DIRE DAWA UNIVERSITY

COLLEGE OF NATURAL AND COMPUTATIONAL

SCIENCES
DEPARTMENT OF BIOLOGY 
Cell Biology (Biol1012)
LECTURE NOTE
2023

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 Chapter 1. Introduction to Cell Biology
What is Cell biology? A branch of biology that study
of cells regarding their physiological properties, structure,
and function; the organelles they contain; interactions with
their environment; and their life cycle, division and death.
 This is done both on a microscopic and molecular level.
 Also called cytology.
Why is cell biology so important?
 By understanding how cells work in healthy and diseased
states, cell biologists working in animal, plant and
medical science will be able to develop new vaccines,
more effective medicines, plants with improved qualities
and through increased knowledge a better understanding
of how all living things live.
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 What is a cell?
 The cell (from Latin cella, meaning "small room") is the basic
structural, functional, and biological unit of all organisms.
  is the smallest unit of life. Some organisms, such as bacteria and
yeast, are unicellular—consisting only single cell—while others,
are multicellular.
 A cell can perform all the processes of life. Such as
• Sensitivity, can grow, develop and reproduce, metabolism
• Homeostasis, osmoregulation and Adaptation.
All kinds of true cells share the following three basic
characteristics:
1. DNA (hereditary material).
2. Plasma membrane.
3. A metabolic machinery. What about a virus?

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 However, there are certain organisms (viruses) which do not have
true cells.
 Viruses do not easily fit in a true cell parameters.
 Because they lack a plasma membrane and a metabolic machinery
for energy production and protein synthesis
1.1 Discovery of Cells
Robert Hooke
• The cell was first discovered and named by Robert Hooke in
1665.
• He remarked that it looked similar to cellula or small rooms which
monks inhabited, thus deriving the name.
• However what Hooke actually saw was the dead cell walls of plant
cells (cork) as it appeared under the microscope.

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 Fig 1.1
Hooke is responsible for naming cells
An English scientist who looked at slices of cork under a
crude(primitive) compound microscope and saw “a great many little
boxes” that he called “cells.” First person to name cells. Hooke
noticed through his microscope (Fig 1.1) that cork was perforated,
and had pores somewhat little a honeycomb
Coined the term cell
Did he observed a live cell?
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2. Anton van Leeuwenhoek
 In 1673, Leeuwenhoek (a Dutch microscope maker), was first to
view organism (living things)
- Leeuwenhoek used a simple, handheld microscope to view pond
water
- used a simple microscope to look at pond water.
- was the first to observe microorganisms in pond water

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He observed different source of (sample) water such that pond,
rain and see small organism.
A Dutch shopkeeper who looked at pond water using a simple
microscope.
• First observation of live microbes and what he called
“animalcules.”
“Animalcules” known today as protozoa and bacteria
Today, we call them single-celled organisms
Hooke and Leewenhoek’s observation have contributed a lot to
the development of the cell concept.
 However, their observations were not fully accepted for a long
period of time. B/C
 They lacked elaborative statements that could formulate a
generalization.

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Hence the work of the following prominent scientists whose
findings came up with strong statements.
Robert Brown
• discovered the nucleus in 1833.
German Botanist Matthias Schleiden1838
• All plants "are composed of cells".
Theodor Schwann(1838)
• discovered that animals were made of cells
Rudolf Virchow (1855, German Physician)
• " That cells only come from other cells".
• His statement expose
"Theory of Spontaneous Generation"

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 1.2 Cell Theory
Who came up with this theory
 The Combined work of Schleiden, Schwann, and Virchow make
up the modern
Principles of Cell Theory
The Cell Theory states that:-
1. All living things are composed of a cell or cells.
2. Cells are the basic unit of life.
3. All cells come from preexisting cells (Omnis cellulae cellula)
The generally accepted parts of modern cell theory include:
4. Energy flow occurs within cells.
5. Heredity information (DNA) is passed on from cell to cell.
6. All cells have the same basic chemical composition (lipid,
carbohydrate, protein and DNA that is biological molecules)

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1.3 Why we study cells?
bodies are made up of cells
cells do all the work of life
What jobs do cells have to do for an organism to live?
• “breathe”
• gas exchange: O2 in vs. CO2 out
• eat
• take in & digest food
• make energy
• ATP
• build molecules
• proteins, carbohydrates, fats, nucleic acids
• remove wastes
• control internal conditions
• homeostasis

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 1.4 Levels of life organization
Molecule levels (nonliving level of organization)
1. atom (element)
2. molecule (compounds like carbohydrates & proteins)
3. organelles (nucleus, er, golgi …)

Atoms  Molecules  Organelles

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Living (cell) Levels
1. Cell (makes up all organisms
2. Tissue (cells working together
3. Organ (heart, brain, stomach …)
4. Organ systems (respiratory, circulatory …)
5. Organism

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 1.5 Cell diversity (Size, shape and internal organization)
 Not all cells are alike.
 Even cells within the same organism show enormous
diversity in size, shape, and internal organization.
 Enormous Diversity in: Size, shape and internal
organization.
 This is because of their functions
A. Cell Size
• Why cells are so small?
• Female Egg - largest cell in the human body; seen
without the aid of a microscope
• Most cells are visible only with a microscope.

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• Cells are small because they need to be able to diffuse
materials easily.
• This helps with the efficiency of the cell's absorption and
waste expulsion processes.
• the cell's smallness, communication from the nucleus to
other organelles is fast.
• Materials inside and outside of the cell need to easily
pass through the cell membrane, which makes it harder
and slower for the materials to pass through the cell
membrane.
• Cells are small because the ratio of surface area to
volume is the most efficient at their size.

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• This is because when you have a lot of small cells vs a
few big cells the surface area is much larger in relation
to volume.
• When the cells are small and plentiful, they are easier to
replicate and replace when damaged.
• If a cell grows beyond a certain size, materials will not
be able to pass through the membrane fast enough to
accommodate the inside of the cell.
• When the cell reaches a size too large, it will divide into
smaller cells in order to maintain a surface area/volume
ratio that is more favorable to the functioning of the cell.
• Therefore, cells remain small in order to survive.

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 Example: One 2 cm x 2 cm x 2 cm “cell” VS. eight 1 cm x 1 cm
x 1 cm “cells ” (Assume cells are cubic in shape)

SA = 6(2 cm x 2 cm) SA = 8 x 6(1 cm x 1 cm)

= 6(4 cm = 8(6 cm2)
= 24 cm2 =48cm2
V = 2 cm x 2 cm x 2 cm V = 8(1 cm x 1 cm x 1 cm)
= 8 cm3
so, 3:1 = 8 cm3
so, 6:1

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The eight smaller “cells” have the same total volume, but
double the membrane, and so overall have a better surface
area-to-volume ratio.
Most cells are relatively small because as size increases,
volume increases much more rapidly and longer diffusion
time.
 Cell size is limited because of, as cell size increases, it
takes longer for material to diffuse from the cell
membrane to the interior of the cell.
 How does cell solve the problem of increasing size?

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B. Cell Shape
The shape of a cell depends on its function.
Usually, the cells are round, elongated or spherical.
There are also some cells which are long and pointed on
both the ends. Such cells exhibit spindle shape

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Different
shapes of cell

C. Internal structure of a cell

A cell consists of three parts: the cell membrane, the nucleus,
and, between the two, the cytoplasm.
Within the cytoplasm lie intricate arrangements of fine fibers and
hundreds or even thousands of tiny but distinct structures
called organelles.
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1.6 Types of Cells
A. Prokaryotic cells
Without a nucleus; no nuclear membrane (genetic
material dispersed throughout cytoplasm;
No membrane-bound organelles;
Cell contains only one circular DNA molecule contained
in the cytoplasm;
DNA is naked (no histone);
Simple internal structure; and
Cell division by simple binary fission.

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B. Eukaryotic cells
Eukaryotic cells are found in animals, plants, fungi and
protists cell;
Cell with a true nucleus, where the genetic material is
surrounded by a membrane
Eukaryotic genome is more complex than that of
prokaryotes and distributed among multiple
chromosomes;
Eukaryotic DNA is linear;
Eukaryotic DNA is complexed with proteins called
histones;
Numerous membrane-bound organelles;
Complex internal structure;
Cell division by mitosis and meiosis
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Eukaryotic cells

Both cells have certain structures in common.

1. Contain all four biomolecules (lipids, carbs, proteins, and nucleic
acids)
2. Have ribosomes
3. Have DNA
4. Similar Metabolism
5. Can be unicellular
6. Have cell/plasma membranes or cell wall
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