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Chapter 2 Cell Structure and Cell Organisation

Concept Map
Cell
Animal Cell
Plant Cell
Structure, function and comparison
Organelles
Non-organelles
Nucleus
Endoplasmic Reticulum
Ribosome
Mitochondria
Chloroplast
Golgi apparatus
Vacuole
Centriole
Plasma membrane
Cell wall
Cytoplasm

Cell organisation and specialisation

☑️By the end of the chapter, you should be able to:

·Draw and label animal and plant cells.
·Compare and contrast an animal cell with a plant cell.
·State the necessity for cell specialisation in multicellular
organisms as compared to unicellular organisms.
·Explain cell organisation.
·State the meaning of internal environment.
·Explain the necessity to maintain optimal internal environment.
2.1 Cell Structure and Function
A. Cell structure
1. The combined observations and conclusions of cell biologists
over many years led to the development of the cell theory, which
states that:
·all living things are composed of cells.
·cells are the basic units of structure and function in living things.
·all cells come from pre-existing cells.
2. The living component of a cell is called the protoplasm 原生质. It
consists of the cytoplasm and the nucleus.
3. The protoplasm is surrounded by a thin layer of membrane, known as the
plasma membrane.
4. In a plant cell, there is a rigid cell wall made up of cellulose which forms an
outer boundary completely surrounding the plasma membrane.
5. All typical cells appear to have the nucleus, cytoplasm and the plasma
membrane in common.
(B) Structures of an animal cell
1. Cells vary enormously in size and complexity.
2. However, most cells are in the range of 5-50 micrometre (µm) in diameter.
3. The cellular components of a cell can be seen under a light or optical
microscope.
4. The detailed internal structure of a cell, known as the ultrastructure, can be
seen under an electron microscope.
5. The ultrastructure of a typical animal cell is illustrated in Figure 2.1 and 2.2.
(D) Cellular components of an animal cell and a plant cell
1. The electron microscope reveals that the cell is highly complex and contains
structures called organelles.
2. Organelles are cellular components that perform specific functions within
the cell.
3. The cell surface membrane or plasma membrane is selectively
permeable or semi-permeable and controls the exchange of substances
between the cell and its environment.
4. The plasma membrane regulates and controls the flow of materials in and out
of the cell. It encourages the movement of certain molecules across the
membrane and at the same time limits or inhibits the movement of other
molecules.
5. The plasma membrane consists mainly of lipid and protein.
6. The cytoplasm refers to the whole of the cell (protoplasm) excluding the
nucleus.
7. The cytoplasm consists of membrane-bound organelles and cytosol, the fluid
part of the cytoplasm.
8. Cytosol contains water and dissolved solutes such as sugars, amino acids,
enzymes, fatty acids, nucleotides, ATP, dissolved gases and proteins. It is the site
for many biochemical reactions.
9. In plants, the plasma membrane is surrounded by a rigid cellulose cell wall
which determines the shape of the cell, protects and supports the plant cell.
10. The cellulose fibrils have high tensile strength and prevent plant cells from
bursting when water enters by osmosis. The turgor pressure developed helps
to support the plant.
11. There are often tiny holes in the wall through which cytoplasmic connections
between adjacent cells may run. These connections are called plasmodesmata.
[Link] enable substances to be transported easily between
neighbouring cells.
13. Most cell walls are completely permeable to water and can provide a
pathway for the free flow of water and mineral salts.
14. Some cell walls become modified by substances such as lignin. Lignin
strengthens cell walls but makes them impermeable.

E. Structures, function and distribution of

cell organelles
Organelles are structures in the cell that
carry out specialised functions. Examples
are nucleus, endoplasmic reticulum,
lysosomes, chloroplasts, mitochondria,
Golgi apparatus, vacuoles, centrioles and
ribosomes.
What is a cell?
1. A cell is the basic unit of life.
2. Cells vary in shape, size and content depending on their function.
3. Cells are very small. Most cells are in the range of 1 µm (bacteria) to 100 µm
(plant cells).
4. A light microscope (sometimes also known as a compound microscope) is
usually used to help us observe microscopic cells.
5. Most of the time, staining techniques are used in the preparation of specimen
slides. Staining helps to show up the different parts of the cell more clearly.
6. Cells are made up of protoplasm.
7. The protoplasm consists of the cell membrane, the nucleus and the jelly-
like substance called the cytoplasm.
8. Some organisms have only one cell. They are called unicellular organism.
9. Bacteria and yeast are unicellular organisms. Othe examples of unicellular
organisms include the Amoeba, Euglena and Paramecium.
10. Most organisms are made up of many cells. They are called multicellular
organisms.
11. Fish, birds, reptiles, amphibians and mammals are examples of multicellular
organisms.
12. A human being is a multicellular organism. There are billions of cells in an
adult human body.
More to Know
Over 300 years ago, Robert Hooke, an English inventor and scientist, looked at
thin slices of cork under a microscope that he had made from lenses. He
observed small box-like shapes inside the cork. He called the ‘little boxes’ that
he saw cells—the basic units of which all living things are made.

More to Know
Organisms that consist of cells without a membrane around the nucleus are
called prokaryotes. Prokaryotes such as the bacteria were the first organisms to
appear on Earth. Organisms with cells that have a membrane around the nucleus
are called eukaryotes. Eukaryotes appeared about a billion years later than the
prokaryotes. Plants, animals, fungi and protists are examples of eukaryotic
cells.
2.1 Cell Structure and Function
1. Before the 1600’s, people had no idea about cells because microscopes had
not been invented yet.
2. The first microscope was invented in 1590 by Zacharias Jansen.
3. In 1665, an English botanist, Robert Hooke used a microscope to observe a
piece of cork from the bark of a tree. He noticed that the plant material consisted
of closely packed tiny boxes that he termed cells.
Photograph 2.1 Robert Hooke’s microscopic observation of cells from a
piece of cork.
4. Scientists also discovered that cells contain tiny organelles afloat in a jelly-
like medium, the cytoplasm.
5. More importantly, scientists also discovered that thousands of biochemical
reactions take place in the cells.

Mind Breaker
Q: What is the Cell Theory?
A: The modern Cell Theory states that:
1. All organisms are made up of one or more cells.
2. All cells arise from pre-existing cells.
3. Cells contain genetic materials of an organism that is passed from parent to
daughter cells.
4. All metabolic reactions take place in the cells.
What is a cell?
1. Cells are usually described as ‘the units of life’, or ‘the building blocks of
which living things are made’.
2. Cells are like the bricks that make up the walls of a house. But bricks are non-
living, identical in shape and quite large, whereas cells are alive, of many
different shapes and very tiny.
3. Cells carry out certain functions that bring life to the organism.
4. There are vital biochemical reactions taking place in a cell. These
biochemical reactions enable us to walk, talk, think, love and so on.

Mind Breaker
Q: How many cells make up a human being?
A: Billions of them.

Contextual BIOLOGY
Cells are so tiny that you need a microscope to see them. If it were possible to
increase the size of a man a million times (he would then be taller than a 100-
storey building), a cell would only be the size of a tennis ball.
[Link] organisms are made of basic units called cells.
[Link] living component of a cell is called protoplasm. Protoplasm consists of
the cytoplasm and the nucleus.
3. The cytoplasm contains structures called organelles.
4. Organelles perform specific functions which enable the cell to function as a
unit of life.
Organelles are structures in the cell that carry out specialised functions.
1. Most cells share certain features.
2. Figure 2.5 shows some of the structures of cell parts in both plant and animal
cells.
Nucleus
nucleolus
nuclear membrane
nuclear pore
chromatin and nuclear sap
cytoplasmic matrix
centriole
rough endoplasmic reticulum
smooth endoplasmic reticulum
Golgi apparatus
mitochondrion
lysosome
cell membrane
starch grain
chloroplast
cell sap
tonoplast
cellulose cell wall
A generalised plant cell
glycogen granule
small vacuoles

1. Most cells share certain features.

2. Figure 2.5 shows some of the structures of cell parts in both plant and
animal cells.
Nucleus
nucleolus
nuclear membrane
 nuclear pore
chromatin and nuclear sap
cytoplasmic matrix
centriole
rough endoplasmic reticulum
smooth endoplasmic reticulum
Golgi apparatus
mitochondrion
lysosome
cell membrane
starch grain
chloroplast
cell sap
tonoplast
cellulose cell wall
A generalised plant cell
glycogen granule
small vacuoles
A generalised animal cell

Figure 2.5 Diagram of generalised plant and animal cells (organelles not in
the same scale)
Organelles are specialized structures within a cell that perform specific
functions, similar to organs in the body. The term literally means “little
organs”.
5. Organelles are nucleus, endoplasmic reticulum, lysosomes,
chloroplasts, mitochondria, Golgi apparatus, vacuoles, centrioles and
ribosomes.

A Typical Animal Cell

Plasma membrane
Golgi apparatus
 Protoplasm
Cytoplasm
Nucleolus
Nucleus
Food granules
Mitochondrion
A Typical Plant Cell
Chloroplast
Plasma membrane
Vacuole containing cell sap
Cytoplasm
Middle lamella
Starch grain
Nucleus
Cell wall
Word Wise
English
Explanation
Cellular
components
Parts of the cell that play important roles in the functions of the cell
Relate

Drawing a link or connection between characteristics or outcomes

Density
The mass of 1 cm³ of any type of matter
Cell
The basic unit of all living things
Function
The role a particular component plays in the cell
Ex:1 Quick Test 2
Label the diagram of a plant cell below.

1 cellulose cell wall

2 middle lamella
3 starch grain
4 tonoplast
5 vacuoles
6 plasma membrane
7 nucleus
8 chloroplast
1 nucleolus
2 nucleus
3 cytoplasm
4 protoplasm
5 Golgi apparatus
6 plasma membrane
7 mitochondrion
8 food granules

3. State 3 similarities between the plant and animal cell.

(a) plasma membranes
(b) nucleuses
(c) mitochondrion
4. State 3 differences between an animal and a plant cell.
Animal cell
Plant cell
(a) irregular shape
(a) regular shape
(b) no cell wall
(b) has a cell wall
(c) no chloroplast
(c) contains chloroplast
5. Draw the leaf cells of Hydrilla sp. and label your drawing clearly.
Chloroplast
Cell wall
Nucleus
Cytoplasm
Vacuoles
Plasma membrane
Leaf cells of Hydrilla sp.
6. Figure 2.1 shows the organelles of animal and plant cells that can be seen
under the electron microscope.
Rough ER
Centrioles
Vesicle
Plasma membrane
Mitochondria
Nucleus
Lysosome
Cytoplasm
Animal cell
Chloroplast
Vacuole
Cytoplasm
Mitochondria
Cell wall
Golgi apparatus
Nucleus
Plasma membrane
Plant cell
Figure 2.1
Mitochondrion
Centriole
Plasma membrane
Nucleus
Cytoplasm
Lysosome
Golgi apparatus
Rough endoplasmic reticulum
Ribosome
Nucleolus
Smooth endoplasmic reticulum
Figure 2.4 A typical animal cell
Mitochondrion
Vacuole
Chloroplast
Cytoplasm
Tonoplast
Cell wall
Plasma membrane
Nucleus
Nucleolus
Ribosome
Golgi apparatus
Figure 2.5 A typical plant cell
2. The plant cell has additional features that are not present or visible in the
animal cell. Cell wall, Chloroplasts Vacuoles.
Nucleus
coordinating all cellular activities and carrying genetic materials
outer membrane
inner membrane
nucleoplasma
nucleolus
chromatin
nuclear envelope
pore in nuclear envelope
Smooth endoplasmic reticulum
transporting lipids and glycerols
smooth endoplasmic reticulum
Plasma membrane
controlling entry and exit of substances
Ribosome
site for protein synthesis
Cytoplasm
food storage and medium for various metabolic reactions
Lysosomes
Mitochondrion
site for energy production
cristae
matrix
inner membrane
outer membrane
Vacuole (tonoplast, cell sap)
site for storing nutrients and structural support for certain plants
Chloroplast
site for photosynthesis
outer membrane
inner membrane
stroma
thylakoid
granum
lamella
Non-organelles
Plasma membrane
Cell wall
Cytoplasm
Cell membrane/Plasma membrane
(A cell membrane is a general term that refers to any membranes found
within a cell. The cell surface membrane which encloses the contents of the
cell is called the plasma membrane.)
Plasma membrane is also known as the cell membrane.
The cell membrane is also known as the plasma membrane.
Description
·Delicate and flexible, enabling an animal cell to change its shape
·Encloses the protoplasm
·Is semi-permeable
·Found in both plant and animal cells
1. Cell membrane refers to all membranes found outside the cell which
form the outer boundary of the cell.
2. Every cell is enclosed in a membrane.
Every cell and all its organelles are surrounded by cell membranes.
Plasma membrane is a thin membrane around the cytoplasm of a cell
It is a thin, partially permeable layer that surrounds the cell.
·A thin, flexible layer which forms the outer boundary of a cell.
3. Plasma membrane covers the whole cell; nuclear membrane covers
the nucleus; and mitochondrial membrane covers the mitochondrion.
4. The membrane is a complex double layer of lipids (lipid bilayer) with the
presence of numerous proteins that are important to cell activity.
Plasma membrane is made up of two lipid layers
Single membrane-bound organelles:
Vacuole, Lysosome, Golgi Apparatus, Endoplasmic Reticulum are single
membrane-bound organelles present only in a eukaryotic cell.
Double membrane-bound organelles:
Nucleus, mitochondria and chloroplast are double membrane-bound
organelles present only in a eukaryotic cell.
1. Cell membrane refers to all membranes found outside the cell which
form the outer boundary of the cell.
2. Every cell is enclosed in a membrane.
Every cell and all its organelles are surrounded by cell membranes.
Plasma membrane is a thin membrane around the cytoplasm of a cell
It is a thin, partially permeable layer that surrounds the cell.
 ·A thin, flexible layer which forms the outer boundary of a cell.
3. Plasma membrane covers the whole cell; nuclear membrane covers
the nucleus; and mitochondrial membrane covers the mitochondrion.
4. The membrane is a complex double layer of lipids (lipid bilayer) with the
presence of numerous proteins that are important to cell activity.
Plasma membrane is made up of two lipid layers
Single membrane-bound organelles:
Vacuole, Lysosome, Golgi Apparatus, Endoplasmic Reticulum are single
membrane-bound organelles present only in a eukaryotic cell.

Cytoplasm Functions
·gives shape to the cell
·supports and protects the cell organelles
1. It supports the organelles in the cell.
·Mitochondria - for cell respiration
·Centrioles - for cell division
·Vacuoles - fluid-filled sacs for storage
·Chloroplasts (in plant cells) - site for photosynthesis
·Provides substances obtained from external environment to the organelles.
·Provides the organelles with substances obtained from the external
environment.
2. It is the site where most of the cell activities and chemical reactions take
place.
3. Enzymes and other essential proteins are made in the cytoplasm.
3. Cytoplasm acts as a medium for biochemical reactions in the cell.
· Acts as a medium where biochemical reactions and most living
processes occur within the cell.
Medium for biochemical reactions to occur
Cytoplasm also serves as a place where a lot of biochemical reactions take
place. For example, glucose is broken down to smaller substances to produce
energy in the cytoplasm.
·in general, it provides a medium for all cellular metabolic reactions to
occur
·provides a medium to produce energy (in the mitochondrion), to
manufacture materials (in the ER) and to store materials
Mind Breaker
Q: Besides organelles floating in a watery medium, what else do you think
cytoplasm contains?
A: Cytoplasm contains substrates such as glucose, oxygen, enzymes and
inorganic ions for the biochemical reactions.
Organelles
Nucleus
nuclear membrane/envelope
nucleolus
nucleoplasm
Description
·Spherical or ovoid in shape
·Denser than cytoplasm & very prominent
·Enclosed in nuclear membrane or neurilemma
·Contains long, coiled thread-like chromosomes
·Controls all cell activities and carries genetic materials for organism
Nucleus (plural, nuclei)

nucleolus
nuclear envelope
outer membrane
inner membrane
nucleoplasm
chromatin
nuclear pore
Figure 2.7 The nucleus
chromatin
nuclear envelope
nucleolus
nucleoplasm
Figure 2.10 Nucleus
Nucleus
1. The nucleus is the most obvious organelle in any eukaryotic cells.
[Link] nucleus is the largest and most prominent organelle within the cell.
2. The nucleus is enclosed by a nuclear envelope, which consists of two
membranes perforated by nuclear pores.
Nucleus is an organelle bounded by the nuclear membrane (two layers),
containing a nucleolus, chromosomes, and nucleoplasm.
Nucleus may contain one or more spherical bodies called nucleolus (plural:
nucleoli).
·Consists of three main components:
(a) the nuclear envelope, which separates the contents of the nucleus from
the cytoplasm
(b) chromatin, which carries genetic material in the form of DNA
(c) a darker and dense region called the nucleolus