PROKARYOTIC

AND
EUKARYOTIC CELLS

REPORTERS:
AYESSA MARIE M. BARBOSA
PRINCE RHENIEL A. SARCIA
BSN 1-A

 LIVING CELLS
can be classified into two
general categories:

B. EUKARYOTES ARE THOSE THAT

POSSESS A TRUE NUCLEUS AND
MEMBRANE-BOUND ORGANELLES.

1. PROKARYOTES ARE ORGANISMS

THAT DO NOT POSSESS A TRUE
NUCLEUS AND MEMBRANE-BOUND
ORGANELLES (E.G., BACTERIA).

COMPARISON BETWEEN PROKARYOTES AND EUKARYOTES

ORGANISMS THAT ARE CONSIDERED MEDICALLY IMPORTANT ARE THOSE

THAT HAVE THE POTENTIAL OR THE ABILITY TO PRODUCE SIGNIFICANT

CLINICAL DISEASE IN HUMANS.

THEY MAY BE PART OF THE NORMAL FLORA OF THE BODY OR ARE TRUE

PATHOGENIC ORGANISMS. THESE MAY BE CATEGORIZED INTO BACTERIA,

VIRUSES, FUNGI, ALGAE, AND PARASITES (PROTOZOA AND HELMINTHS)

1. VIRUSES
- ACELLULAR ORGANISMS.
- OUTER SURFACE IS CALLED CAPSID, COMPOSED OF
REPEATING SUBUNITS CALLED CAPSOMERS.
- POSSESS ONLY A SINGLE NUCLEIC ACID, EITHER
DNA OR RNA, BUT NEVER BOTH.
VIRUSES ARE CLASSIFIED BASED ON THE FOLLOWING:

(1) TYPE OF NUCLEIC ACID THEY POSSESS;

(2) SHAPE OF THE CAPSID (ICOSAHEDRAL, HELICAL, POLYHEDRAL, OR COMPLEX)
(3) NUMBER OF CAPSOMERES;
(4) SIZE OF THE CAPSID;
(5) PRESENCE OR ABSENCE OF AN ENVELOPE;
(6) TYPE OF HOST THEY INFECT (HUMANS, PLANTS, OR ANIMALS)
(7) TYPE OF DISEASE THEY PRODUCE;
(8) TARGET CELL OR TROPISM (E.G., T HELPER CELLS FOR HIV);
(9) IMMUNOLOGIC OR ANTIGENIC PROPERTIES.
 FIGURE 2.2 DIAGRAMMATIC
REPRESENTATION OF VARIOUS FORMS AND
SIZES OF VIRUSES
 BACTERIOPHAGES:

- a special type of viruses that primarily infects bacteria.

- they play a role in the acquisition of virulence factors of
certain bacteria, as well as in the transfer of genetic
material from one bacterium to another. (as in transduction)
 THEY ARE SIMILAR TO OTHER VIRUSES IN
THAT:

A. THEY ARE OBLIGATE INTRACELLULAR PARASITES;

B. THEY ARE SIMILARLY SHAPED LIKE OTHER VIRUSES; AND
C. THEY MAY BE CLASSIFIED BASED ON THE TYPE OF
NUCLEIC ACID THEY POSSESS.
2. BACTERIA:
- PROKARYOTIC CELLS WITH THE MAJORITY HAVING AN OUTER
COVERING CALLED THE CELL WALL THAT IS COMPOSED MAINLY OF
PEPTIDOGLYCAN.
- THEY POSSESS BOTH DNA AND RNA.
- UNLIKE EUKARYOTIC ORGANISMS, BACTERIA POSSESS A NUCLEOID
INSTEAD OF A TRUE NUCLEUS, SMALLER RIBOSOMES, AND LACK
MITOCHONDRIA.
 BASED ON THEIR PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS,
BACTERIA MAY BE BROADLY CATEGORIZED INTO:

A. GRAM-NEGATIVE B. GRAM-POSITIVE BACTERIA

BACTERIA WITH CELL WALL WITH CELL WALL (E.G.,
(E.G., ESCHERICHIA COLI); STAPHYLOCOCCUS AUREUS);

C. ACID-FAST BACTERIA WITH

LIPID-RICH CELL WALL (E.G., D. BACTERIA WITHOUT CELL
MYCOBACTERIUM TUBERCULOSIS; WALL (E.G., MYCOPLASMA)
AND
3. FUNGI:
- EUKARYOTIC CELLS WITH AN OUTER SURFACE COMPOSED MAINLY OF
CHITIN.
- THEIR CELL MEMBRANE IS MADE UP MOSTLY OF ERGOSTEROL.
- LIKE BACTERIA, FUNGI POSSESS BOTH DNA AND RNA.
- UNLIKE BACTERIA, THEY POSSESS A TRUE NUCLEUS THAT IS ENCLOSED BY A
NUCLEAR MEMBRANE AND MITOCHONDRIA THAT FUNCTION ATP PRODUCTION.
- FUNGAL RIBOSOMES ARE ALSO LARGER THAN BACTERIAL RIBOSOMES (80
SVEDBERG UNITS).
4. PROTOZOA:
- REPRESENTATIVES FOR PARASITES.
- LIKE BACTERIA AND FUNGI, THESE ARE ALSO EUKARYOTIC
CELLS THAT HAVE AN OUTER SURFACE CALLED A PELLICLE.
- UNICELLULAR ORGANISMS THAT USUALLY DIVIDE THROUGH
BINARY FISSION, SIMILAR TO BACTERIA.
- POSSESS BOTH DNA AND RNA AS WELL AS OTHER
CELLULAR FEATURES SEEN IN TYPICAL EUKARYOTIC CELLS.
MAJORITY EXIST IN TWO MORPHOLOGIC
FORMS: CYSTS AND TROPHOZOITES.

A. CYST – B. TROPHOZOITE -
INFECTIVE STAGE PATHOGENIC STAGE
5. ALGAE:
- EUKARYOTIC ORGANISMS WHOSE OUTER SURFACE CONTAINS PRIMARILY OF
CELLULOSE.
- THEY ARE DESCRIBED AS PLANT-LIKE ORGANISMS BECAUSE MOST OF THEM
HAVE CHLOROPHYLL AND ARE THUS CAPABLE OF PHOTOSYNTHESIS.
- UNLIKE PLANTS, THEY DO NOT POSSESS TRUE ROOTS, STEMS, AND LEAVES.
- ALGAE VARY IN SIZE FROM THE SINGLE-CALLED PHYTOPLANKTONS TO THE
LARGE SEAWEEDS FOUND IN THE OCEAN FLOOR.
- ALGAE DO NOT PRODUCE SIGNIFICANT DISEASE IN HUMANS.
- MOST ALGAE ARE BENEFICIAL AS THEY ARE IMPORTANT
SOURCE OF FOOD, IODINE, AND OTHER MINERALS.
- THEY MAY BE ALSO BE USED AS FERTILIZERS, EMULSIFIERS
FOR PUDDINGS, AND STABILIZERS FOR ICE CREAM AND SALAD
DRESSINGS.

I. DIATOMS:
- UNICELLULAR ALGAE THAT INHABIT
BOTH FRESH- AND SALTWATER.
- CELL WALL CONTAINS SILICONE
DIOXIDE THAT MAY BE UTILIZED IN
FILTRATION SYSTEMS, INSULATION,
AND AS ABRASIVES.
II. DINOFLAGELLATES:
- ALSO UNICELLULAR ALGAE THAT ARE IMPORTANT
MEMBERS IN THE ATMOSPHERE AND SERVE AS
IMPORTANT LINKS IN THE FOOD CHAIN.
- THEY ARE ALSO RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT IS
KNOWN AS “RED TIDE”.
- THESE SMALL ORGANISMS PRODUCE A POWERFUL
NEUROTOXIN WHICH, WHEN INGESTED IN
SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS, IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE
POTENTIALLY FATAL DISEASE CALLED PARALYTIC
SHELLFISH POISONING.
A. LIVING CELLS CAN BE CLASSIFIED AS EITHER PROKARYOTIC OR EUKARYOTIC.
B. PROKARYOTIC CELLS, AS EXEMPLIFIED BY BACTERIA, ARE USUALLY UNICELLULAR, DO
NOT POSSESS A TRUE NUCLEUS AND MEMBRANE-BOUND ORGANELLES, AND MULTIPLY BY
MEANS OF BINARY FISSION.
C. EUKARYOTIC CELLS VARY FROM UNICELLULAR (E.G., PROTOZOA) TO MULTICELLULAR (E.G.,
FUNGI). THEY POSSESS A TRUE NUCLEUS SURROUNDED BY A NUCLEAR MEMBRANE AS WELL
AS MEMBRANE-BOUND ORGANELLES.
D. VIRUSES ARE NOT CLASSIFIED AS CELLS SINCE THEY ONLY POSSESS AN OUTER COVERING
CALLED CAPSID AND A NUCLEIC ACID (EITHER DNA OR RNA). AS SUCH, THEY ARE DEPENDENT
ON THE HOST CELL MACHINERY FOR THEIR REPLICATION AND ARE THUS CONSIDERED AS
OBLIGATE INTRACELLULAR PARASITES.
E. MEDICALLY IMPOTANT ORGANISMS ARE THOSE WHICH PRODUCE SIGNIFICANT DISEASE IN HUMANS. THESE
MAY TAKE THE FORM OF VIRUSES, BACTERIA, FUNGI, PROTOZOA, AND ALGAE.
F. VIRUSES ARE ACELLULAR, OBLIGATE INTRACELLULAR PARASITES POSSESSING ONLY DNA OR RNA AND MAY BE
CLASSIFIED BASED ON:
1. TYPE OF NUCLEIC ACID THEY POSSESS;
2. SHAPE OF THE CAPSID (ICOSAHEDRAL, HELICAL, POLYHEDRAL, OR COMPLEX)
3. NUMBER OF CAPSOMERES;
4. SIZE OF THE CAPSID;
5. PRESENCE OR ABSENCE OF AN ENVELOPE;
6. TYPE OF HOST THEY INFECT (HUMANS, PLANTS, OR ANIMALS)
7. TYPE OF DISEASE THEY PRODUCE;
8. TARGET CELL OR TROPISM (E.G., T HELPER CELLS FOR HIV);
9. IMMUNOLOGIC OR ANTIGENIC PROPERTIES.
- BACTERIA ARE PROKARYOTIC ORGANISMS THAT POSSESS BOTH DNA AND RNA. MOST
POSSESS A CELL WALL COMPOSED PREDOMINANTLY OF PEPTIDOGLYCAN.

- FUNGI ARE EUKARYOTIC ORGANISMS WITH A CELL WALL COMPOSED MAINLY OF CHITIN AND
CELL MEMBRANE THAT CONTAINS ERGOSTEROL.

- PROTOZOA ARE MOSTLY UNICELLULAR PARASITES THAT ARE EUKARYOTIC. MOST DIVIDE BY
BINARY FISSION SIMILAR TO BACTERIA.

- ALGAE ARE EUKARYOTIC, AQUATIC, PLANT-LIKE ORGANISMS. SIMILAR TO PLANTS, THEY

ARE PHOTOSYNTHETIC BUT UNLIKE PLANTS, THEY DO NOT HAVE TRUE ROOTS, STEMS, OR
LEAVES.