LESSON 5

LESSON 5 – FIVE KINGDOMS, THREE DOMAINS

Living organisms can be classified in many possible ways. The original biological classification scheme, established in the 18th century,
divided all organisms into two kingdoms: the plant and animals. In this scheme, plants are organisms that obtain food directly from the
sun,and animals are organisms that move around to search for food. There are many other methods, however, for example, no one could
distinguish life based on whether the organism had a cell wall or not, or whether the organism was single – celled or not. With the original
classification, researchers discovered that some organisms, bacteria in particular, do not have an obvious relationship to either kingdom. It
has also become clear that a more fundamental division of living organisms is actually not between plants and animals, but between
prokaryotes and eukaryotes. In the 20th century, classification schemes that divide living organisms into more than the two traditional
kingdoms have been introduced.

 HOW DO SCIENTISTS CLASSIFY LIVING ORGANISMS TODAY?

A five kingdom system takes into account the differences between prokaryotes and eukaryotes, and it also provides
classifications for eukaryotes that appear to be neither plants nor animals.
The kingdom Monera consists only of prokaryotic organisms. Bacteria and cyanobacteria are members of this kingdom. The other
four kingdoms are made up of eukaryotic organisms. The kingdom Protista includes unicellular organisms such as Euglena, Volvox,
Amoeba, and Paramecium. Some protists, including algae, are multicellular. The three kingdoms that consist mainly of multicellular
eukaryotes (with few unicellular eukaryotes) are Fungi, Plantae and Animalia. The kingdom Fungi includes yeasts, molds and mushrooms.
Fungi, plants and animals must have evolve from simpler eukaryotic ancestors, but the major evolutionary change was the development of
eukaryotes from prokaryotes
One group of organisms can be classified as prokaryotes in the sense that the organism lack a well – defined nucleus. These
organisms are called archaebacteria (early bacteria) to distinguish them from eubacteria (true bacteria) because there are marked
differences between the two kinds of organisms, Archaebacteria are found in extreme environments and, for this reason, are also called
extremophiles. Most of the differences between archaebacteria and other organisms are biochemical features, such as the molecular
structure of the cell walls, mambranes, and some types of RNA.
 LESSON 5

 IS THERE A SIMPLER BASIS FOR CLASSIFYING ORGANISMS?

Some biologists prefer a three- domain classification scheme – Bacteria (eubacteria), Archae (archaebacteria), and Eukarya
(eukaryotes)—to the five kingdom classification. The basis for this preference is the emphasis on biochemistry as the basis for classification.
The three-domain system adds a level of classification (the domains) "above" the kingdoms present in the previously used five- or
six-kingdom systems. This classification system recognizes the fundamental divide between the two prokaryotic groups, insofar as Archaea
appear to be more closely related to Eukaryotes than they are to other prokaryotes – bacteria-like organisms with no cell nucleus. The
current system sorts the previously known kingdoms into these three domains: Archaea, Bacteria, and Eukarya.

 DOMAIN ARCHAEA
The Archaea are prokaryotic, with no nuclear membrane, distinct biochemistry, and RNA markers from bacteria. The Archaeans
possess unique, ancient evolutionary history for which they are considered some of the oldest species of organisms on Earth, most notably
their diverse, exotic metabolisms, which allow them to feed on inorganic matter. Originally classified as exotic bacteria, and then reclassified
as archaebacteria, the only easy way to distinguish them on sight from "true" bacteria is by the extreme, harsh environments in which they
notoriously thrive.
Some examples of archaeal organisms are:
methanogens – which produce the gas methane
halophiles – which live in very salty water
thermoacidophiles – which thrive in acidic high-temperature water

 DOMAIN BACTERIA

The Bacteria are also prokaryotic; their domain consists of cells with bacterial rRNA, no nuclear membrane, and whose
membranes possess primarily diacyl glycerol diester lipids. Traditionally classified as bacteria, many thrive in the same environments
favored by humans, and were the first prokaryotes discovered; they were briefly called the Eubacteria or "true" bacteria when the Archaea
were first recognized as a distinct clade.
Most known pathogenic prokaryotic organisms belong to bacteria (see [8] for exceptions). For that reason, and because the
Archaea are typically difficult to grow in laboratories, Bacteria are currently studied more extensively than Archaea.
Some examples of bacteria include:
Cyanobacteria – photosynthesizing bacteria that are related to the chloroplasts of eukaryotic plants and algae
Spirochaetes – Gram-negative bacteria that include those causing syphilis and Lyme disease
Actinobacteria – Gram-positive bacteria including Bifidobacterium animalis which is present in the human large intestine

 DOMAIN EUKARYA
Eukarya are uniquely organisms whose cells contain a membrane-bound nucleus (eukaryotes, eukaryotic). They include many
large single-celled organisms and all known non-microscopic organisms. A partial list of eukaryotic organisms include:
Kingdom Fungi or fungi
 Saccharomycotina – includes true yeasts
 Basidiomycota – includes mushrooms
Kingdom Plantae or plants
 Bryophyta – mosses
 Magnoliophyta – flowering plants
Kingdom Animalia or animals
 Chordata – includes vertebrates as a subphylum
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 DID EUKARYOTES DEVELOP FROM PROKARYOTES?

The

complexity of eukaryotes raises many questions about how much cells arose from simplers progenitors. Symbiosis plays a role in current
theories in the rise of the eukaryotes; the symbiotic association between two organisms is seen as giving rise to a new organism that
combines characteristics of both the original ones. The type of symbiosis called mutualism is a relationship that benefits both species
involved, as opposed to parasitic symbiosis, in which one species gains at the other’s expense. A classic example of mutualism is the
lichen, which consists of fungus and alga; the fungus provides water and protection for the alga; the alga is photosynthetic and provides
food for both partners. Another example is the root – nodule system formed by a leguminous plant. The plant gains useful compoundsof
nitrogen, and the bacteria are protected from oxygen, which is harmful to them.