori).
• Prokaryotic bacteria can be found almost anywhere and are
part of the human microbiota.
• They live on your skin, in your body, and on everyday
objects in your environment.
• Prokaryotic cells are not as complex as eukaryotic cells
• They have no true nucleus as the DNA is not contained within
a membrane or separated from the rest of the cell, but is
coiled up in a region of the cytoplasm called the nucleoid.
• Prokaryotic organisms have varying cell shapes.
• The most common bacteria shapes are spherical, rod-shaped,
and spiral.
• Prokaryotic cells lack organelles found in eukaryoitic cells such as
mitochondria, endoplasmic reticuli, and Golgi complexes.
• According to the Endosymbiotic Theory, eukaryotic organelles are
thought to have evolved from prokaryotic cells living in
endosymbiotic relationships with one another.
• Like plant cells, bacteria have a cell wall.
• Some bacteria also have a polysaccharide capsule layer surrounding
the cell wall. It is in this layer where bacteria produce biofilm, a
slimy substance that helps bacterial colonies adhere to surfaces and
to each other for protection against antibiotics, chemicals, and
other hazardous substances.
• Similar to plants and algae, some prokaryotes also have
photosynthetic pigments.
• These light-absorbing pigments enable photosynthetic bacteria to
obtain nutrition from light.
4.1 Prokaryotic Form and Function
 Structures common to all bacterial cells

• Cell membrane
• Cytoplasm
• Ribosomes
• One (or a few) chromosomes
Structures found in most bacterial cells
• Cell wall
• Surface coating or glycocalyx
 Structures found in some bacterial cells

• Flagella
• Pili
• Fimbriae
• Capsules
• Slime layers
• Inclusions
• Actin cytoskeleton
• Endospores
 External Structures

• Appendages: Cell extensions

– Common but not present on all species
– Can provide motility (flagella and axial filaments)
– Can be used for attachment and mating (pili and
fimbriae)
 Flagella
• Three parts: Filament, hook (sheath), and
basal body
• Vary in both number and arrangement
– Polar arrangement: flagella attached at one or
both ends of the cell
• Monotrichous- single flagellum
• Lophotrichous- small bunches or tufts of flagella
emerging from the same site
• Peritrichous- dispersed randomly over the structure of
the cell
Figure 4.2
Figure 4.3
 Flagellar Function
• Chemotaxis- positive and negative
• Phototaxis
• Move by runs and tumbles
 https://www.cellsalive.com/animabug.htm

Figure 4.4
Figure 4.5
 Axial Filaments
• AKA periplasmic flagella
• In spirochetes
• A type of internal flagellum that is enclosed in
the space between the cell wall and the cell
membrane
Figure 4.6
 Pili
• Elongate, rigid tubular structures
• Made of the protein pilin
• Found on gram-negative bacteria
• Used in conjugation
Figure 4.8
 Fimbriae
• Small, bristlelike fibers
• Most contain protein
• Tend to stick to each other and to surfaces
Figure 4.7
 The Glycocalyx
• Develops as a coating of repeating polysaccharide
units, protein, or both
• Protects the cell
• Sometimes helps the cell adhere to the
environment
• Differ among bacteria in thickness, organization,
and chemical composition
– Slime layer- a loose shield that protects some bacteria
from loss of water and nutrients
– Capsule- when the glycocalyx is bound more tightly to
the cell and is denser and thicker
Figure 4.9
 Functions of the Glycocalyx
Many pathogenic bacteria have glycocalyces
• Protect the bacteria against phagocytes
• Important in formation of biofilms
The Cell Envelope: The Boundary layer of
Bacteria

• Majority of bacteria have a cell envelope

• Lies outside of the cytoplasm
• Composed of two or three basic layers
– Cell membrane
– Cell wall
– In some bacteria, the outer membrane
Differences in Cell Envelope Structure
• The differences between gram-positive and
gram-negative bacteria lie in the cell envelope
• Gram-positive
– Two layers
– Cell wall and cytoplasmic membrane
• Gram-negative
– Three layers
– Outer membrane, cell wall, and cytoplasmic
membrane
Figure 4.12
 Structure of the Cell Wall
• Helps determine the shape of a bacterium
• Provides strong structural support
• Most are rigid because of peptidoglycan
content
Figure 4.13
 Structure of the Cell Wall, cont.
• Keeps cells from rupturing because of changes in
pressure due to osmosis
• Target of many antibiotics- disrupt the cell wall,
and cells have little protection from lysis
• Gram-positive cell wall
– A thick (20 to 80 nm), homogeneous sheath of
petidoglycan
– Contains tightly bound acidic polysaccharides
• Gram-Negative Cell Wall
– Single, thin (1 to 3 nm) sheet of peptidoglycan
– Periplasmic space surrounds the peptidoglycan
Figure 4.14
• Some bacteria lose their cell wall during part
of their life cycle
– L-forms
– Arise naturally from a mutation in the wall-
forming genes
– Can be induced artificially by treatment with a
chemical that disrupts the cell wall
• When this occurs with gram-positive cells, the cell
becomes a protoplast
• With gram-negative cells, the cell becomes a
spheroplast
Figure 4.16
The Gram-Negative Outer Membrane
• Similar to the cell membrane, except it contains
specialized polysaccharides and proteins
• Outermost layer- contains lipopolysaccharide
• Innermost layer- phospholipid layer anchored by
lipoproteins to the peptidoglycan layer below
• Outer membrane serves as a partial chemical
sieve
– Only relatively small molecules can penetrate
– Access provided by special membrane channels
formed by porin proteins
 Cell Membrane Structure
• Also known as the cytoplasmic membrane
• Very thin (5-10 nm)
• Contain primarily phospholipids and proteins
• The exceptions: mycoplasmas and archaea
• Functions
– Provides a site for functions such as energy reactions,
nutrient processing, and synthesis
– Regulates transport (selectively permeable
membrane)
– Secretion
 Practical Considerations of Differences in
Cell Envelope Structure

• Outer membrane- an extra barrier in gram-

negative bacteria
– Makes them impervious to some antrimicrobial
chemicals
– Generally more difficult to inhibit or kill than gram-
positive bacteria
• Cell envelope can interact with human tissues
and cause disease
– Corynebacterium diphtheriae
– Streptococcus pyogenes
 4.4 Bacterial Internal Structure
• Contents of the Cell Cytoplasm
– Gelatinous solution
– Site for many biochemical and synthetic activities
– 70%-80% water
– Also contains larger, discrete cell masses
(chromatin body, ribosomes, granules, and actin
strands)
 Bacterial Chromosome
• Single circular strand of DNA
• Aggregated in a dense area of the
cell- the nucleoid

Figure 4.17
 Plasmids
• Nonessential, double-stranded circles of DNA
• Present in cytoplasm but may become
incorporated into the chromosomal DNA
• Often confer protective traits such as drug
resistance or the production of toxins and
enzymes
 Ribosomes
• Made of RNA and
protein
• Special type of RNA-
ribosomal RNA (rRNA)
• Characterized by S (for
Svedberg) units- the
prokaryotic ribosome is
70S

Figure 4.18
 Inclusions
• Inclusions- also known as inclusion bodies
– Some bacteria lay down nutrients in these
inclusions during periods of nutrient abundance
– Serve as a storehouse when nutrients become
depleted
– Some enclose condensed, energy-rich organic
substances
– Some aquatic bacterial inclusions include gas
vesicles to provide buoyancy and flotation
 Granules
• A type of inclusion body
• Contain crystals of inorganic compounds
• Are not enclosed by membranes
• Example- sulfur granules of photosynthetic bacteria
• Polyphosphate granules of Corynebacterium and
Mycobacterium are called metachromatic granules
because they stain a contrasting color in methylene
blue
• Magnetotactic bacteria contain granules with iron
oxide- give magnetic properties to the cell
 The Actin Cytoskeleton
• Long polymers of actin
• Arranged in helical ribbons around the cell just
under the cell membrane
• Contribute to cell shape
Figure 4.20
 Bacterial Endospores: An Extremely
Resistant Stage
• Dormant bodies
produced by Bacillus,
Clostridium, and
Sporosarcina

Figure 4.21
 Endospore-Forming Bacteria
• These bacteria have a two-phase life cycle
– Phase One- Vegetative cell
• Metabolically active and growing
• Can be induced by the environment to undergo spore
formation (sporulation)
 Phase Two: Endospore
• Stimulus for sporulation- the depletion of nutrients
• Vegetative cell undergoes a conversion to a
sporangium
• Sporangium transforms in to an endospore
• Hardiest of all life forms
– Withstand extremes in heat, drying, freezing, radiation,
and chemicals
– Heat resistance- high content of calcium and dipicolinic
acid
– Some viable endospores have been found that were more
than 250 million years old
• Germination
– Breaking of dormancy
– In the presence of water and a specific germination
agent
– Quite rapid (1 ½ hours)
– The agent stimulates the formation of hydrolytic
enzymes, digest the cortex and expose the core to
water
• Medical Significance
– Several bacterial pathogens
• Bacillus anthracis
• Clostridium tetani
• Clostridium perfingens
• Clostridium botulinum
– Resist ordinary cleaning methods
 4.5 Bacterial Shapes, Arrangements, and
Sizes

• Three general shapes

– Coccus- roughly spherical
– Bacillus- rod-shaped
• Coccobacillus- short and plump
• Vibrio- gently curved
– Spirillum- curviform or spiral-shaped
– Pleomorphism- when cells of a single species vary
to some extent in shape and size
Figure 4.22
Figure 4.23
Figure 4.24
 Arrangement, or Grouping
• Cocci- greatest variety in arrangement
– Single
– Pairs (diplococci)
– Tetrads
– Irregular clusters (staphylococci and micrococci)
– Chains (streptococci)
– Cubical packet (sarcina)
• Bacilli- less varied
– Single
– Pairs (diplobacilli)
– Chain (streptobacilli)
– Row of cells oriented side by side (palisades)
• Spirilla
– Occasionally found in short chains
Figure 4.25
Figure 4.27
 Archae: The Other Prokaryotes
• Domain Archaea
• Prokaryotic in general structure
• Share many bacterial characteristics
• Evidence may be pointing to them being more
closely related to Domain Eukarya than to
bacteria
• How they differ from other cell types
– Certain genetic sequences are found only in their
rRNA
– Unique membrane lipids and cell wall construction
• The most primitive of all life forms
• Most closely related to the first cells that
originated on earth
• Modern archaea live in habitats that share
conditions with the ancient earth
– Methane producers
– Hyperthermophiles
– Extreme halophiles
– Sulfur reducers
 How are Prokaryotes Different from
Eukaryotes?
• The way their DNA is packaged
– No nucleus
– Not wrapped around histones
• The makeup of their cell wall
– Bacteria- peptidoglycan
– Archae- tough and made of other chemicals,
distinct to them
• Their internal structures
– No complex, membrane-bound organelles