[Biology Form 4] Animal Cell & Plant Cell

The cell is the basic unit of all organism. It is made up of a cell membrane that encloses
the cytoplasm.
Contained within the cytoplasm are not only the nucleus but also organelles, whose
specific functions help the cell perform a range of activities.
While plant and animal cells are similar, the plant cell has, in addition to the cell
membrane, another boundary that separates it from its external environment. This is
called the cell wall.
As most plant cells carry out photosynthesis - the synthesis of organic substances - they
contain chloroplasts.
In plant cells, vacuoles also tend to be larger in sie and smaller in number than those
found in animal cells.
Onion Skin Cell
Cheek Squamous Epithelial Cells
Typical Plant Cell
Typical Animal Cell
In the laboratory, you have learned how to prepare a microscope slide of human
cheek cells as well as the epidermal cells of onions.
a) The differences you can observe between the two types of cells in term of the
following:
Shape
!nion cells have a regular shape while chee" cells have an irregular shape.
Presence or absence of cell wall
!nion cells have a cell wall while chee" cells do not.
Presence or absence of vacuoles
!nion cells have a large vacuole while vacuoles in chee" cells, if present, are small.
b) an you observe chloroplasts in the epidermal cells of onions! "#plain your
answer.
#o chloroplasts can be observed in the epidermal cells of onions because epidermal cells
do not carry out photosynthesis.