LIVING CELL

Intro
• All living things are made
of cells
• CELLS --> smallest living
unit of structure &
function of all organisms
• All cells arise from
preexisting cells
( discarded the idea of
spontaneous generation)
• unit structure of all living
organisms: prokaryotes
and eukaryotes.
 MICROBIAL CELL
• microorganisms have been used by humans since
prehistoric times in the preparation of food,
alcoholic beverages, milk products etc
• the role of microorganisms in biotransformation was
recognized since 19th century
• Today, they are not only used for the traditional
microbial processes but also for new processes
such as the production of pharmaceuticals,
industrial chemicals, enzymes, agricultural
chemicals, waste water treatments, etc
• The protists simple biological organisms
compared to plants and animals; algae, protozoa,
fungi, and bacteria
 Prokaryotic cell
• unit of structure in two microbial groups: bacteria and blue-
green algae.
• small and simple
• the cell is not compartmentalized by unit membrane systems.
• has only two structurally regions: i) cytoplasm and ii) nuclear
region (or nucleoplasm).
• The cytoplasm contains of ribosomes composed of protein and
ribonucleic acid (RNA).
• The ribosome  the site of important biochemical reactions for
protein synthesis.
Eucaryotic cell
• unit structure in plants, animals, protozoa, fungi, and
algae
• cell has internal unit membrane systems that
segregate many of the functional components of the
cell (organelles)
• 10 to 10,000 times larger and more complex than
prokaryotic cells.
• The nucleus controls hereditary properties and all vital
activities of the cell.
Bacteria
 Unicellular, about 1500 species
 Diameter 0.5 to 1m, vary greatly in length
 Shape: cocci (spherical/ovoid), bacilly (cylindrical/rod),
spirilla (helically coiled)
 Reproduction: asexual  binary
fission
 reproduction steps:
1) cell elongation,
2) invagination of the cell wall,
3) distribution of nuclear
material,
4) formation of the transverse
cell wall,
5) distribution of cellular
material into two cells, an
6) separation into two new cells
 Elemental composition
Physical conditions for bacteria
 3 major physical factors: T, gaseous environment, and pH
 microbial activity and growth  manifestations of enzymatic
action
 the rates of enzyme reactions increase with increasing T;
the rate of microbial growth is T dependent
 the optimum pH for bacteris growth lies: 6.5 - 7.5.
 Although a few bacteria can grow at the extremes of the pH
range, the limits fall somewhere between pH 4 and pH9.
 The principal gases in the cultivation of bacteria are O2 and CO2
 There are four types of bacteria, according to their response to
oxygen:
1. Aerobic bacteria  grow in the presence of free O2.
2. Anaerobic bacteria  grow in the absence of free O2
3. Facultatively anaerobic bacteria  grow in either the absence
or the presence of free oxygen.
4. Microaerophilic bacteria  grow in the presence of minute
quantities of free oxygen
 Some bacteria form spores when growth ceases due to starvation
or other causes
 Spores are more resistant than normal cells to heat, drying,
radiation, and chemicals.
 Spores can remain alive for many years; however, they can
convert back to normal cells at proper conditions
Gram staining
 a method to differentiate two types of bacteria based on the
structural differences in their cell walls (Hans Christian
Gram, 1884)
 Chemically, gram stain is weakly alkaline solution of crystal
violet
 bacteria that retain the crystal violet dye called Gram-
positive bacteria. In contrast, Gram-negative bacteria do not
retain the violet dye and are colored red or pink.
 Compared with Gram-positive bacteria, Gram-negative
bacteria are more resistant against antibodies because of
their impenetrable cell wall.
 Ex gram (+): Bacillus, clostridium, lactobacillus
 Ex gram (-): E.coli, salmonela, pseudomona
Gram differences
FUNGI

 Plant devoid of
chlorophyll 
unable to
synthesize their
own foods
 range in size and
shape from single-
celled yeasts to
multicellullar
mushrooms
 YEAST & MOLD
Yeast
 widely distributed in nature (food, soil, in
the air, on the skin and in the intestines of
animals)
 depend on higher plants and animals for
their energy
 Unicellular  spherical to ovoid
 Size: 1 to 5 m in width; 5 to 30 rn in
length
 The cell wall  quite thin in young cells but
thickens with age.
 Asexual reproduction  BUDDING

 A small bud (or daughter cell) is formed on the surface of a

mature cell. The bud grows and is filled with nuclear and
cytoplasmic material from the parent cell. When the bud is as
large as the parent, nuclear apparatus in both cells is reoriented
and the cells are separated. The daughter cell may cling to the
parent cell, often even after the cells are divided
 Saccharomeces cerevisiae  wine, beer, leavening of bread
Mold
 filamentous fungi
 A single cell or spore (conidia) is germinated to form a long
thread, hyphae, which branches repeatedly as it elongates
to form a vegetative structure called a mycelium. Since a
mycelium is capable of growing indefinitely, it can attain
macroscopic dimensions.
 Find everywhere
 Aspergillus,
penicillium,
rhizopus
 used in the
production of
antibiotics,
enzymes, food
and food
additives
Animal and plant cell
 Both are eucaryotic cell
 Animal cells and plant cells
have features in common,
such as a nucleus,
cytoplasm, cell membrane,
mitochondria and ribosomes.
 Plant cells also have a cell
wall, and often have
chloroplasts and a
permanent vacuole.
 Dissolved substances pass
into and out of cells by
diffusion.
 Water passes into and out of
cells by osmosis.
Animal and plant cells similarities
part function

nucleus contains genetic material, which controls

the activities of the cell
cytoplasm most chemical processes take place here,
controlled by enzymes
cell membrane controls the movement of substances into
and out of the cell
mitochondria most energy is released by respiration
here
ribosomes protein synthesis happens here
PlantCell
 The size within the range of 20-40 m in diameter and 100-
200 m long
 However, plant cells have distinctive features such as a rigid
wall, a large vacuole, and the presence of chloroplasts

 3 EXTRA PARTS OF PLANT CELLS:

• 1) cell wall --> strengthens the cell
• 2) Chloroplast --> the site of photosynthesis in the plant
cell, which contains the green pigment chlorophill that is
responsible for trapping the light energy for the production
of carbohydrates
• 3) permanent vacuole --> filled with cell sap
Differences between plant and animal cell:
differences between plant & microbial cells:

1. Plant cells are 10 to 100 times larger than bacterial and

fungal cells (20-40 m in diameter and 100-200 m long)
2. The metabolism of plant cells is slower than microbial cells
 the maintenance of sterility for a longer period of time.
3. Plant cells tend to grow in clumps which cause
sedimentation, poor mixing, plugging the inlet and outlet
lines, wall growth, and so on.
4. Plant cells are more sensitive to shear than microbial cells.
5. Metabolic production in plant cells is subject to more
complex regulatory mechanisms than metabolic production
in microbial cells.
6. Plant cells are more genetically unstable than microbial
cells.
 Energy
 for supporting biosynthesis activities (e.g. growth,
work)
 Source of energy: C & light
 Grouping organism according to energy pathway:
autothophic & heterotrophic
 Autotrophs are organisms that can produce
their own food from the substances available in
their surroundings using light (photosynthesis) or
chemical energy (chemosynthesis).
 Heterotrophs cannot synthesize their own food
and rely on other organisms — both plants and
animals — for nutrition.
Classification base on carbon & energy
requirement
 During growth in a food, microorganisms
synthesize energy and cellular materials
 All microorganisms require carbon as a source
for the synthesis of cellular constituents and
an energy source for energy to drive the
synthesis.
Autotrophic
 organism that produces complex organic compounds (C
such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, cell wall etc) from
inorganic materias e.g. CO2 as principal,
carbonates/simples inorganic compounds (e.g. ammonium
sulfate, magnesium sulfate and sodium chloride) by using
basic energy sources such as sunlight --> primary
producers
 Subdivided on the basis of their ability to utilize the energy
for cell growth: phototrophs and chemotrophs
1.Phototrophs use light as an energy source (e.g. plants)
to convert water from the soil and carbon dioxide from the
air into glucose
2.Chemotrophs Carbon dioxide is the main source of
carbon; energy from chemical reactions usually inorganic
sources (H2S, CH4, CO2). e.g bacteria lives in waste water,
volcanoes, deep sea ocean vents, the atmosphere, mines)
 Examples: plants, algae, n some bacteria
 Heterotrophic
 cannot produce organic compounds from inorganic sources and
therefore rely on consuming other organisms in the food chain.
 use organic compounds as a source of energy and organic
material for synthesis of cellular components.
 Grouping as:
1. photoautotropic: light as energy source, CO2 as C source
(higher plants)
2. Photoheterotrophic: light as energy source, organic comp. as
C source
3. Chemoautotropic: chemical as energy source, CO2 as C
source; have ability to use reduced inorganic comp as
oxidizable energy sources (NH3, NO2, H2S etc)
4. Chemoheterotrophic: chemical as energy source, organic
comp. as C source (fungi, great number of bacteria)