Cell structure and Function (Chapter 4)

Outline

What are Cells - prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells

Plant and animal cells
Organelles and their functions
Cytoskeleton
Cell junctions

Cells: are the structural and functional units of life

are the lowest level of structure than can perform all activities required for life
Cell theory: all living things are composed of cells and all cells come from other cells.
Most cells are microscopic; microscopes help biologists look at cell structure
Why are cells so small?
Small cells have a higher surface area to volume ratio compared to bigger
cells. Cells need a larger surface area to get nutrients and oxygen from the
environment and to dispose wastes.
All cells share some common structures:
Bounded by a plasma membrane
Have cytoplasm (fluid region) inside
Have DNA as the hereditary material
Contain ribosomes that make proteins

Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic cells

There are two kinds of cells that have evolved over time: Prokaryotic & Eukaryotic
The first cells are thought to have formed 3.5 billion years ago.
Prokaryotes
Cells are simple and small
Size: 1 um to 10 um diameter

Eukaryotes
Cells are complex and bigger
10-100 um in diameter

Cells of the domain:

Archaea and Bacteria
No membrane-bound nucleus
DNA coiled in a nucleoid region

Cells of the domain Eukarya:

Protists, Fungi, Plants, Animals
Membrane-bound nucleus
Most of the cells DNA is within the
nucleus
Cells partitioned into distinct
membrane-bound organelles
that perform specific functions.

Cell not compartmentalized into

organelles

In addition, prokaryotes have a rigid cell-wall outside the plasma membrane that helps
maintain shape.
Some prokaryotes have a sticky capsule outside the cell wall and others have short
projections on their surface called pili (helps to stick).
Some prokaryotes have longer projections called flagella that help in movement

Eukaryotic cells are divided into functional compartments by a membrane

system:
Organelles are membrane-bound structures in the cytoplasm
a) Compartments enclosed by membranes allow different chemical conditions to
exist in different organelles.
Different organelles can carry out distinct chemical activities (cellular metabolism)
Ex: endoplasmic reticulum (ER) makes steroid hormones while peroxisomes
make hydrogen peroxide as a by-product of their function. H2O2 is toxic but is
converted to water inside peroxisomes
b) Internal membranes also increase the surface area available for cellular
activities
Comparison of Plant and Animal cells: (see fig. 4.4A, B)
Membranous structures:

Non-membranous structures

Plasma membrane
Nucleus
Rough endoplasmic reticulum
Smooth endoplasmic reticulum
Golgi apparatus
Mitochondrion
Peroxisome
Lysosome
Central vacuole (only in plant cell)
Chloroplast (only in plant cell)

Ribosomes
Cytoskeleton (Microtubule,
intermediary filament,
microfilament)
Centriole (only in animal cell)
Flagellum (only in animal cell)
Cell wall (only in plant cell; made
of cellulose)

Nucleus: is the cells genetic control center

Structure:
Contains DNA, the genetic material of a cell
DNA is attached to protein to form long fibers called chromatin
(each fiber is a chromosome)
Has a structure called nucleolus
Surrounded by a double-layered nuclear envelope with pores
Main functions:
DNA is copied before cell division and passed on to daughter cells
Building blocks of ribosomes (RNA+protein) are made in the nucleolus
Nuclear pores regulate the flow of material in and out of the nucleus
Nucleus makes different kinds of RNA, following the DNA code (transcription);
messenger RNA (mRNA) goes through the nuclear pore to the cytoplasm where
it used for protein synthesis

Endomembrane system:
Only found in eukaryotes some membranes are physically connected while
others are vesicles; nucleus, rough ER, smooth ER, Golgi apparatus, lysosomes,
transport vesicles, plasma membrane
Endoplasmic reticulum (ER) extensive network of tubes and sacs
Space enclosed by ER is distinct from the cytoplasm

1) Rough ER: membranes are continuous with the nuclear envelope

Called rough because ribosomes are attached (looks rough in electron
micrographs)
Functions:
a)
makes membranes and transports it to other organelles
b) modifies and transports proteins for secretion outside the plasma
membrane or to other organelles
i. when some proteins are being synthesized by the ribosomes,
on the ER (rough ER), they go through the ER membrane;
ii. they are then modified inside the ER membrane space (ex.
sugar goup is added to the protein
iii. modified protein is packaged into a vesicle that pinches off and
is transported to its destination
2) Smooth ER: membranes are continuous with rough ER and has no ribosomes
attached
Functions:
a) synthesizes lipids (fatty acids, phospholipids, steroids)
different cells make different lipids in tissues where they are needed; ex: ER
in cells of ovaries and testes make sex hormones
b) destroys toxic substances (in liver cells) ex: alcohol, drugs including
sedatives are detoxified by smooth ER enzymes
c) Stores and releases calcium ions in the muscle cells to trigger muscle
contraction
3) Golgi Apparatus: sacs of membranous flat sacs (not continuous with ER)
Functions:
Modifies proteins that come in transport vesicles from ER
Receiving side of Golgi fuse with transport vesicles. Here the proteins are
marked (chemically modified) and then sorted to go to different destinations.
Shipping side of Golgi packages the modified proteins and transports them to
i) become part of the plasma membrane
ii) to be secreted out of the cell or
iii) go to another organelle
4) Lysosomes: are sacs filled with hydrolytic enzymes. The rough ER packages
the enzymes into a transport vesicle and mature lysosomes are released by
the Golgi apparatus.
Digestive enzymes work in an acidic environment to help break down food
particle and bacteria (fuses with a vacuole and breaks it down)
Recycling of old or damaged organelles (by fusion and break down of
contents)
Diseases: Tay-Sachs disease lacking one of the enzymes that breaks down
a lipid in nerve cell membrane lysosomes swell with undigested lipids and
interfere with normal cell function
5) Vacuoles:
a) Plant vacuoles or central vacuole can function as a large lysosome;
can absorb a lot of water and enlarge helping plants grow can store
important chemicals or waste products
b) Food vacuoles result from phagocytosis
c) Contractile vacuoles pump excess water out of cells

Mitochondria:
Carries out cellular respiration in eukaryotic cells (energy processor)
Mitochondria convert chemical energy of foods like sugars to a form that can be
used by the cell ATP (energy currency)
ATP = adenosine triphosphate is used for cellular work
Mitochondria is enclosed by 2 membranes and has 2 compartments:
intermembrane space (between the 2 membranes) and the mitochondrial matrix,
enclosed by the inner membrane. Most of the reactions of cellular respiration
occur in the matrix. (more in chapter on respiration)

Chloroplasts: only in plant cells and photosynthetic protists

Convert solar energy to chemical energy in a process called photosynthesis
We and most other forms of life depend on the energy provided by
photosynthesis.
Chloroplasts organelle that traps light energy and converts it to sugar;
Has 3 compartments intermembrane space, stroma and grana. The chlorophyll
pigment traps the solar energy in the grana (stacks of disks)
(more in chapter on photosynthesis
Both mitochondria and chloroplasts are thought to have originated as bacteria that were
engulfed by eukaryotes. Both organelles have DNA and ribosomes similar to that in
bacteria.

Cytoskeleton:
Structural network of protein fibers in the cytoplasm. 3 main kinds:
1) Microfilaments: are actin filaments that form a 3D network just below the
surface of the plasma membrane.
2) Intermediate filaments:
3) Microtubules: hollow tubes of tubulin (in cilia and flagella)
Functions: Support cell shape, change shape; Anchorage of organelles; Cell motility
(help contraction in muscle cells) and organelle movement
Regulate cellular activities by signaling from cell surface to interior

Cell surfaces and Junctions:

Plant cells thick, rigid cell walls of cellulose (10-100 times thicker than plasma
membrane)provide cell shape, skeletal support and protection; Plasmodesmata
are connecting channels between plant cells. Water and other small molecules
can pass through.
Animal cells secrete extracellular matrix of glycoproteins that hold the cells
together.
Tight junctions form a tight seal between cells that is leakproof (sheet of tissue in
digestive tract)
Anchoring junctions (desmosomes) rivet cells together (skin and heart muscle)
Gap junctions allow small molecules to flow from cell to cell (chemical
communication in developing animal embryos)