CLASSIFICATION 1 Magnification = Size of

drawing
Magnifying lens
X Size of specimen
 Magnifying Lens is a
 A biologist collected a bone
special instrument made
measuring 25cm in length.
from glass. It is biconvex
He then illustrated the bone
i.e. it is thickest in the
in a paper. On measuring
middle.
the length of the drawing,
 When this lens is fixed on
he found that it was 10cm.
a frame that can be held by
calculate the magnification
the hand when being used,
of his drawing. Give the
it is called a hand lens.
formula you use and then
Activity: How to use a
show your working.
hand lens
 It’s the process of grouping
 Hold the lens with one hand
organisms according to
 Place the specimen or
similar characteristics. The
object on a bench
groups are called taxa
 Bring the lens over and
(singular taxon)
near the object
 A taxon is a group of
 Look down through the
organisms with similar
lens
characteristics
 Move the lens up and down
 The branch of biology that
slightly until the image is
deals with naming and
sharp focus. This means
classification of living
that it can be seen clearly.
things is called taxonomy.
What you see is a
Significance of
magnified image of the
classification
object.
 To help in identifying

living organisms into their

Page 1 of 22
 correct groups for divided into smaller groups
reference. called phyla (sing. Phylum)
 Groupings bring together in plants division is used
living organisms with instead of the phylum.
similar characteristics but  Each phylum (division is
separate those with divided into classes, within
different features. each class are orders which
 To help us arrange the are divided into families
information about living  A family consists of many
organisms in an orderly genera (singular genus)
manner to avoid chaos and which is divided into
confusion that would arise species. Species is the
if this were to be done smallest taxonomist unit.
arbitrarily  Comparing classification
 To help us understand the groups and address
evolutionary relationship information
 Major units of
Address information
classifications
Classification group
 There are 7 major
classification groups or taxa Country
i.e. kingdom
-Kingdom Province
-Phylum (division in plants) phylum (division
-Class District class
-Order Division order
-Family Location
-Genus family
-Species Sub- location
 The largest taxonomist unit genus
is the kingdom which is

Page 2 of 22
 Village
species
 The modern system of
classification puts living
organisms in 5 kingdoms
i.e.
(1) Kingdom Monera e.g.
Bacteria and Blue green
algae
(2) Kingdom Protoctista
e.g. Amoeba, plasmodium
e.t.c.
(3) Kingdom Fungi e.g.
mushroom, rhizopus (bread
mould)
(4) Kingdom Plantae-
flowering plants e.g. maize
(5) Kingdom Animalia –
e.g. animals e.g. lizards,
dogs
 The kingdom Plantae and
Animalia are very large.
Members of these groups
are therefore classified
further.
o Binomial
nomenclature
 Binomial means two names
while nomenclature means
system of naming hence
Page 3 of 22
binomial nomenclature
refers to a system of giving
two names to an organism.
 The first is the name of the
genus (generic name) to
which the organism belongs
while the second is the
specific name of the species
of which the organism is a
member.
 The names are in Latin
language or are Latinized.
o Rules for Binomial
system of
nomenclature
 When written both genus
and species names should
be underlined separately or
printed in italics e.g. Homo
sapiens (man).
 The genus name should
start with a capital letter
while the species name
should start with small
letter
Examples
 Canis familiaris (domestic
dog)
  Canis – refers to the genus Why scientific names are
to which dogs belong while used
familiaris is the species.  There is no confusion about
 Examples of scientific which living thing is being
names referred to. This is because
Animals no two organisms have the
same scientific name.
Common Scientific name
name  Scientific names rarely
humans Homo sapiens change
House fly Musca domestica  Scientific names are written
Common frog Rana temporaria in the same language
Dog Canis familiaris around world. Latin is used
Lion Panthera leo because it is a language that
Leopard Panthera pardus does not change.
Mountain Gorilla gorilla The Cell
gorilla
 The word cell is derived
Fruit fly Drosophila
melanogaster from the Latin word cella
Domestic Gallus domestica which means a store room.
chicken  Some organisms have body
Plants structures that are made up
of a singley cell hence
Mango Mangifera indica
Maize Zea mays called unicellular or single-
Black jack Bidens pilosa celled organisms
Bean Phaseolus  Other organisms have body
vulgaris structures that are made up
Onion Allium cepa of many cells hence called
Tomatoes Lycopersicon multicellular organisms.
esculentum
 Definition: cell is the
Sweet Ipomea batatas
structural and functional
potatoes
unit of any living organism.

Page 4 of 22
 Light microscope
 A microscope is an
instrument that is used to
observe cells which are too
small to be seen by an
unaided eye.
 The most commonly used
instrument for observing
cells is the light
microscope. Cells are thus
described as microscopic in
size because they can only
be seen with the help of a
microscope.
Functions of microscope
 To make very small
organisms appear bigger so
that they can be seen. This
is called magnification.
 To make it possible to see
two objects which are very
close together as separate
objects. This is called
resolution.
 It is called the light
microscope because light
has to pass through the
object to be viewed.
Parts of a light
microscope
Page 5 of 22
 Arm (limb) – it supports
the body tube. It is the part
that you hold when
carrying the microscope.
o NB- always carry the
microscope in an
upright position.
 Base –this is the lower
heavy part of the
microscope.
-It rests on the bench and
gives the microscope firm
support.
o X
 Eye piece (ocular lens)- it
magnifies objects. It is
often unattached and may
fall out unless the
microscope is kept upright.
-It can be removed and
replaced with an eyepiece
lens of lower or higher
power. Microscopes have
several interchangeable
lenses of different
magnifications e.g. X10,
X15
-Eye piece lenses are
usually fitted into an
 opening at the top of the
microscope.
 Objective lens- brings
image into focus and
magnifies it. There are
usually 3 types i.e.
 Lower power objective lens
 Has a magnification of X4
 Its shows the largest area of
the specimen but least
detail.
 Medium power objective
lens- has a magnifying
power of X10. It is used
after the low power lens has
been clearly focused.
 It shows a smaller area of
specimen but with more
detail than the lower lens
 High power objective lens-
has a magnifying power of
X40
 It shows a smaller area but
with most detail.
 Turret (revolving nose
piece) – it’s the revolving
base on which the 3 lenses
are mounted. It allows you
to choose the most
Page 6 of 22
appropriate lens when
magnifying a specimen.
 It must be firmly clicked
into position when the
objective lens is changed
 Stage and clips
 The stage is the flat surface
onto which the microscope
slide is placed. The stage
has a hole so that light can
shine through it to the
specimen.
 The clips hold the slide in
place
 Barrel / body tube
 It joins the nose piece to the
eye piece. Its moved up and
down by the coarse and fine
adjustment knobs when
focusing the image.
 Coarse adjustment knob
 It moves the body tube (or
stage in some microscopes)
up and down to bring the
specimen into focus.
 This knob is used with
lower objective. It is easy
to see the tube moving
when the knob is turned.
 Fine adjustment knob
 It moves the body tube (or
stage) up and down to the
right position so that the
specimen is in sharp focus.
 It is used to achieve sharp
focus with the low power
objective as well as high
power objective.
 It difficult to see the tube
moving when this knob is
turned.
 Mirror
 Used to reflect light from
another source such as
sunlight into the
microscope. Light coming
into the microscope lights
up the specimen so that it
can be seen.
 Iris diaphragm
 Regulates the amount of
light that is allowed to pass
through the specimen. It
has a central circular
opening whose size can be
varied.
 Condenser (light director)
 It’s a lens located above the
diaphragm. It concentrates
Page 7 of 22
light before it passes
through the specimen.
 Use and care of
microscope
 Hold the arm of the
microscope with one hand,
place your other hand at its
base then transfer the
microscope fron one place
to another.
 Using a microscope
 Place the microscope on a
bench in front of you. The
handle should be towards
you. Make sure the
microscope is not at the
edge of the bench.
 Look into the eye piece.
Adjust the mirror below the
stage so that it catches light
from a window and reflect
it into the microscope.
 Cut out a newspaper print
and place it on the stage.
Hold it down with clips.
 Rotate the revolving nose
piece until the low power
objective lens clicks into
position.
 Lower the low power
objective lens using the
coarse adjustment knob.
View all this from the side
of the microscope.
 Look into the eyepiece and
keep on adjusting the
coarse adjustment knob
until the print is visible.
Very slowly use the fine
adjustable knob to bring the
print into sharp focus.
 Additional points to note
when using a microscope
 Place the microscope on a
bench always in an upright
position with its arm
towards you. Do not place
it in bright sunlight to avoid
too much light getting to
the eye.
 Use the iris diaphragm to
increase or decrease the
amount of light getting into
the microscope from the
light source.
 Carefully mount the
specimen on the
microscope slide and cover
it with a cover slip.
Page 8 of 22
 Arrange the microscope
slide on the stage so that
the specimen is in the
middle of the hole on the
stage. Gently lower the
stage clips to hold the slide
in place.
 Watch the slide from the
side and use the coarse
adjustment knob to lower
the body tube until the end
of the objective
 Look through the eye piece.
 Turn the coarse adjustment
knob slowly upwards to
raise the body tube or to
increase the distance
between the slide and
objective lens could crush
the slide and both may be
damaged.
 To examine the specimen
under high power objective
clicks into position.
 Never use the coarse
adjustment knob to focus
specimens under high
power objective. This is
because the high power
objective is too near the
 slide. It could damage the
slide and objective lens.
 Field view as seen with
light microscope
 Te field of view is the
circular space in the
microscope in which the
image of the specimen is
observed.
 It varies according to the
magnification at which the
specimen is viewed.
 Under the low
magnification power the
field of view is wider than
high magnification power.
 X
 If 25 plant cells are to be
viewed under a microscope
all may be seen under low
power magnification, but
only 10 of these may be
seen at high power
magnification. This is
because at lower
magnification the field of
view is larger and all the
cells are observed.
Page 9 of 22
 Cells as seen under low
power
o X
 Cells as seen under high
power
o X
 Points to observe when
using the microscope
 Keep the lenses clean by
carefully wiping them with
special lens tissue. Do not
use water or tissue paper.
Do not touch the lenses
with your fingers or allow
them to get wet.
 Always cover the specimen
with a cover slip and make
sure the slides and cover
slips are clean.
 Storing the microscope
 Procedure for storing
 Rotate the nose piece to
have the microscope power
objective. Never sore the
microscope under high
power objective lens.
 Raise the body tube with
the coarse adjustment knob
so that the lenses with lens
paper.
 Cover the microscope with
its cover to prevent
accumulation of dust.
 Pick up the microscope by
its arm with one hand and
support it under the base
with the other hand and
return it to its storage box
or cabinet.
 Magnification of a
microscope
 Total magnification = eye
piece magnification x
objective lens
magnification
 Estimating the cell size
 Cells sizes are measured in
vey small units called
micrometers (um) or
microns (u)
o 1mm = 1000um
o Procedure
 Place the transparent ruler
on the microscope stage so
that it extends across the
diameter of the cell.
 Count the number of
millimeter marks that you
can see under the
microscope. This is the
diameter of the field of
view
 Place a temporary slide
with onion tissue on the
stage and focus under low
power magnification.
o X
 Count the total number of
cells that occupy the
diameter of the field of
view – 3 cells
 Divide the diameter of the
field of view by the total
number of cells counted i.e.
o 3mm/4 cells = 0.75
mm
 This gives the length of one
cell image in mm but 1mm-
1000um the size of image
o = 0.75x 1000
o = 750um
o Real length of cell =
cell size (um) / total
magnification.
o Resolving power of a
microscope

Page 10 of 22
 On a plane paper draw two
lines separated by a
distance of 1mm
 Ask another student to
move the paper away from
you with the line facing
you. Note the distance at
which the two lines appear
as one line.
 Now ask him to move the
paper closer to you until
you begin to see the two
lines again. Note this
distance. At this distance
your eyes have “resolved”
the lines.
 The resolving power of the
eyes of people with good
eyesight is about 0.1mm.
this means that if there is a
distance of less than 0.1mm
between two dots they see
the two dots as one. They
can only distinguish one
dot from another if the
distance between them is
0.1mm or more.
 The resolving power of the
eye is 0.2mm for most
people
Page 11 of 22
 Activity
 Obtain a dry slide and a
cover slip.
 Cut a small piece of paper
from a photograph in a
magazine.
 Place the piece of paper in
the center of a slide with
the printed side up. Using a
dropper put a drop of water
on the piece of paper.
 Place a cover slip on the
slide in such a way that no
air bubbles are included in
the mount. Examine this
under low power.
 The resolving power of the
best light microscope is
0.00025mm. The use of
immersion oil improves the
resolving power to about
0.00018mm.
 Sometimes a camera can be
fixed at the eye piece in
order to take a photograph
of the specimen. Such a
photograph is called a
photomicrograph.
 Biological drawing
 Guidelines on how to  Cell structure and
make biological drawings functions as seen under a
 Draw with a sharp pencil. light microscope
 Firs draw the outline only
of the plant or animal being
studied.
 Make large drawings and
leave enough space around
them for headings and
labels.
 Do not squeeze it in a
corner of the page.
 Drawings should be clear
with firm lines and simple
outlines. Avoid shading the
drawing.
 Make sure you label  The cell structures seen
everything in every under a light microscope
drawing. include;
 Never cross labeling lines.  Cell wall, cell membrane,
The lines should be straight cytoplasm, nucleus vacuole
and as horizontal as and chloroplasts
possible.  The structures within the
 Label in pencil and keep cell are called organelles
the words horizontal  The electron microscope
 A line should run from the  Its more powerful than a
label and end right in the light microscope and it uses
centre of the structure a beam of electrons instead
named, and not at its edge. of light to illuminate the
object

Page 12 of 22
  Differences between the viewed directly viewed
light microscope and indirectly on a
electron microscope screen
Low resolving Very high
Light Electron power resolving
microscope microscope power
Specimen Specimen  Cell structure as seen
illuminated by illuminated under an electron
light with a beam of microscope
electrons
 Cell wall – it’s the non-
Specimen Specimen
viewed may be being viewed is living outermost part of
dead or alive not alive most plant cells. Its made
Specimen is Specimen is up of a chemical substance
placed on a placed on a called cellulose.
glass slide small copper  Cellulose is tough and
grid in vacuum resists stretching. The wall
Stains used are Stains used are
gives firmness and a fixed
coloured dyes made from
like iodine and heavy metals shape to a plant cell due to
are cheap such as lead presence of cellulose.
that are  The cell wall has pores
expensive called plasmodesmata
Uses glass Uses through which the cell
lenses electromagnetic exchanges material with its
lenses
environment. These pores
Low Very high
magnification magnification also allow movement of
power(=600) power (X500 substances between the
000) cells.
Image obtained Image obtained  The cell wall also protects
is usually is not coloured the cell from bursting when
coloured excessive pressure of fluid
Image is Image is builds up inside it.

Page 13 of 22
 NB:- Its similar to leather
covering of a football
which prevents the inner
tube from bursting due to
high air pressure.
 Cell membrane (plasma
membrane)
 This membrane is visible as
the outer surface of the
animal cells.
 Functions
 To hold or enclose the
contents of the cell.
 Regulates the movement of
materials in and out of the
cell.
 Cytoplasm
 Its composed of all the cell
contents except the nucleus.
The fluid and semi fluid
part of the cytoplasm is
called cytosol.
 Organelles and insoluble
granules of various kind are
suspended in the cytosol.
 Cytoplasm also contains
many dissolved substances
like food, nutrients, mineral
ions, dissolved gases and
vitamins.
Page 14 of 22
 Cytoplasm keeps on
moving about in the cell.
Such movement also
changes the position of
organelles in the cell.
 Nucleus
 It’s large and oval or
spherical in shape. In cells
of higher animals and
plants it’s enclosed by a
nuclear membrane.
 The nucleus is made up of
nuclear material called
nucleoplasm. This controls
the activities of a cell and
heredity (passing of traits
from parents to offspring)
 Nuclear membrane
 It encloses the nucleus. The
membrane has pores that
allow most molecules to
pass freely between the
nucleus and the cytoplasm.
 Nucleolus
 It’s a small dark spherical
body inside the nucleus
 It manufactures ribosomes
which move through the
pores in the nuclear
 membrane into the
cytoplasm
 Ribosomes
 They are small spherical
organelles. Some are
attached to the rough
endoplasmic reticulum and
others float freely in the
cytoplasm.
o Function
 They play an important role
in the manufacture of
proteins in the cell.
 Endoplasmic reticulum
(ER)
 Endoplasmic reticulum
(ER) appears as a series of
interconnected channels,
running throughout the
cytoplasm.
 Some ER have granules
called ribosomes on their
surfaces and are therefore
referred to as rough or
granular endoplasmic
reticula.
 The rough E.R transports
proteins and is abundant in
cells that specialize in
secreting proteins such as
Page 15 of 22
cells of pancreas which
secrete digestive enzymes.
 Smooth E.R is not covered
with ribosomes and it
transports lipids. It’s
abundant in seeds.
X
 Golgi apparatus
 It’s also called Golgi body.
They are stacks of
membrane bound tube- like
sacs. They are found close
to the cell membrane.
 Functions
 Packaging and transport of
glycoproteins
 Involved in secretion of
synthesized proteins and
carbohydrates.
 Involved in the formation
of organelles called
lysosomes.
 X
 Lysosomes
 They are round organelles
of different sizes. They
have a single membrane
and are formed by Golgi
apparatus.
 Functions
 Digestion of food particles
– they contain special
enzymes that breakdown
various substances.
 Defending the body against
harmful bacteria. The
lysosomes release enzymes
which destroy both the
bacteria and white blood
cells.
 Destruction of worn out or
old cells that have stopped
functioning.
 Mitochondria
 They are oval – shaped
organelles which produce
energy for the cell. This
energy is used in the cell in
various activities.
 Vacuoles
 They are sacs that are filled
with fluid called cell sap.
Animal cells contain small
vacuoles while in plant
cells the vacuoles are large.
 Functions
 Store sugars and salts
therefore contribute to the
osmotic properties of the
cell
Page 16 of 22
 In some unicellular
organisms, food vacuoles
store and digest food
Centrioles
 They are rod shaped
structures located just
outside the nuclear
membrane. They take part
in cell division
 Plants cells lack Centrioles.
Chloroplasts
 They contain chlorophyll
which traps light energy
that is used during
photosynthesis.
 They are absent in animal
cell.
 Preparation of slides
 There are two types of
mounted slides
 Temporary slides – they
are those that are used only
once. They are not stored
for future use.
 Permanent slides- these
are slides that have been
prepared to be used over
and over again for a long
period of time.
 The cover slip is usually across the width of
sealed permanently to specimen.
enclose the prepared Longitudinal section
specimen.  They are obtained by
 Preparation of temporary cutting along the length of a
slides specimen.
 Involves the following  Procedure
stages  Make a slit in the middle of
 Sectioning a piece of a carrot or
 In order for a specimen to similar material.
be seen under the  Place the material to be
microscope, light has to sectioned into the slit
pass through it. This makes  X
it necessary to obtain very
thin slices or sections of the  Wet the razor blade with
specimen. water.
 Thin sections are obtained  Hold the wet razor blade
by cutting with a sharp horizontally and move it
razor blade or an towards the carrot in
instrument called a continuous sliding
microtome. This cutting movements so as to cut
process is called sectioning. through the specimen.
 Types of sections  Obtain several thin sections
Transverse/ cross section in this section in this way.
 It’s obtained by cutting Put them in water to
across the length of prevent drying.
specimen.  Fixation
 This type of section shows  It involves treating the
arrangement of structures specimen with 70% ethanol
or a solution of 99%

Page 17 of 22
 ethanol and 1% glacial
ethanoic acid. The chemical
used for fixation is called
fixative. The specimen
must be fixed rapidly
 Fixation is carried out for
two reasons:
 To maintain the structure of
the specimen
 To make the specimen
(material) hard enough for
thin sections to be cut.
 Staining
 Since most biological
sections are transparent
they need to be stained to
make it easier to identify
different parts of the
specimen.
 Some common dyes used
for staining are :
 Iodine
 Methylene blue
 Neutral red
 Eosin
 Mounting
 Place a microscope slide
flat on a bench select the
thin rust section from the
ones you prepared earlier.
Page 18 of 22
 Mount/place it onto a drop
of water on a microscope
slide.
 Carefully spread out the
specimen to lie flat on the
slide.
 Place one edge of a cover
slip at an angle in the drop
of water.
 Use a mounting needle to
lower the cover slip gently
over the specimen. Take
great care not to trap air
bubbles beneath the cover
slip.
 Preparation of
temporarily slides of
plants cells
 Take an onion bulb and
separate a thick fleshy leaf.
 Using a scalpel, slice
through the inner part of the
fleshy leaf and peel off the
thin layer.
 Spread it carefully using a
mounting needle on some
water on a slide. Cover
with a cover slip making
sure no bubbles of air are
trapped.
 Observe under low power
objective lens.
 Draw the arrangement of
cells. Draw a diagram of
the cell as seen under high
or medium power.
 Cell specialization
 This is the change in
structure of cells to enable
them perform a specific
function. By specializing,
cells become more efficient
at performing particular
tasks. This is called
division of labour e.g.
muscles cells are most
efficient in contracting.
Specialized animal cells
 Ciliated epithelial cells-
they are found in the inner
layer of nose and wind
pipe. These cells have cilia
on their outer surface.
 Cilia are very small hair
like structures whose
function is to move and
keep up a stream of mucus
that traps and carries dust
and germs from inhaled air
Page 19 of 22
to prevent them from
reaching the lungs.
X
 White blood cells- they
have large nuclei. These
cells are able to change
their shape. They protect
the body against diseases
by destroying disease
carrying organisms.
X
 Red blood cells- they are
flattened, circular and
biconcave in shape. They
have no nucleus.
 Because they contain
haemoglobin, the red blood
cells are able to transport
oxygen from the lungs to
the other body cells and
carbon dioxide to the lungs.
o X
 Nerve cell
 This is a cell that has
extensions of its cell
cytoplasm. These
extensions enable the nerve
cells to receive and send
 information from one part
of the body to another.
o X
Specialized plants cells
 Root hair cells – it’s a tube
like extension of epidermal
cells. Its thinned wall. They
absorb water and mineral
salts. Epidermal cells form
the outer covering of plants
parts.
o X
 Guard cells
 Guard cells are bean shaped
and they are found in pairs
with an opening between
them.
 The guard cells have
chloroplasts.
 They regulate the size of
stomata to allow gases to
move into and out of the
leaf. They also control the
loss of water from the
plant.
o X
o Tissues
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 It’s a group of cells which
perform the same specific
function.
o Examples of tissues
 Epidermal – the epidermis
cover all exposed areas of
plant e.g. on surface of
leaves.
 They usually form one thin
layer of cells and protect
the plant from drying up
and from infection.
 Photosynthetic tissue –
cells in this tissue contain
chloroplast which have
chlorophyll hence the tissue
is responsible for the
manufacture of food
through photosynthesis.
 Vascular tissue – transport
water and mineral salts and
dissolved material from one
part of the plant to the
other. It consists of xylem
vessels and phloem tissue.
 Cortex tissue-they are 3
types:
-Parenchyma (packing
tissue) – when they absorb
water they become turgid
 which keeps the plant
upright.
-Collenchyma – they are
found in the stems of
mature plants and their
walls are thickened with
cellulose
-Sclerenchyma – their
walls are thickened with
cellulose which strengthens
the plant.
o Animal tissues
 Epithelial cells – they cover
the surface of the body such
as skin and mucous
membrane. They protect
the inner, more delicate
cells.
 Blood tissue – its made up
of plasma, red blood cells,
white blood cells, platelet.
 Muscular tissue – there are
3 main types:
-Skeletal muscular tissues –
are connected to the bones
of the skeleton. They are
also called voluntary
muscles because they are
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controlled by the brain.
They contract and relax to
bring about movement.
-Smooth muscular tissue –
include muscles of the
bladder and alimentary
canal. They are also called
involuntary because they
are not controlled by the
brain and works
unconsciously.
-Cardiac muscular tissues –
they are special involuntary
muscles of the walls of the
heart.
 Skeletal tissue
 They are of two types:
 -Bone – it’s very hard due
to presence of large
amounts of calcium salts.
-Cartilage – it’s not as hard
as bone tissue as it does not
contain calcium salts. It is
therefore more elastic.
 V. connective tissue –
 their function is mechanical
to provide support
o ORGANS
  It’s a group of 2 or more  -circulatory
types of tissues working system
together to perform a  -respiratory
specific function.  excretory
o Plant organs system
 Leaf 
 Stem
 Root
 Flower
Animal organs
Organ
function
Brain Coordinates
body activities
Eye Vision
Heart Pumps blood to
all parts of the
body
Stomach Digestion of
food

 Organ systems
 A group of
organs that work
together to
perform a
specific
function.eg
 -digestive
system
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