• Cells are the highly organized, living building blocks of the body.

• A cell has three major parts: the plasma membrane, which encloses the cell; the
• nucleus, which houses the cell’s genetic material; and the cytoplasm.
• The cytoplasm consists of the cytosol, organelles, and cytoskeleton.
• The cytosol is a gel-like liquid within which the organelles and cytoskeleton are suspended.
• Organelles are discrete, well-organized structures that carry out specialized functions.
• The cytoskeleton is protein scaffolding that extends throughout the cell and serves as the cell’s
“bone and muscle
• Homeostasis- Cells are organized according to their specialization into body systems that
maintain the stable internal environment essential for the whole body’s survival.
• Cells, the smallest living entities, are the living building blocks for the
immensely complicated whole body. Thus, cells are the bridge
between chemicals and humans
• All body functions of a multicellular organism ultimately depend on the collective structural and
functional capabilities of its individual cells
• All new cells and all new life arise from the division of preexisting cells, not from nonliving
sources.
Principles of the Cell Theory
1. The cell is the smallest structural and functional unit capable of carrying out life processes
2. The functional activities of each cell depend on the specific structural properties of the cell
3. Cells are the living building blocks of all multicellular organisms
4. An organism’s structure and function ultimately depend on the collective structural characteristics
and functional capabilities of its cells
5. All new cells and new life arise only from preexisting cells
6. Because of this continuity of life, the cells of all organisms are fundamentally similar in structure and
function
Cell size - The smallest visible particle is 5 to 10 times larger than a typical human cell, which averages
about 10 to 20 micrometer(mm) in diameter.
The cells of a hummingbird, a human, and a whale are all about the same size.
“stuff of life.”- cells are filled with fluids which is uniform and soapy mixture.
Plasma Membrane

• The plasma membrane is a thin membranous structure that encloses each cell and is composed
mostly of lipid (fat) molecules and studded with proteins
• This barrier separates the cell’s contents from its surroundings; it keeps the intracellular fluid
(ICF) within the cells from mingling with the extracellular fluid (ECF) outside the cells control
movement of molecules between the ICF and ECF.
• The cell controls entry of nutrients and other needed supplies and export of products manufactured
within, while at the same time guarding against unwanted traffic into or out of the cell
Nucleus

• The two major parts of the cell’s interior are the nucleus and the cytoplasm
• It is surrounded by a double-layered membrane, the nuclear envelope,which separates the nucleus
from the rest of the cell.
• The nuclear envelope is pierced by many nuclear pores that allow necessary traffic to move
between the nucleus and the cytoplasm.
Organelles
Two categories of organelles—membranous organelles and non membranous organelles
Membranous organelle is a separate compartment within the cell that is enclosed by a membrane similar
to the plasma membrane
Main types of membranous organelles—the endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi complex, lysosomes,
peroxisomes, and mitochondria
Membranous organelles are like intracellular “specialty shops.” Each is a separate internal compartment
that contains a specific set of chemicals for carrying out a particular cellular function.
The nonmembranous organelles are not surrounded by membrane and thus are in direct contact with the
cytosol.
They include ribosomes, proteasomes, vaults, and centrioles
Like membranous organelles, non membranous organelles are organized structures that carry out specific
functions within the cell
Cytoskeleton
The cytoskeleton is an interconnected system of protein fibers and tubes that extends throughout the
cytosol.
Function:

• This elaborate protein network gives the cell its shape,

• provides for its internal organization, and
• regulates its various movements, thus serving as the cell’s “bone and muscle
Cytosol (“cell liquid”). The cytosol is a semiliquid, gel-like mass. Many of the chemical reactions that are
compatible with one another are conducted in the cytosol.
Endoplasmic Recticulum
The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is an elaborate fluid-filled membranous system distributed extensively
throughout the cytosol.
It is primarily a protein- and lipid-producing factory.
Two distinct types of ER—rough and smooth ER
Rough ER consists of sacs and ribosomes
Smooth ER consists of Tubules
Ribosomes

• The outer surface of the rough ER membrane is studded with small particles called the ribosomes
• It is the place where protein synthesis takes place
• Ribosomes, non membranous organelles, carry out protein synthesis by translating mRNA into
chains of amino acids in the ordered sequence dictated by dna
• It is made up of r rna and proteins .
Function

• Ribosomes bring together all components that participate in protein synthesis—mRNA, tRNA,
and amino acids—and provide the enzymes and energy required for linking the amino acids
together.
The rough ER, in association with its ribosomes, synthesizes and releases various new proteins into the
ER lumen, the fluid filled space enclosed by the ER membrane.
These proteins serve one of two purposes:
(1) Some proteins are destined for export to the cell’s exterior as secretory products, such as protein
hormones or enzymes, and
(2) other proteins are used in constructing new cellular membrane (either plasma membrane or organelle
membrane) or other cell structures, such as lysosomes .
The plasma membrane consists mostly of proteins and lipids
These newly synthesized lipids enter the ER lumen along with the proteins
After being released into the ER lumen, a newly synthesized protein is folded into its final conformation it
may also be modified in other ways, such as being pruned or having carbohydrates attached to it.
After this processing, a new protein cannot pass out through the ER membrane on its own and therefore
becomes permanently separated from the cytosol as soon as it has been synthesized
In rough ER- free ribosomes synthesize proteins for use within the cytosol. In this way, newly produced
molecules destined for export out of the cell or for synthesis of new membrane are physically separated
from those that belong in the cytosol
Smooth ER
Lacking ribosomes, it is not involved in protein synthesis. Instead, it serves other purposes that vary in
different cell types
Functions

• In most cells, the smooth ER is rather sparse and serves primarily as a central packaging
• discharge site for molecules to be transported from the ER.
Newly synthesized proteins and lipids move within the continuous lumen from the rough ER to gather at
specialized exit sites in the smooth ER and the exist side gets bud off
Q. How does the ER exit site bud off?
A. Linking it with coat protein II into a cage like assembly or “coat” causes the surface membrane at the
site to curve outward to form a dome-shaped bud around the newly synthesized products to be exported
out of the smooth ER.
Functions of Smooth ER are

• The smooth ER is abundant in cells that specialize in lipid metabolism

• the smooth ER contains enzymes specialized for detoxifying harmful substances produced within
the body by metabolism or substances that enter the body from the outside in the form of drugs or
other foreign compounds
• Muscle cells have an elaborate, modified smooth ER known as the sarcoplasmic reticulum,
which stores calcium used in the process of muscle contraction
Gogli bodies
The Golgi complex, a membranous organelle, is closely associated with the ER. Each Golgi complex
consists of a stack of flattened, slightly curved, membrane-enclosed sacs
Functions

• Processing the raw materials into finished products

• Sorting and directing the finished products to their final destinations(v-SNARE, and t-SNARE)
Exocytosis: A secretory vesicle fuses with the plasma membrane, releasing the vesicle contents to the cell
exterior. The vesicle membrane becomes part of the plasma membrane
Endocytosis: Materials from the cell exterior are enclosed in a segment of the plasma membrane that
pockets inward and pinches off as an endocytic vesicle
Lysosomes
Lysosomes are small, membrane-enclosed, degradative organelles that break down organic molecules (lys
means “breakdown”; some means “body”).
lysosomes vary in size and shape, depending on the contents they are digesting
On average, a cell contains about 300 lysosomes.
A lysosome contains about 40 different powerful hydrolytic enzymes that are synthesized in the ER and
then transported to the Golgi complex for packaging in the budding lysosome
These enzymes catalyze hydrolysis, reactions that break down organic molecules by the addition of water
at a bond site (hydrolysis means “splitting with water
Endocytosis can be accomplished in three ways—pinocytosis, receptor-mediated endocytosis, and
phagocytosis—depending on the contents of the internalized material.

• Pinocytosis - In pinocytosis (“cell drinking”), a droplet of ECF is taken up non selectively

• Dynamin, the protein responsible for pinching off an endocytic vesicle, forms rings that wrap
around and “wring the neck” of the pouch, severing the vesicle from surface membrane
• pinocytosis provides a means to retrieve extra plasma membrane that has been added to the cell
surface during exocytosis.
Receptor fluid
receptor-mediated endocytosis is a highly selective process that enables cells to import specific
large molecules that it needs from its environment.
Receptor-mediated endocytosis is triggered by the binding of a specific target molecule such as a
protein to a surface membrane receptor specific for that molecule. This binding causes the plasma
membrane at that site to pocket inward and then seal at the surface, trapping the bound molecule
inside the cell. The pouch is formed by the linkage of clathrin molecules, which are membrane-
deforming coat proteins on the inner surface of the plasma membrane that bow inward, in contrast to
the outward-curving coat proteins that form buds. The resulting pouch is known as a coated pit
because it is coated with clathrin .
Cholesterol complexes, vitamin B12, the hormone insulin, and iron are examples of substances
selectively taken into cells by receptor-mediated endocytosis
some viruses can sneak into cells by exploiting this mechanism. For instance, flu viruses and HIV, the
virus that causes AIDS, gain entry to cells via receptor-mediated endocytosis
Phagocytosis- During phagocytosis (“cell eating”), large multimolecular particles are internalized.
When a white blood cell encounters a large particle, such as a bacterium or tissue debris, it extends
surface projections known as pseudopods (“false feet”) that surround or engulf the particle and trap it
within an internalized vesicle known as a phagosome (❙ Figure 2-9c). A lysosome fuses with the
membrane of the phagosome and releases its hydrolytic enzymes into the vesicle, where they safely
attack the bacterium or other trapped material without damaging the remainder of the cell. The
enzymes largely break down the engulfed material into raw ingredients, such as amino acids, glucose,
and fatty acids, which the cell can use

Lysosomal enzymes degrade the dysfunctional organelle, making its building blocks available for
reuse by the cell. This selective self-digestion, known as autophagy (auto means “self ”; phag means
“eating”)
Some individuals lack the ability to synthesize one or more of the lysosomal enzymes. The result is
massive accumulation within the lysosomes of the compound normally digested by the missing
enzyme
Tay-Sachs disease, which is characterized by abnormal accumulation of complex molecules found in
nerve cells. As the accumulation continues, profound symptoms of progressive nervous system
degeneration result