Animal & Plant Cells

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Animal & Plant Cells

Animals
The main features of animals:
They are multicellular
Their cells contain a nucleus with a distinct membrane
Their cells do not have cellulose cell walls
Their cells do not contain chloroplasts (so they are unable to carry out
photosynthesis)
They feed on organic substances made by other living things
They often store carbohydrates as glycogen
They usually have nervous coordination
They are able to move from place to place

A typical animal cell

Plants
The main features of plants:
They are multicellular

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 Their cells contain a nucleus with a distinct membrane
Their cells have cell walls made out of cellulose Your notes
Their cells contain chloroplasts (so they can carry out photosynthesis)
They feed by photosynthesis
They store carbohydrates as starch or sucrose
They do not have nervous coordination

A typical plant cell

Cell Structures Found in Both Animal and Plant Cells Table

Structure Function

Nucleus Contains genetic material (DNA) which controls the activities of the cell

Cytoplasm A gel like substance composed of water and cell solutes. It supports the
internal cell structures and is the site for many chemical reactions

Cell Holds the cell together, separating the inside of the cell from the outside.
membrane Controls which substances leave and enter the cell

Ribosomes Found in the cytoplasms, these are the site of protein synthesis

Mitochondria The site of aerobic respiration where energy is released to the cell. Large
numbers of mitochondria are found in cells that are very metabolically

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 active, such as muscle cells

Your notes
Cell Structures Found Only in Plant Cells Table

Structure Function

Cell wall Made of cellulose, gives extra support to the cell

Chloroplasts Contain green chlorophyll pigments which absorb light energy during
photosynthesis

Permanent Contains cell sap which is a solution of dissolved sugars and ions. It is
vacuole used for storage and support of the cell structure

Animal and Plant Cell Diagrams

An animal and plant cell as seen under a light microscope; only larger structures are visible
under a light microscope so smaller structures such as ribosomes will not be visible

Identifying Cell Structures and Function

Within the cytoplasm, the following organelles are visible in almost all cells except
prokaryotes when looking at higher magnification (i.e. using an electron microscope):
Mitochondria (singular: mitochondrion) are organelles found throughout the
cytoplasm
Ribosomes are tiny structures that can be free within the cytoplasm or attached to a
system of membranes within the cell known as Endoplasmic Reticulum
Endoplasmic reticulum studded with ribosomes looks rough under the
microscope; this gives rise to its name of Rough Endoplasmic Reticulum (often
shortened to R.E.R.)
Vesicles can also be seen using a higher magnification - these are small circular
structures found moving throughout the cytoplasm

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 Your notes

Structures in an animal cell visible under a light microscope and an electron microscope

Structures in a plant cell visible under a light microscope and an electron microscope

Drawing Cells
To record the observations seen under the microscope (or from photomicrographs
taken) a labelled biological drawing is often made
Biological drawings are line pictures which show specific features that have been
observed when the specimen was viewed
There are a number of rules/conventions that are followed when making a biological
drawing

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Guidelines for microscope drawings
The conventions are: Your notes
The drawing must have a title
The magnification under which the observations shown by the drawing are made
must be recorded
A sharp HB pencil should be used (and a good eraser!)
Drawings should be on plain white paper
Lines should be clear, single lines
No shading
The drawing should take up as much of the space on the page as possible
Well-defined structures should be drawn
The drawing should be made with proper proportions
Label lines should not cross or have arrowheads and should connect directly to the
part of the drawing being labelled
Label lines should be kept to one side of the drawing (in parallel to the top of the
page) and drawn with a ruler
Drawings of cells are typically made when visualising cells at a higher magnification
power, whereas plan drawings are typically made of tissues viewed under lower
magnifications (individual cells are never drawn in a plan diagram)

Biological Drawing of an Animal Cell

An example of a tissue plan drawn from an electron micrograph of an animal cell

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Biological Drawing of a Plant Cell
Your notes

An example of a tissue plan drawn from an electron micrograph of a plant cell

Examiner Tips and Tricks

When producing a biological drawing, it is vital that you only ever draw what you see
and not what you think you see. To accurately reflect the size and proportions of
structures you see under the microscope, you should get used to using the eyepiece
graticule. You should be able to describe and interpret photomicrographs, electron
micrographs and drawings of typical animal cells.

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 Animal & Plant Cells Under the Microscope
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Examining Cells Under the Microscope

Viewing cells under the microscope
Many biological structures are too small to be seen by the naked eye
Optical microscopes are an invaluable tool for scientists as they allow for tissues, cells
and larger organelles to be seen and studied
Light is directed through a thin layer of biological material that is supported on a glass
slide
This light is focused through several lenses so that an image is visible through the
eyepiece
Getting a visible image requires a very thin sample of biological tissue because light has
to pass through the sample and into the lenses of the microscope
The most common specimens to observe under a light microscope are cheek cells
(animal cells) and onion cells (plant cells)
A stain is often used to ensure cell structures are clearly visible under the microscope

General method
Specimens must be prepared on a microscope slide to be observed under a light
microscope
This must be done carefully to avoid damaging the biological specimen and the
structures within it
Preparing a slide using a liquid specimen:
Add a few drops of the sample to the slide using a pipette
Cover the liquid/smear with a coverslip and gently press down to remove air
bubbles
Wear gloves to ensure there is no cross-contamination of foreign cells
Preparing a slide using a solid specimen:
Use scissors to cut a small sample of the tissue
Peel away or cut a very thin layer of cells from the tissue sample to be placed on the
slide (using a scalpel or forceps)
Some tissue samples need to be treated with chemicals to kill/make the tissue rigid
Gently place a coverslip on top and press down to remove any air bubbles
A stain may be required to make the structures visible depending on the type of
tissue being examined

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 Commonly used stains include methylene blue to stain cheek cells and iodine
to stain onion cells
Take care when using sharp objects and wear gloves to prevent the stain from dying Your notes
your skin
When using an optical microscope always start with the lowest power objective lens:
It is easier to find what you are looking for in the field of view
This helps to prevent damage to the lens or coverslip in case the stage has been
raised too high
Preventing the dehydration of tissue:
The thin layers of material placed on slides can dry up rapidly
Adding a drop of water to the specimen (beneath the coverslip) can prevent the
cells from being damaged by dehydration
Unclear or blurry images:
Switch to the lower power objective lens and try using the coarse focus to get a
clearer image
Consider whether the specimen sample is thin enough for light to pass through to
see the structures clearly
There could be cross-contamination with foreign cells or bodies
Using a microscope diagram

Light microscopes have a lens in the eyepiece which is fixed and two or three objective
lenses of different powers

Viewing plant tissue

An ideal tissue is the onion epidermis (found between the layers of onions) because it
forms a layer just one cell thick
Being a non-photosynthetic tissue, onion epidermis is not green as it does not
contain any chloroplasts

Apparatus
The key components of an optical microscope you will need to use are:
The eyepiece lens
The objective lenses
The stage
The light source
The coarse and fine focus
Other apparatus used:
Forceps

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 Scissors
Scalpel Your notes
Coverslip
Slides
Pipette
Iodine solution
Viewing onion cells under the microscope diagram

Care must be taken to avoid smudging the glass slide or trapping air bubbles under the
coverslip

Viewing animal tissue

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 Human cheek cells are a good choice for examination under the light microscope
because they are:
Your notes
Plentiful
Easy to obtain safely
Can be obtained without an overly intrusive process
Relatively undifferentiated and so will display the main cell structures

Safety considerations
Do not perform the sampling on a person who has a cold, cough, throat infection etc.
To avoid spreading the infection to others
Concentrated methylene blue is toxic if ingested
Wear gloves and do NOT allow children to handle methylene blue solution or have
access to the bottle of solution

Apparatus
Glass microscope slides
Cover slips
Paper towels or tissue
Staining solution
Methylene blue solution
0.5% to 1%
Dilute according to concentration of the stock solution
Plastic pipette or dropper
Sterile, individually packed cotton wool buds or swabs

Method
Brush teeth thoroughly with normal toothbrush and toothpaste
This removes bacteria from teeth so they don't obscure the view of the cheek cell
Take a clean, sterile cotton swab and gently scrape the inside cheek surface of the
mouth for 5-10 seconds
Smear the cotton swab on the centre of the microscope slide for 2 to 3 seconds
Add a drop of methylene blue solution
Place a coverslip on top
Lay the coverslip down at one edge and then tilt it down flat
This reduces bubble formation under the coverslip

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 Absorb any excess solution by allowing a paper towel to touch one side of the coverslip.
Place the slide on the microscope, with 4 x or 10 objective in position and find a cell Your notes
Then view at higher magnification to reveal more detail
Methylene blue stains negatively charged molecules in the cell, including DNA and RNA
This causes the nucleus and mitochondria appear darker than their surroundings
The cells seen are squamous epithelial cells from the outer epithelial layer of the mouth
Viewing cheek cells under the microscope diagram

Parts of the cell that can be seen with a light microscope

Nucleus
Mitochondria
Cell membrane
Cytoplasm

Parts of the cell that cannot be seen with a light microscope

Ribosomes*

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 Endoplasmic reticulum*
Golgi* Your notes
Details of the nucleus, mitochondria and cell membrane
* these are parts of the cell that you don't need to know the names of, but they are included
here as examples of very small structures within the cell

Examiner Tips and Tricks

Remember that a cell is always a 3-dimensional object. If you search around your
microscope's field of view you may find a cell squashed up against the coverslip and
will be able to see its 3-D structure in the background.

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Bacterial Cells
Your notes

Bacteria Cells
Bacteria, which have a wide variety of shapes and sizes, all share the following biological
characteristics:
They are microscopic single-celled organisms
Possess a cell wall (made of peptidoglycan, not cellulose), cell membrane,
cytoplasm and ribosomes
Lack a nucleus but contain a circular chromosome of DNA that floats in the
cytoplasm
Plasmids are sometimes present - these are small rings of DNA (also floating in the
cytoplasm) that contain extra genes to those found in the chromosomal DNA
They lack mitochondria, chloroplasts and other membrane-bound organelles
found in animal and plant cells
Some bacteria also have a flagellum (singular) or several flagella (plural). These are long,
thin, whip-like tails attached to bacteria that allow them to move
Examples of bacteria include:
Lactobacillus (a rod-shaped bacterium used in the production of yoghurt from milk)
Pneumococcus (a spherical bacterium that acts as the pathogen causing
pneumonia)

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