PLANT STRUCTURE

AND FUNCTIONS
Learning Outcomes

 At the end of this course, the students

are expected to:
 Know the history of Cell Theory
 Be familiar with the great contributors of cell
history
 Know the different parts of a plant cell
Course Outline

 Cell History
 Contributors to Cell History
 Basic Types of Cells
 Eukaryotes and Prokayotes
 Cell Structure
 CELLS
Structural and functional units of living
organisms

Mass of protoplasm delimited by a

membrane
 CELL HISTORY

 Cell Theory states that “the

bodies of plants and animals are
composed of cells and their
products and these cells came
from preexisting cells.
 In 1665 -The term cell was first
observed and identified by an
English physicist Robert Hook
 In the year 1839 a two German
scientist – Schwann and
Schleiden provided few basic
principles of cell.
CELL HISTORY

Robert Hooke
 First to observe plant cells by
examining the section of the
cork.
Robert Brown
 First observed the nucleus in
hairs and other cells of
orchids
Hans and Zacharias Janssen
 produced the first two-
lenses microscope
 CELL HISTORY
Matthias Schleiden
• State that plants were
composed of cells
Theodor Schwann
• State that animals were
composed of cells
Watson and Crick
 First to observed DNA
molecules
Rudolf Virchow
 Developed the idea of
generation continuity of cell
that Omnis cellula e cellula
(i.e cells are arise from pre-
existing cells)
 Division of cell
CELL HISTORY

Anthon Van Leeuwenhoek

 First to observe single-
celled organisms under
the microscope.
Johannes Purkinje
 He coined term
“protoplasm” which is
the term for
nucleoplasm and
cytoplasm.
 Protoplasm is the living
part of the cell.
CELL HISTORY

 The different types of cell

include- prokaryotic cell,
plant and animal cell.
 The size and the shape of
the cell range from
millimeter to microns,
which are generally
based on the type of
function that it performs.
 A few cells are in
spherical, rod, flat,
concave, curved,
rectangular, oval and
etc. These cells can only
be seen under
microscope.
CELL HISTORY

 Every living organism is

made up of a single
cell (unicellular) (or)
many cells
(multicellular) and all
types of cells have
certain structures in
common like: genetic
material and plasma
membrane.
UNICELLULAR vs
MULTICELLULAR

Unicellular organization
has a significant consequence:
 It does not allow division of
labor or specialization.
 Each cell must perform all tasks:
sensing the environment,
gathering nutrients, excreting
wastes, defense, movement
and reproduction.
UNICELLULAR vs
MULTICELLULAR
 Multicellularity have negative
consequences:
 As each cell becomes more
specialized, it depends more
on the others.
 If a cell evolved toward
having thick walls and offering
maximum protection, it must
rely on other cells of the
organism for photosynthesis,
mineral absorption and
reproduction.
BASIC
TYPES OF
CELL

PROKAR
YOTIC
EUKARY
OTIC
 Prokaryotic
Cell
 are simpler than
eukaryotic ones and are
found only in domains
Bacteria (bacteria and
cyanobacteria) and
Archaea (archaeans).
 First organisms to be
present on our planet
earth.
 Eukaryotic
Cell
 are found in plants,
animals, fungi and
protists, are more
complex than
prokaryotic cells.
 In addition ,
eukaryotic cells have
many organelles that
allow them to be more
diverse and complex,
both morphologically
and physiologically.
 CELL
STRUCTURE
PROKARYOTIC CELL
Single-celled organism
(unicellular)
Absence of nucleus
Size of a cell ranges from 1-10
microns.
Mode of nutrients:
photosynthetic, feed on living
things and dead things.
Reproduce asexually: binary
fission, transformation,
conjugation, transduction.
EUKARYOTIC CELL
Multi-celled organism (multi-
cellular)
Presence of true nucleus.
Size of cell ranges from 10-100
microns.
Mode of nutrients : Autotrophic
and heterotrophic.
Reproduce both by sexually and
asexually.
 PARTS OF A GENERALIZED
PLANT CELL

CELL WALL
PROTOPLASM
CELL MEMBRANE
CYTOPLASM
NUCLEUS
VACUOLES
 PARTS OF A GENERALIZED
PLANT CELL

CELL WALL
The outer boundary of the plant
cell which consists of the non-
living structure secreted by the
protoplasm
I. CELL WALL
A. MIDDLE LAMELLA OR
INTERCELLULAR LAYER
- Holds the cells together
- Made up of pectic
substances (e.g. calcium
pectate)
- Pectin functions as
cementing material between
adjacent cells
 I. CELL WALL
B. PRIMARY WALL
- Inner to middle lamella
- Mainly composed of cellulose
- Capable of extension as the cell grows;
becomes more rigid as the cell matures and
more layers of cellulose are added
- Cutin, a fatty material usually found as a
layer, the cuticle, on outer walls of cells
forming the exterior surfaces of land plants; is
impermeable to water and protect leaves
and stems against water loss
I. CELL WALL
C. SECONDARY WALL
- Between primary wall and
protoplasm
- Thicker than the primary wall
- Lignin – for hardness and decay-
resisting qualities of many woods
- Suberin – renders the cell
impermeable to water and gases
- Impermeable to water and other
substances which results to the
death of cells
 I. CELL WALL
D. PITS
– region in the cell wall in which no
secondary wall and deposited where
water and other dissolved substance
diffused from cell to cell
E. PLASMODESMATA
– pores through which strands of
cytoplasm extend from one cell to
another, facilitating transfer of
materials and impulses
 II. PROTOPLASM
(living part of the cell)
A. CELL MEMBRANE (PLASMA
MEMBRANE or PLASMALEMMA)
- Made up of two layers
phospholipids with embedded
proteins in between
II. PROTOPLASM
(living part of the cell)

B. CYTOPLASM
- Part of the protoplasm found
inside the cell membrane and
outside the nucleus

- 1. Hyaloplasm (Cytosol or
Groundplasm)
- 2. Cytoplasmic Organelles
- 3.Cytoskeleton (Cell skeleton)
1. HYALOPLASM
Liquid part of the cell
 2. CYTOPLASMIC ORGANELLES -
BOUNDED BY SINGLE UNIT MEMBRANE
ENDOPLASMIC RETICULUM
System of extensive flattened vesicles
that form branched, interconnected,
closed systems
Forms the intercellular transport
May function as a communication
system through the cell due to its close
association with the plasmodesmata
Rough ER – associated with ribosomes on its
outer membrane
Smooth ER – without ribosomes
 2. CYTOPLASMIC ORGANELLES -
BOUNDED BY SINGLE UNIT MEMBRANE
GOLGI BODIES or DICTYOSOMES
Series of stacked discs, each composed of
a flattened sac bounded by two
membranes, with small globular bodies or
vesicles around the edges of these discs
Packagers of the cells because they are
believed to be involved in the formation of
new cell wall when the cell divides and in
the general synthesis of wall material and in
secretory cell, in the secretion of
macromolecules
In plants, golgi bodies are unconnected
and scattered. These are called
dictyosomes.
2. CYTOPLASMIC ORGANELLES -
BOUNDED BY SINGLE UNIT MEMBRANE

MICROBODIES – smallest single

membrane bounded organelles
A. SOGAERISINES – also called plant
lysosomes
- filled with hydrolytic enzymes for fat
synthesis
B. PEROXISOMES – contains enzymes for
peroxide formation and destruction
- isolated from leaves; associated with
photosynthesis in plants
2. CYTOPLASMIC ORGANELLES -
BOUNDED BY SINGLE UNIT MEMBRANE
C. GLYOXYSOMES – largest microbody
- contains enzymes involved in the
conversion of fats to carbohydrates
during germination of fat storing seeds
- isolated from castor oil seeds
D. SPHAEROSOMES – spherical
organelles with a single limiting
membrane specialized for storage and
are abundant the cotyledons of many
seeds; maybe in the form of fat bodies
or wax bodies
2. CYTOPLASMIC ORGANELLES -
BOUNDED BY DOUBLE UNIT MEMBRANE
MITOCHONDRIA
Second largest organelle in a plant
cell
Sausage-shaped cells with smooth
outer membrane and an inner
membrane with folds called cristae
containing oxysomes (the
functional units of mitochondria)
DNA containing, self-replicating
cells
Powerhouse of the cell
2. CYTOPLASMIC ORGANELLES -
BOUNDED BY DOUBLE UNIT MEMBRANE
 PLASTIDS
Types:
CHLOROPLASTIDS – green plastids
containing chlorophyll or green
pigments found in leaves
CHROMOPLASTIDS – colored plastids
other than green
Carotenoids – yellow pigment
Anthocyanin – may appear red, purple,
or blue depending on the pH
Anthoxanthin – pigment which range
from white to yellow in color
Xanthophylls – red and yellow pigments
2. CYTOPLASMIC ORGANELLES -
BOUNDED BY DOUBLE UNIT MEMBRANE

LEUCOPLASTIDS – colorless
plastids which may be
involved in the synthesis and
storage of substances
Amyloplasts – starch
Proteoplasts /Aleuroplasts –
protein
Elaioplasts – lipids
2. CYTOPLASMIC ORGANELLES –
WITHOUT ANYMEMBRANE

RIBOSOMES
Smallest organelle without a
membrane
Protein factories of the cell
Types:
Free Ribosomes
Bound or Attached Ribosomes
 3. CYTOSKELETON
MICROTUBULES
Made up of tubulin
Examples:
Cilia
Flagella
Spindle-fibers
MICROFILAMENTS
Made up of actin
Associated with the movement of
cell contents (cyclosis)
 C. NUCLEUS – the control center of
the cell
NUCLEAR MEMBRANE OR NUCLEAR ENVELOPE
Double-layered membrane which encloses
the nucleus
NUCLEOPLASM (Karyoplasm)
Liquid part of the nucleus
NUCLEOLUS
One or more spherical structures containing
RNA and protein
CHROMATINS
Thread-like structure which contains DNA
 III. VACUOLES – non living portion of the
cell separated from the protoplasm by the
tonoplast

TONOPLAST
Membrane enclosing vacuoles
CELL SAP
Fluid part
Highly dilute solution of substances
like gases, inorganic salts, organic
acids, sugars, water- soluble
proteins, alkaloids, and certain
pigments, within the vacuole
 CRYSTALS
Waste products of metabolism associated
with vacuoles and composed of calcium
oxalate
Raphides – needle like which may occur singly
or in bundles
Prismatic – prism-like or pyramid like crystals
Rosette – aggregate of crystals which has a
flower-like appearance
Note: Calcium carbonate crystals which are
grape-like (crystolith) may be found within the
cell hanging from the cell wall
Raphides
Prismatic
Rosette
References

 Mauseth, James D. Botany: An Introduction to Plant

Biology 5th Edition, Massachusetts: Jones and Bartlett
Publisher, 2012.
 Mauseth, James D. Plants and People. Burlington:
Jones and Bartlett Learning, 2015
 Bidlack, James E. Stern’s Introductory Plant Biology.
New York, NY: McGraw:Hill, 2014.
 Leventin, Estelle. Plants and Society. New York:
McGraw-Hill, 2012.
 Bhattacharyya, Bharati. Systematic Botany. England:
Alpha Sci. Inc., UK, 2009