Joyce D.

Degoma
BSPh 1-A Pharmaceutical Botany with Taxonomy

1. Contrast Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic Cells

 Eukaryotic cells
 have a well-defined nucleus whereas prokaryotic cells do not have a well-
defined nucleus instead the genetic material is lying in the cytoplasm.
 have membrane-bound organelles while prokaryotic cells do not have this.

 Prokaryotic cells
 reproduce by binary fission and eukaryotic cells divide by mitosis and meiosis.
 have smaller ribosomes instead of larger ribosomes that are present in
eukaryotic cells.
 have circular genetic material whereas eukaryotic cells have linear genetic
material in the form of chromosomes.

2. Describe the functions of the following 10 parts of the plant cell

 Plasma membrane/ cell membrane – provides protection for a cell. It also
provides a fixed environment inside the cell. And that membrane has several
different functions. One is to transport nutrients into the cell and also to transport
toxic substances out of the cell.
 Nucleus – The nucleus controls and regulates the activities of the cell (growth
and metabolism) and carries the genes, structures that contain the hereditary
information. Nucleoli are small bodies often seen within the nucleus.
 Plastid – are double-membrane organelles which are found in the cells of plants
and algae. Plastids are responsible for manufacturing and storing of food. These
often contain pigments that are used in photosynthesis and different types of
pigments that can change the color of the cell.
 Mitochondrion – The primary function of mitochondria is respiration, where
catabolism of substrates is coupled to ATP synthesis via oxidative
phosphorylation. In plants, mitochondrial composition is relatively complex and
flexible and has specific pathways to support photosynthetic processes in
illuminated leaves.
 Chloroplasts – are plant cell organelles that convert light energy into relatively
stable chemical energy via the photosynthetic process. By doing so, they sustain
life on Earth. Chloroplasts also provide diverse metabolic activities for plant cells,
including the synthesis of fatty acids, membrane lipids, isoprenoids, tetrapyrroles,
starch, and hormones.
 Ribosome – are responsible for synthesizing the proteins in all cells by a
process called translation. It is called translation because ribosomes use
messenger ribonucleic acids (mRNAs) as their guide and must "translate" the
message contained in the nucleotides of mRNAs.
 Endoplasmic reticulum – The endoplasmic reticulum can either be smooth or
rough, and in general its function is to produce proteins for the rest of the cell to
function. The rough endoplasmic reticulum has on it ribosomes, which are small,
round organelles whose function it is to make those proteins.
 Golgi body – also known as a Golgi apparatus, is a cell organelle that helps
process and package proteins and lipid molecules, especially proteins destined
to be exported from the cell. Named after its discoverer, Camillo Golgi, the Golgi
body appears as a series of stacked membranes.
Joyce D. Degoma
BSPh 1-A Pharmaceutical Botany with Taxonomy

 Vacuole – help maintain water balance. Sometimes a single vacuole can take up
most of the interior space of the plant cell.
 Cell wall- the main function of this is to give the cell rigidity, strength, and
protection against mechanical stress.