Cells

What is a cell?
A cell is described as the basic unit of life and a is a very small structure from which all organisms are made.

The discovery of cells

The discovery of cells began by the careful dissection of the human body to reveal the organs. These careful
dissections were first carried out over 2000 years ago, in Greece, by two doctors called Herophilus and
Erasistratus. Their work encouraged others living nearly 400 years ago to investigate further.
In the sixteenth century, scientists in Europe began studying the human body by dissection. This work has
continued ever since.
Marie – François X Bichat (1771 – 1802) was a French doctor who examined many bodies after they had
died. This is what is known as post – mortem examination. In the last year of his life, he carried out 600. He
cut up the bodies of dead people to find out how they had died. From this he discovered that organs were
made of layers of materials. He called these layers 'tissues' and identified 21 different kinds. For a while,
scientists thought that tissues were made of simple non-living materials.
In 1665, long before Bichat was born, an English scientist named Robert Hooke (1635-1703) used a
microscope to investigate the structure of a very thin sheet of cork, which is the outer covering (called the
bark) of a type of oak tree. He discovered that it had tiny compartments in it. He thought of them as rooms
and called them cells, after the small rooms in monasteries - which are the buildings where monks live, work
and meditate.

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 This painting by Rembrandt shows Dr Nicolaes Tulp making a dissection in Holland in 1632.
Bichat did not examine the tissues he had found under a microscope
because most of those made at that time did not produce very clear
images. When better microscopes were made, scientists investigated
pieces of plants and found that, like cork, they also had a cell
structure. The cells in Hooke's piece of cork had been empty, but
other plant cells were found to contain structures.
A Scottish scientist called Robert Brown (1773-1858) studied plant
cells and noticed that each one had a dark spot inside it. In 1831, he
named the spot the nucleus, which means 'little nut.
Matthias Schleiden (1804-1881) was a German scientist who studied
Here are the compartments in
the parts of many plants, and in 1838 he put forward a theory that all
cork that Hooke saw using his
plants were made of cells. A year later Theodor Schwann (1810- microscope. He called them
1882), another German scientist, stated that animals were also made cells.
of cells.
The ideas of Schleiden and Schwann became known as 'cell theory' It led other scientists to make more
discoveries about cells and showed that tissues are made up of groups of similar cells.

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The Microscope
The microscope is a laboratory instrument used to observe very tiny objects. It does this by producing a
highly magnified view of the object.
Most laboratory microscopes give a magnification up to about 200 times, but some
DID YOU KNOW?
can give a magnification of over 1000 times. The microscope must also provide a
Biologists use the clear view, and this is achieved by controlling the amount of light shining onto the
word ‘specimen’ to
specimen.
describe an object
like a plant, animal
or a part of one,
such as a group of
cells. The objects
that they place on
microscope slides
are called
specimens.

Microscope without
light

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Basic parts of a cell
Nucleus
The nucleus is the control centre of the cell. It controls all the life processes which take place to keep the cell
alive.
Cytoplasm
Cytoplasm is a watery jelly
that fills most of each
animal cell. It can move
around inside the cell The
cytoplasm may contain
stored food in the form of
grains. Most of the
chemical reactions that
keep the cell alive take
place in the cytoplasm.
Cell membrane
The cell membrane has tiny holes in it called pores that control the movement of chemicals in or out of the
cell. Dissolved substances such as food, oxygen and carbon dioxide can pass through the cell membrane.
Some harmful chemicals are stopped from entering the cell by the membrane.
Mitochondria
Mitochondria are tiny structures in the cytoplasm. In each mitochondrion. chemical reactions take place
which release energy from food for life processes in the cell. The mitochondria are in the cytoplasm, helping
to keep the cell alive.

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The parts of a plant cell
Cell wall
The cell wall is found outside the membrane of a plant cell. It is made of cellulose, which is a tough material
that gives support to the cell.
Chloroplasts
Chloroplasts are found in the cytoplasm
of many plant cells. They contain a green
pigment, which traps a small amount of
the energy in sunlight. This energy is
used by the plant to make food.
Chloroplasts are found in many leaf cells
and in the stem cells of some plants.

Sap vacuoles
The vacuole is a large space in the cytoplasm of a plant cell that is filled with a liquid, called cell sap,
containing dissolved sugars and salts. When the vacuole is full of cell sap, the liquid pushes outwards on the
cell wall and gives it support. If the plant is short of water, the support is lost and the plant wilts.
The feature of animal and plant cells can be compared by setting them out in a table.

Feature Animal Cell Plant Cell

Nucleus Present Present
Cytoplasm Present Present
Cell membrane Present Present
Mitochondria Present Present
Cell wall Absent Present
Chloroplasts Absent Present
Sap vacuole Absent Present

Adaptation in cells
The word adaptation means the change of an existing design for a particular task. You learnt about the basic
structures of animal and plant cells in the last section, but many cells are adapted, which allows them to
perform a more specific task and become what we call specialised. Here are some common examples of the
different types of plant and animal cells that have become specialised.
Adaptations in plant cells
Root hair cells
Root hair cells are plant cells that grow a short distance behind the root tip. The cells have long, thin
extensions that allow them to grow easily between the soil particles. The shape of these extensions gives the
root hair cells a large surface area through which water can be taken up from the soil.

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Palisade cells
Palisade cells have a shape that allows them to pack
closely together in the upper part of a leaf, near the light.
They have large numbers of chloroplasts in them to trap
as much light energy as possible.
Adaptation in animal cells
Skin cells
There are a number of different types of skin cell, and
skin cells have more than one function. However, one of
the main functions of skins cells is to protect the surface
of the body. After they have formed by cell division
below the skin surface, they rise up and form a layer of dead cells which stop water and microorganisms
entering the body.
If you stay in the water in the swimming pool for a long time, you may notice sometimes that when you dry
yourself, part of your skin flakes off. These flakes are made of dead skin cells. You are losing skin cells all
the time, but in a much smaller way. As your clothes rub against your skin they pull off tiny flakes, which
pass into the air and settle in the dust. A small part of the dirt that is swept up at the end of a school day
comes from the skin that students have left behind.
In the 1870s, it was discovered that dyes could be made from coal tar - a thick black liquid which is
produced when coal is burnt to make the fuels coke and coal gas - which would stain different parts of the
cell. Cell biologists found they could stain the nucleus and other parts of the cell different colours to see
them more easily.
Red blood cells

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Red blood cells travel through all the arteries, veins and capillaries in the body. They are disc-shaped but
their centres dip inwards. This structure is called a biconcave disc. It is also flexible, which allows the cells
to bend and fold to pass through the smallest of capillaries. It does not have a nucleus so that it can be
completely filled with a red substance, called haemoglobin which carries oxygen to all the other cells in the
body.
Nerve cells
Nerves are made from nerve cells or neurones, which have long thread-like extensions. These nerve cells are
connected to other nerve cells in the spinal cord. The nerve cells in the spinal cord are then connected to
nerve cells in the brain.
A nerve cell can conduct tiny electrical signals
through its body. In the nerve cell shown in the image
the signals are collected from other nerve cells
(perhaps in a sense organ or a muscle) by the fibres
on the cell body, and are transported through the
nerve fibre to the projections at the far end. Once they
reach these places, they set off another electrical
signal in the next cell. Electrical signals are moved
around the body in this way, from sense organs to the
brain, and from the brain down the spinal column, and along nerves to the
muscles to make them move.

DID YOU KNOW?

Nerve cells are

grouped together in
the body to form
nerves, spinal cord
and brain (known
collectively as the
nervous system)

Ciliated epithelial cells

Cells that line the surface of structures are called epithelial cells.
Cilia are microscopic hair-like extensions of the cytoplasm. If cells
have one surface covered in cilia, they are described as being
ciliated.
Ciliated epithelial cells line the throat. Air entering the throat
contains dust that becomes trapped in the mucus of the throat lining.
The cilia wave to and fro and carry the dust trapped in the mucus
away from the lungs.
Cells, tissues, organs and organisms

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Cells in a living thing are arranged into groups. The cells in a group are all the same kind and perform a
special task in the life of the organism, this group of cells is called a tissue.
Different tissues join together to make a larger group of cells called an organ. All the special tasks performed
by the cells in the different tissues in the organ help the organ to keep the body alive.
Organs can form groups called organ systems. The organs in a system perform a vital task in the survival of
the body – related to the seven life processes.
All the organs and organ systems in a living thing form a larger group-the body of the living thing - which is
known as a living organism.

Science extra: Plants as living organisms

The cells which form the outer covering
of a plant are broad and flat and join
together to form a tissue called the
epidermis. In a leaf, they cover a layer of
palisade cells, which form a tissue called
palisade mesophyll. The purpose of this
tissue is to collect light and make food.
Beneath this tissue are rounder-shaped
cells with gaps between them, which
form the spongy mesophyll tissue. Their
task is to help bring water to the leaf in
order to make food. Water evaporates
from their surfaces and is replaced by water drawn up in tube-like xylem tissue, which forms much of the
midrib (the line of thicker tissue running down the centre of the leaf, giving it support) and many of the veins
in the leaf.
Specialised pairs of cells in the lower epidermis of a leaf can bend to make an opening through which water
vapour can escape from the spongy mesophyll. These openings are called stomata (singular. stoma).
The tissues in the leaf work together and form an organ - the leaf- which makes food for the plant. Epidermis
and xylem tissues join with other tissues to make other organs of the plant such as the root, stem, bud and
flower. Together all the organs make up the organism - the plant.
Science extra: Animals as living organisms
Animal bodies have many organs. If we look at one organ (the stomach), we can see how it is built up from
different kinds of cells.

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The inner surface of the stomach is lined with a tissue of epithelial cells that secrete mucus, which helps the
food slide by. There are cavities in the lining called gastric pits where tissues of gland cells secrete digestive
juices to break down the food. The epithelial and gland cells are supported by a layer of fibres made from
fibre-making cells.
All these tissues form the structure called the stomach, and this in turn is connected to the other digestive
organs to form the digestive system This system is very closely linked to other systems such as the
circulatory system, where blood vessels in the intestines take away absorbed food and carry it around the
body. The group of closely linked organ systems form the organism - the animal.
Microorganisms
Microorganisms are organisms that usually have a body made from only one cell. They can only be seen
with a microscope unless a huge number of them join together to make a colony like green slime, or a larger
body like a fungus. There are huge numbers of different microorganisms and they are classified into different
kingdoms.

A highly magnified view of a group of

bacteria
Science extra: Bacteria
Bacteria are found almost everywhere in air and water, on the surfaces of plants, animals and rocks, and
inside living things too.

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Bacteria are single-celled and usually reproduce by dividing in two. If they have enough warmth, moisture
and food, some bacteria can reproduce by fission once every 20 minutes.
Some bacteria feed on the insides of living bodies, where they cause disease. Diphtheria, whooping cough,
cholera, typhoid, tuberculosis and food poisoning are all diseases caused by different kinds of bacteria.

Bacterial Spore

Bacteria can divide quite rapidly, but when conditions

become dry and hot - unsuitable for feeding and dividing - some bacteria form spores. They can survive
inside spores for a long time. They break out of the spores when they find warmth, food and moisture again.

Viruses
Scientists are not certain that viruses are living things,
as they do not show any of the characteristics of life.
The spike helps the virus to enter cells where it can
start to replicate. The outer protective covering of the
virus is called the envelope. The DNA or other nucleic
acid is the replicating part of the virus. It makes copies
of itself to form new viruses. The coat around the
replicating part of the virus keeps it safe.
Viruses and the characteristics of life
If we examine a virus to see if it possesses the seven
characteristics of life, we find the following facts: viruses cannot move on their own; they depend on air or
water currents outside the body, and the movement of liquids in the bodies of plants and animals. Viruses do
not respire. They are sensitive to changes in temperature and to certain chemicals. A virus does not grow;
when the body forms, it stays the same size. Viruses replicate, but they need a cell in which to replicate.
Viruses do not excrete, nor do they take in food for
nutrition.
Viruses and living tissue
Viruses do not have a cell structure. They can be stored
like mineral Specimens for many years without
changing. They do not feed, respire or excrete When
they are placed on living tissues, they enter the living
cells and replicate, which means they make copies of
themselves. They destroy the cells in the process and
may cause disease. Each kind of virus attacks certain

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cells in the body. For example, the cold virus attacks the cells that line the inside of the nose. The destructive
action of the cold virus on the cells in the nose makes the nose produce excess mucus.
Other viruses cause influenza, chicken pox, measles and rabies, and can lead to the development of AIDS
(which stands for Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome - a condition in which the body no longer has the
Virus replication ability to fight infections). Some viruses are capable of
spreading quickly around the world, such as
Coronavirus (COVID-19).

End of chapter questions

1. Where did Bichat get his idea that organs were made from tissues?
2. Who first described cells and where did the idea for the word come from?
3. Who named the nucleus and what does the word mean?
4. What instrument was essential for the study of cells?
5. How could cell therapy have been developed sooner?
6. Arrange these parts of a body in order of size starting with the largest:
 Cell
 Organ
 Tissue
 Organ system
7. Which scientific activity did Bichat perform to think up his idea that organs were made from tissues?
8. Which was the final scientific activity that led Schleiden and Schwann to ser up cell therapy?
9. How does the cell membrane protect the cell?
10. Name two things that give support to a plant cell.
11. Would you expect to find chloroplasts in a root cell? Explain your answer.
12. Why do plants wilt if they are not watered regularly?
13. What changes have taken place in the basic plant cell to produce a root hair cell?
14. Why would it be a problem if root hair cell extensions were short and stubby?
15. How is a palisade cell different from a root hair cell? Explain these differences.
16. Why are there different kind of cells?
17. If the red blood cell had a nucleus, how would this affect the oxygen supply to the other body cells?
18. Smoking damages the cilia lining the breathing tubes. What effect might this have on breathing?
19. Make a chart to show how different types of plant cells from tissues, which in turn form an organ.
You could make a table of three columns with the headings cells, tissues and organ to help you and
make one or more drawings in each column. Give your chart a title.
20. What is the connection between cell and an organism?
21. Give a very simple description of a cell.
22.
a. Who investigated a thin sheet of cork with a microscope?

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 b. What observation did he make that made him think of the word cell?
23. Which part of a cell:
a. has pores that control the movement of chemicals?
b. is made from cellulose?
c. contains green pigment?
d. is made from watery jelly?
e. contains cell sap?
24. Which of the cell parts in Question 4 are found only in plant cells?
25. State two ways in which a root hair cell is different from a typical plant cell.
26.
a. Where do you find palisade cells in a plant?
b. Do they have a large number of chloroplasts?
27. In the 1870s, what did scientists start to use so they could see the inside of cells more clearly?
28. How is a tissue different from an organ?

29.
a. What is a microorganism?
b. Why can viruses be considered
i. living things?
ii. non-living things?
30. Draw the plant cell and label it.
31. Draw and label the animal cell.

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