CYTOGENETICS LESSON 3
THE CELL
CELL MEMBRANE
• is the basic morphological and functional unit
of all living things.
• Thousands of species of unicellular organisms
exist like the disease-causing bacteria and
parasites such as Entamoeba histolytica
• Most forms of living organisms, however are
multicellular. The cells in multicellular
organisms consist of many types that differ in
structure and/or function. The different cell
types act in concert to ensure their and the
organism’s survival.
Cell Theory
1. All living things are made up of cells.
2. Cells are the smallest working unit of all living
things.
3. All cells come from pre-existing cells through
cell division.
The Cell
 Cell types that perform the same general
functions are linked together by some amount
of extracellular material to from tissues.
 Tissues join together to form organs and
organs that have interrelated functions group
together to form organ systems.
 Despite their wide morphological differences,
there is a basic structure that they have in
common.
 The typical human cell is composed of
cytoplasm enclosed in a cell membrane and
nucleus that is separated by nuclear envelope.
• It determines which substances can move in
and out of the cell and regulates the
movement of these substances.
• It provides attachment for the skeleton of the
cell (cytoskeleton).
• It receives and sends out stimuli.
• It provides binding sites and receptors for
enzymes and other substances.
• It allows cell-to-cell recognition.
• It forms specialized junctions with the cell
membrane of the adjacent cells.
• Made up mainly of lipid –mostly
phospholipids- and protein molecules.
• It is only 8-10 nm thick.
• Under electron microscope, it appears as a tri-
laminar structure consisting of two electron-
dense sheets that sandwich a thin electron-
lucent layer.
• Each phospholipid molecules has three parts:
1. 1 Head-hydrophilic
2. 2 tails-hydrophobic
 The fatty acids of the tails are linked together
by covalent bonds to the glycerol of the head.
• In the cell membrane, the phospholipid
molecules are so arranged such that the heads
occupy the outer surface whereas the tails
occupy the inner surface of each phospholipid
layer.
• Cell membrane also contain:
 Cholesterol
 Glycolipids
 Glycoproteins
 polysaccharides
• In some cells, the glycolipids and
glycoproteins project from the outer surface
of the cell membrane to form a coating for
the cell called glycocalyx.
• Glycocalyx is involved in cell-to-cell adhesion,
and immunological response.

CYTOPLASM
• Refers to the homogenous substance
(cytoplasmic matrix) that fills the cell and the
various formed elements that are embedded
in it. The formed elements consist of three (3)
groups:
1. Organelles
2. Inclusions
3. Fibrillar elements
*In general, if there is an increase in the viscosity of
the cytoplasmic matrix of a cell, this is due to an
increase number of fibrillar elements.
Cytoplasmic Matrix
• The cytoplasmic matrix is viscid, translucent
and colloidal in nature.
• It is mainly made up of water (70% or more by
volume)
• Cytoplasmic matrix is one of the most
important, complex and dynamic parts of the
cell.
• It is the site of the many important
biochemical processes and it provides a
suitable milieu for the organelles in
performing their function.
Organelles
The cytoplasmic organelles include:
1. Mitochondria
2. Ribosome
3. Endoplasmic reticulum (rough and smooth)
4. Golgi apparatus
5. Lysosome
6. Centrosome
7. Peroxisome
 Not all the organelles are present in all
cells, but all cells have organelles.
 The type and number of cytoplasmic
organelles in a cell are dictated by the
cell’s function and state of activity.
Mitochondria
• Are organelles that are present in all cells.
• They are often hotdog-shaped, but they can
alter their shape and become rod-like,
filamentous, spherical, etc.
• They are 0.5 to 1.0 micrometer in diameter
and up to 10micrometer long.
• They are the powerhouse of cell because they
generate most energy that is needed by the
cell to perform its metabolic processes.
• The number of mitochondria in a cell depends
on its energy requirements.
• Mitochondrion have limited life span but they
can replicate in manner akin to the binary
fission of bacteria.
• Mitochondria are not visible in H&E
preparations but they are demonstrable by
special staining, by phase contrast microscopy
and electron microscopy.
• The matrix of mitochondrion also contains a
strand of DNA, ribosomes, and messenger and
transfer RNAs.
 • Furthermore, it contains most of the enzymes
involved in the Kreb’s Cycle.
Ribosomes
• Ribosomes are minute organelles ( about 15
to 30 nm in size) that can be appreciated only
via high magnification electron microscopy.
• They are seen as small electron-dense
granules that occur singly or in small clusters
known as polyribosomes or polysomes.
• Ribosomes and polyribosomes either lay free
in cytoplasm ( free ribosomes) or are attached
(attached ribosomes) to the surfaces of the
membranes of the rough endoplasmic
reticulum (rER).
• They are present in all cells but their number
and distribution vary depending on cell type.
• Are sites for protein synthesis.
• It is in these organelles where amino acids are
assembled into polypeptide chains.
• Free ribosomes are sites for synthesis of
proteins that are for use within the cell.
• Attached ribosomes on the other hand, are
sites for the synthesis of proteins that are to
be exported by the cell.
• Cells with numerous ribosomes have intensely
basophilic cytoplasm.
Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER)
• ER is present in all cells.
• ER forms a system of interconnecting tubules,
vesicles, and flattened sacs(cisternae).
• ER is the most extensive membranous
structure in the cytoplasm.
• ER consists of two (2) contiguous regions:
1. Rough ER (rER)
2. Smooth ER (sER)
• ER serves as a supporting structure for the
cytoplasm.
• It is involved in the production of numerous
substances that are to be used within or
exported by the cell.
Golgi apparatus
• Is a system of stacked, membrane-bound,
flattened sacs called cisternae that are
involved in modifying, sorting, and packaging
macromolecules for secretion or delivery to
other organelles.
• It is normally located in close proximity to the
rER and the nucleus.
• Vesicles containing membrane-bound and
soluble proteins from the rER enter the Golgi
apparatus are directed through the stacks
where the proteins are modified, as needed,
by enzymes for glycosylation, sulfation, or
phosphorylation.
Lysosomes
• Contains hydrolytic enzymes bound within a
membrane and are involved on the cell’s
intracellular and digestive process.
• Lysosomal enzymes are active at the acidic pH
of the lysosome and are inactivated at the
higher pH of the cytosol. This also protects the
cell in case lysosomal enzymes are released
into the cytoplasm.
• Contains hydrolytic enzymes bound within a
membrane and are involved on the cell’s
intracellular and digestive process.
NUCLEUS
• Lysosomal enzymes are active at the acidic pH
of the lysosome and are inactivated at the
higher pH of the cytosol. This also protects the
cell in case lysosomal enzymes are released
into the cytoplasm.
• Are round or ovoid bodies whose diameter
range from 0.05 to 0.8 micrometer.
• They can number from a few hundred to
thousands, depending on the cell type.
• Lysosomes are the principal organelles
involved in the cellular processes called:
1. heterophagy
2. autophagy
Centrosomes
• Consist of two (2) cylinder-shaped centrioles
that are typically oriented at right angles to
each other.
4. Nuclear envelope (nuclear membrane)
• A centriole consists of nine bundles of three
(3) microtubules each.
• They serve as insertion points for the mitotic
spindle fibers during mitotic process.
CYTOSKELETON
• In addition to organelles and inclusions, the
cytoplasm contains a complex network of
fibrillar elements that forms the structural
framework or skeleton of the cell
(cytoskeleton).
• Consist of:
1. Microfilaments
2. Intermediate filaments
3. microtubules
• The largest structure (3 to 10 micrometer in
diameter) inside the cell
• round or spherical, but it occurs in various
other shapes.
• It is present in all cells and its removal
invariably leads to death of the cell.
• It is the data bank of the cell.
• The instructions required for the synthesis of
all proteins and nucleic acids that are needed
within – or exported by – the cell are kept in
coded form in the nucleus.
• Consist of:
1. Nuclear matrix
2. Chromatin
3. Nucleolus
Types of Cells in Living Organism