Cell Structures and Functions
Cell shape and size
o Cellular diversity is also reflected in the
different sizes of cells
o As a cell grows, its volume increases faster
than does its surface area
o The larger the cell, the greater the surface area
required to maintain it and vice versa
INTERNAL ORGANIZATION
o Prokaryotic Cells – lack a nuclear envelope
and membrane-bound organelles, an example
of which is the bacterial cell.
o Eukaryotic Cells – generally longer and have
very distinct nuclei that are clearly surrounded
by nuclear membranes.
 They also have numerous membrane-
bound organelles found in the
cytoplasm
 Protists, plants, fungi, and animals
have eukaryotic cells
 Binary fission
Prokaryotic cells
o The absence of a membrane-bound nucleus
mainly distinguishes prokaryotic cells from
eukaryotic cells
o Capsule – a sticky outer layer that provides
protection
o Cell wall – a structure that confers rigidity and
shape to the cell
o Plasma membrane – a structure that serves as
permeability barrier
o Nucleoid – a DNA-containing region within
the cytoplasm
o Cytoplasm – the region where chromosomes
(DNA), ribosome, and various inclusions are
found
o Ribosome – the site where protein is
synthesized
o Pilus – a hair-like appendage that functions in
adhesion
o Flagellum – facilitates movement of bacteria
Eukaryotic cells
CELL MEMBRANE
o Also called as plasma membrane
o It separates the cell from its external
environment
o It is the outermost covering of animal cells
while that of plant cells is called cell wall
o Selectively permeable membrane that
regulates the entrance and exit of substances
into the cell
o Provides shape and flexibility to the cell
o 1925, Evert Gorter and Francois Grendel –
hypothesized that the cell membrane is
composed of a lipid bilayer
 They studied the lipids from
erythrocytes (red blood cells) and
found out that the plasma membrane
has a layer facing inward, away from
aqueous environment (hydrophobic-
water fearing); outer layer facing
outward, toward the outside
environment (hydrophilic-water
loving)
o 1935, Hugh Davson and James Danielli –
proposed a sandwich-like model of the cell
membrane
 Davson-Danielli model, describes the
cell membrane as a phospholipid
bilayer sandwiched by a coat of protein
on either surface
o Singer-Nicolson Model – describes the
plasma membrane as a mosaic of proteins that
are embedded or attached to a fluid bilayer of
lipid
 It hypothesizes that proteins are
globular entities, floating in and on the
lipid bilayer
Cytoplasm
o Ground substance and the biggest part of the
cell where organelles and cellular inclusions
are found
Cytoplasmic organelles
 o Endoplasmic Reticulum – is a network of
intercommunicating channels in the cytoplasm
 Rough Endoplasmic Reticulum –
described as such due to the presence
of ribosomes. It plays a role in the
production of protein, as well as in its
folding, quality control, and dispatch
 Smooth Endoplasmic Reticulum –
more tubular and non-granular
structure due to the absence of
ribosomes. It plays a role in the
manufacture and metabolism of lipids
o Golgi Apparatus – is composed of sets of
cisternae (folds) and numerous vesicles filled
with fluid and suspended substances
 Responsible for the processing,
packaging, and sorting of secretory
materials for use within and outside of
the cell
o Mitochondrion – powerhouse of the cell
 It contains enzymes that help in the
chemical oxidation of food molecules
and produces energy in the form of
ATP
 Cristae – are numerous folds of the
inner membrane
 Matrix – is the space inside the inner
membrane
o Lysosomes – small, spherical, membrane-
bound organelles which contain a number of
enzymes for intercellular digestion
 Lyzozomes – enzyme produced by
lysosomes
 Perixisomes – breakdown the toxins
that may harm the cell
o Secretory Granules – are large dense
granules with membrane. These fuse with the
cell membrane to secrete substance such as
enzymes, proteins, and signaling molecules out
of the cell
o Lipid Droplets – store fatty acids and sterols
Cytoplasmic inclusions
o Are non-membranous substances and
structures suspended in the cytoplasm with
varying functions
o Ribosomes – most numerous of all
cytoplasmic structures
 They are the sites where proteins are
made
 They could be found attached to the
endoplasmic reticulum or free in the
cytoplasm
o Centriole – has a central role in cell division
where it participates in the formation of the
mitotic spindle
o Microtubules – are long, slender, protein
tubes
 Together with the microfilaments, they
form the cytoskeleton of the cell
 They are composed of linear polymers
of tubulin
 These also form the cores of the cilia
and flagella of sperm cells and play a
role in maintaining cell shape
o Microfilaments – support the cell to maintain
its structure and shape as it provides resiliency
against forces that can alter the shape
o Glycogen granules – which are abundant in
liver cells, play an important role in the
glucose cycle
o Pigments – are substances that do not require
staining by dyes because they already possess
their own color
Nucleus
o Found in most eukaryotic cells
o It is the site where nucleic acids are
synthesized and, therefore, directs all the
activities of the cell
o Also serves as a site for the storage of
hereditary factors
o It is the source of ribonucleic acid (RNA), a
molecule responsible for various cellular
functions such as genetic coding and
expression
o Nuclear Membrane – is the two-layered outer
limit of the nucleus separating it from the
cytoplasm
 it contains ribosomes on its outer
membrane
 it is also continuous with the
endoplasmic reticulum
  the dense, protein-rich substance inside xanthophylls, and various red
the nucleus is the nucleoplasm, where pigments
the spherical, non-membrane bound  Leucoplasts – store food such as
nucleolus (structures responsible for starches, lipids, and proteins
ribosome formation) is suspended
o Nuclear Pores – act as selective channels Cell modifications and adaptations
between the cytoplasm and the inside of the
o For instance, cells that absorb nutrients in the
nucleus, selectively allowing molecules which
small intestine have microvilli.
contain the correct localization signals to pass
 These are extensions on the cell
in and out
membrane that help increase the
o Found inside the nucleus is the chromatin,
surface area of the cell, thus,
which is made up of DNA and proteins, and
facilitating increased absorption of
forms chromosomes during cell divisions
nutrients
o Nerve Cells, which are mostly elongated,
facilitate the transmission of impulses from
Structures found in plant cells the brain and the spinal cord to the different
parts of the body
o Cell Wall – is the outermost, rigid covering o Red Blood Cells (RBCs) – allows for easy
of plant cells movement through blood vessels
 It is primarily composed of cellulose o Tracheal Cells have cilia that beat and drive
embedded in hardening compounds air impurities or foreign particles and mucus
such as pectin and lignin secretions up the trachea to the mouth where
 Plant cells produce two types of cell they can be coughed out
walls, the primary and secondary o Sperm Cells have a tail, the flagellum, which
walls with a lamella sandwiched in propels it toward the egg cell for fertilization
between o Root Hairs (Specialized Cells) elongated
 The primary wall is the first to form, outgrowths from the outer layer of cells in a
particularly, during the growth period root that help absorb water and minerals
of the cell. When the growth ceases, o Cell-Cell Junctions – the points where two
the secondary wall is formed. When cells come together, forming tissues and
secondary walls are formed, organs
expansion in cell size can no longer
be expected
o Water Vacuoles – are larger and more
centrally located in plant cells than in animal
cells
 Vacuoles store enzymes and waster
products
o Plastids – they carry out the photosynthetic
function in plants
 Chloroplasts – contain the green
pigment, chlorophyll which is
designed to absorb sunlight in the
initial step of photosynthesis
 Chromoplasts – synthesize and store
pigments such as yellow, carotene,