Living Organism and Cells

All living organisms are made of cells. Cells are so small that they can
only be seen with a microscope and not with the naked eye. From the
simplest unicellular organisms to the most complex multicellular
organisms, living organisms all share certain characteristics.

CHARACTERISTICS OF LIVING THINGS

● Nutrition (feeding): the process by which living organisms

obtain or make food. Animals take in ready-made food and are
called heterotrophs. Plants make their own food by the
process of photosynthesis and are called autotrophs.

• Respiration: the process by which energy is released from food by

all living cells. Aerobic respiration requires oxygen and takes place
in most cells. Anaerobic respiration takes place without oxygen in
certain cells.

● Excretion: the process by which waste and harmful

substances, produced by the body’s metabolism,
are removed from the body.

● Growth: a permanent increase in the size and complexity of

an organism.

● Irritability (sensitivity): the ability of organisms to detect

and respond to changes in their environment or within
themselves.
● Movement: a change in the position of a whole organism or of
parts of an organism. Most animals can move their whole
bodies from place to place, known as locomotion. Plants and
Some animals can only move parts of their bodies.

● Reproduction: is the process by which living organisms

generate new individuals of the same kind as
themselves. Sexual reproduction involves the fusion of
gametes (sex cells) produced by two parents. Asexual
reproduction does not involve the fusion of gametes and
requires only one parent. Cells.

CELLS

The cell is the basic structural and functional unit of all living
organisms. A single cell possesses all of the seven
characteristics of living organisms.

Some organisms are unicellular, being composed of a

single cell; others are multicellular, being composed of many
cells.

Plant and animal cells

All plant and animal cells contain structures called organelles
that are specialised to carry out one or more vital functions, for
example the nucleus, mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum,
ribosomes, chloroplasts and vacuoles. Organelles are found
within the cytoplasm of the cells and most are
surrounded by one or two membranes. The following structures
are found in all plant and animal cells:

• Cell membrane or plasma membrane

• Cytoplasm
• Nucleus
• Mitochondria (singular mitochondrion)
• Endoplasmic reticulum

In addition to the above, plant cells also possess:

• Cell wall
• Chloroplasts
• Large vacuole

Cell Structure Functions

Cell Membrane Controls what substances enter and leave
the cell.
Cytoplasm