CHAPTER IX 4.
However, impressive similarities in animal cell organization
MULTICELLULAR AND TISSUE LEVELS OF ORGANIZATION
The Portuguese man-of-war, also known as Physalia physalis, is a
marine organism that belongs to the phylum Cnidaria. It is a colony of
specialized organisms called zooids that work together for survival, and
has a gas-filled float to stay afloat and long tentacles for capturing prey
and protecting against predators. Its sting is known to cause skin
irritation, pain, and even systemic symptoms in some people. The
organism is found in warm, tropical waters globally and is considered a
potentially dangerous marine organism to humans.
ADVANTAGES OF MULTICELLULARITY
Defense
● Larger size was less vulnerable to predation by predatory
protists.
Exchanges with the environment were more efficient
● Organisms made up of more, smaller cells have a larger
surface area to volume ratio, which facilitates gas and
nutrient exchange with the environment.
Increasing diffusion distances limit the size of single cells
● As cell size increases, the distance for diffusion of nutrients
and gasses becomes a limiting factor. Multicellularity allows
for increased cell number, which limits the diffusion distance
for each cell and ensures efficient delivery of nutrients and
gasses to all cells in the organism.
Permits subdivision of labor in an organism
● Cells can be specialized for specific functions such as
reproduction, feeding and digestion, sensory perception,
and communication. This specialization allows organisms to
perform complex tasks that are not possible for single-celled
organisms.
ORIGINS OF MULTICELLULARITY
Multicellular life has been on earth for 550 million years, only 10% of
earth’s geological history. There are two hypotheses to explain the
origin of multicellularity.
1. Colonial Hypothesis - when dividing cells remained
together, as is the case with many colonial protists
2. Syncytial hypothesiss - proposes that multicellularity evolved
from large, multinucleated cells that developed internal
plasma membranes.
Note: Both of these processes have been observed in different protists.
Are animals polyphyletic or monophyletic?
The nearly simultaneous appearance of all animal phyla makes it hard
to tell
1. If animals are polyphyletic, more than one explanation of
the origins of multicellularity is possible.
2. More than one body form could be ancestral.
3. More than one body form could be ancestral - If animals are
monophyletic, meaning that all animals share a common
ancestor
support monophyletic origin (e.g. asters in cell division, cell
junctions are similar in all animal cells, most animals
produce flagellated sperm and most animal cells use similar
proteins to accomplish movement).
PHYLUM PORIFERA - SPONGES
A group of primarily marine animals that are sessile (non-moving) and
have a porous body structure. Sponges lack tissues and organs and
instead consist of loosely organized cells. There are approximately
9,000 species of sponges that range in size from less than 1 centimeter
to over 1 meter.
Characteristics:
1. Asymmetrical or radial symmetry
a. Asymmetrical - no specific symmetry in the body
plan.
b. Radial symmetry - body is arranged around a
central axis, like spokes on a wheel.
2. 3 types of cells: Sponge cells are specialized for particular
functions (division of labor)
a. Pinacocytes - cover the outer surface of the
sponge. Slightly contractile and help the sponge
change shape. Some pinacocytes specialized into
porocytes, which regulate water circulation.
Porocytes - regulate water circulation. Openings
through porocytes are pathways for water
moving through the body wall.
b. Amoebocytes / Mesenchyme cells - move about
in the mesohyl and are specialized for
reproduction, secreting skeletal elements,
transporting and storing food, and forming
contractile rings around openings in the sponge
wall.
c. Choanocytes - flagellated cells in sponges that
have a collar-like ring of microvilli surrounding a
flagellum. They filter microscopic food particles
from water.
3. Central cavity or several branching chambers, through which
water flows for filter feeding
4. No tissues or organs
CLASSIFICATION OF THE PORIFERA
Class Calcarea Spicules composed of calcium carbonate; spicules are needle shaped
(kal-kar9e-ah) or have three or four rays; ascon, leucon, or sycon body forms; all
marine. Calcareous sponges. Grantia (=Scypha), Leucosolenia.
Class Hexactinellida Spicules composed of silica and six rayed; spicules often fused into
(hex-act0in-el9id-ah) an intricate lattice; cup or vase shaped; sycon or leucon body form;
found at 450 to 900 m depths in tropical West Indies and eastern
Pacific. Glass sponges. Euplectella (Venus flower-basket).
Class Demospongiae Brilliantly colored sponges with needle-shaped or four-rayed
(de-mo-spun9je-e) siliceous spicules or spongin or both; leucon body form; up to 1 m in
height and diameter. Includes one family of freshwater sponges,
Spongillidae, and the bath sponges. Cliona, Spongilla.
Class Homoscleromorpha Anatomically simple and encrusting in form. Spicules small and
(ho-mo9skle-ro-morf-ah) simple in shape or absent. Occur at depths ranging from shallow
marine shelves to depths of 1,000 m. Oscarella, Plakina

Sponges are supported by skeleton that may consist of spicules - needle
like spikes
Sponges have a skeleton that can be made up of spicules, which are
needle-like spikes made of CaCO3 or silica and are formed by amoeboid
cells. The spicules can take on various shapes. Alternatively, the
skeleton can be made of spongin, a fibrous protein made of collagen
that can be dried, beaten, and washed to produce commercial sponges.
Water currents and body forms - sponges lives depend on the water
currents that choanocytes
Sponges rely on water currents created by choanocytes for their
survival. These water currents bring in food and oxygen, and remove
waste from the sponge's body. The way in which water is filtered and
circulated through the sponge's body depends on its body form. There
are three main body forms in the phylum Porifera:
1. Ascon sponges - the simplest and least common among the
three body forms of sponges. It is characterized by its
vaselike form, with ostia as the outer openings of porocytes
that lead directly to the chamber called the spongocoel. The
spongocoel is lined with choanocytes, and their flagellar
movements draw water into the spongocoel through the
ostia. Water exits the sponge through the osculum, which is
a single large opening at the top of the sponge.
2. Sycon sponges - water enters the sponge through dermal
pores that open to incurrent canals. The pores in the body
walls lead to radial canals, which then lead to the central
spongocoel. The choanocytes, located in the radial canals,
have flagella that beat to move water from the ostia,
through the incurrent and radial canals, and finally to the
spongocoel. From there, water exits the sponge through the
osculum.
3. Leucon sponges - have an extensively branched canal system
(figure 9.6c). Water enters the sponge through ostia and
moves through branched incurrent canals, which lead to
choanocyte-lined chambers. Canals leading away from the
chambers are called excurrent canals. Proliferation of
chambers and canals has resulted in the absence of a
spongocoel, and often, multiple exit points (oscula) for
water leaving the sponge.
Maintenance Functions
Sponges feed on a variety of particles ranging in size from
bacteria and microscopic algae to protists and other
Feeding suspended particles. Some sponges are even carnivorous
and catch small crustaceans with spicule-covered
filaments.
Coastal Sponges play an important role in reducing coastal
Turbidity turbidity by filtering large amounts of water. For
Reduction example, a single leucon sponge measuring 1 cm in
diameter and 10 cm high can filter 20 liters of water per
day.
Sponges have specialized cells called choanocytes that
filter small suspended particles. The water passes
through a collar near the base and moves into a
spongocoel where the food is trapped and moved along
Feeding microvilli to the base of the collar. The particle is digested
Methods in a food vacuole with lysosomal enzymes and pH
changes. Amoeboid cells distribute the partly digested
food. | ++ Larger food particles may also be phagocytized
by pinacocytes lining incurrent canals, and sponges can
absorb nutrients in seawater through active transport.
Reproduction
Most sponges have both male and female reproductive organs in the
same individual, which is called monoecious. However, they do not
usually self-fertilize because their eggs and sperm are ready at different
times.
● Some specialized cells called choanocytes produce sperm by
dividing through meiosis, while other choanocytes produce
eggs through the same process.
● When the sponge is ready to reproduce, the sperm cells
leave the sponge's body through an opening called the
osculum and enter another sponge's body through the
incurrent water. The incoming sperm cells are captured by
choanocytes and placed into vacuoles.
● Next, the sperm cells lose their tails and become amoeboid,
allowing them to transfer the sperm to the eggs. After
fertilization, the embryo develops in the mesohyl (the
middle layer of the sponge) and then hatches as a free-
swimming, flagellated larva.
● The larva swims for up to two days before it finds a suitable
surface to settle on and develop into an adult sponge.
PHYLUM CNIDARIA
Members of Phylum Cnidaria have radial symmetry, which means they
have sensory receptors distributed around their bodies, allowing them
to respond to stimuli from all directions.
There are over 9,000 species of cnidarians, with the majority being
marine.
Many cnidarians are important in coral reef ecosystems.
CLASSIFICATION OF THE CNIDARIA
Medusae absent; develop from benthic planula larvae; eight tentacles
Class Staurozoa
surrounding the mouth; attachment to substrate by adhesive disk; sexual
(sto-ro-zo9ah9)
reproduction only; marine. Haliclystis
Medusa prominent in life history; polyp small; gametes gastrodermal in
Class Cubozoa
origin; medusa cuboidal in shape with tentacles that hang from each
(ku0bo-zo9ah)
corner of the bell; marine. Chironex
Characteristics:
1. Radial symmetry
2. Diploblastic, tissue level organization - Cnidarians have two
germ layers - ecto and endo, but lack a meso.
● Ectoderm: Outermost layer of cell
● Endoderm: Inner layer
● Mesoderm: Third layer (muscles, organs, other
internal)
3. Cnidarians have a layer of jelly-like substance called
mesoglea that separates their epidermal and gastrodermal
tissue layers.
4. Gastrovascular cavity - Cnidarians have a central digestive
cavity with a single opening that serves as both a mouth and
an anus.
 5. Nervous system in the form of a net - Cnidarians have a Class Anthozoa
simple nervous system that consists of a diffuse network of Anthozoans lack a medusa stage and exist only as polyps. These polyps
interconnected nerve cells called a nerve net, allowing for may be solitary or colonial. Anthozoans release their sperm and eggs
basic sensory perception and coordination. into the gastrovascular cavity, from where they are expelled out of the
6. Specialized cells called cnidocytes used in defense, feeding, body. Examples: Anemones, Corals
and attachment
Body Wall and nematocysts
● Diploblastic tissue organization - cells organize into tissues
that can carry out more complex functions than individual
cells; all cells derived from 2 embryological layers
● Ectoderm of embryo gives rise to epidermis, endoderm gives
rise to inner layer, called gastrodermis
○ cells differentiate into specialized cells for
protections, food gathering, coordination,
movement, digestion, and absorption
● Between the 2 layers is the mesoglea; cells present in this
layer come from either epidermis or gastrodermis.
● Cnidocytes - produce structures called nematocysts -
feeding, defense, attachment.
● Nematocysts are fluid-filled capsules containing a coiled,
hollow tube that can be ejected through a modified cilium
called the trigger. They may have spines, toxins, unarmed
tubes, or sticky secretions for different purposes.
Alternation of Generation (Most Cnidarians have two body forms in
their life cycle)
1. Polyp - usually asexual and sessile, meaning it is attached to
a substrate at its base. The polyp has a cylindrical body
capped by a mouth surrounded by tentacles.
2. Medusa - a free-swimming, dioecious form of cnidarians
with an inverted bowl shape and tentacles hanging from the
rim. It swims by pulsating its body walls and has more
mesoglea than the polyp.
Reproduction
Reproduction in most cnidarians is dioecious, each has a particular
gender.
● Sperm and eggs into the gastrovascular cavity or outside.
Embryos develop into ciliated, free-swimming larvae called
planula, which is attached to a substrate and then develops
a polyp.
● Medusae are formed by budding from the body wall of a
polyp, and polyps form other polyps by budding, which may
detach or remain attached to form a colony.
Class Hydrozoa
A group of small and relatively common cnidarians, found mostly in
marine environments but some are freshwater. They have cnidocytes in
their epidermis and release sperm and eggs out of their body.
1. Hydrozoans have alternation of generations, but some
species have lost the medusa stage and others have a very
small polyp stage.
2. Most hydrozoans are colonial, with some individuals
specialized for feeding, defense, or reproduction, such as
Obelia.
3. Gonionemus is a hydrozoan species that mostly exists in the
medusa form and lives in shallow marine waters.
4. Hydra is a freshwater hydrozoan that lacks a medusa stage
and hangs from the underside of floating plants in streams
and ponds.
Class Scyphozoa
This class consists of true jellyfish which have a dominant life stage as
medusa. They have cnidocytes in the epidermis and gastrodermis
layers. Example: Mastigias and Aurelia