CELL

Structure & Functions

k.ujwala
● In this chapter, you shall learn about
the basic structural unit of an organ,
which is the cell.
● Cells may be compared to bricks.
● Bricks are assembled to make a
building. Similarly, cells are
assembled to make the body of every
organism.
 Discovery of the Cell
Robert Hooke in 1665 observed slices
of cork under a simple magnifying
device.
1.Cork is a part of the bark of a tree.
2.He took thin slices of cork and
observed them under a microscope.
● He noticed partitioned
boxes or compartments in
the cork slice
● These boxes appeared like a
honeycomb.
● He also noticed that
one box was separated
from the other by a
wall or partition.
● Hooke coined the term
‘cell’ for each box.
● What Hooke observed
as boxes or cells in the
cork were actually
dead cells.
● Cells of living organisms could
be observed only after the
discovery of improved
microscopes.
● Very little was known about the
cell for the next 150 years after
Robert Hooke’s observations.
● Today, we know a lot about cell
structure and its functions
because of improved
microscopes having high
magnification.
 The Cell
● Both, bricks in a building and cells in the living
organisms, are basic structural units .
● The buildings, though built of similar bricks, have
different designs, shapes and sizes.
● Similarly, in the living world, organisms differ
from one another but all are made up of cells.
● Cells in the living organisms are complex living
structures unlike non-living bricks.
● The egg of a hen represents a single
cell and is big enough to be seen by
the unaided eye.
● How do scientists observe and study
the living cells?
● They use microscopes which
magnify objects. Stains (dyes) are
used to colour parts of the cell to
study the detailed structure.
● There are millions of living organisms.
They are of different shapes and
sizes.
● Their organs also vary in shape, size
and number of cells.
 Number of Cells
● Can you guess
the number of
cells in a tall
tree or in a
huge animal
like the
elephant?
● The number runs into billions and trillions.
● Human body has trillions of cells which
vary in shapes and sizes.
● Different groups of cells perform a variety
of functions.
 Number of Cells

Unicellular Multicellular
organisms organisms
● Organisms made
of more than one
cell are called
multicellular
(multi : many;
cellular : cell)
organisms.
● example - plants,
animals.
● The single-celled
organisms are
called unicellular
(uni : one;
cellular : cell)
organism
The number of cells being less in smaller
organisms does not, in any way, affect the
functioning of the organisms.
● You will be surprised to
know that an organism
with billions of cells
begins life as a single
cell which is the
fertilised egg.
● The fertilised egg cell
multiplies and the
number of cells increase
as development
proceeds.
● A single-celled organism performs all the necessary
functions that multicellular organisms perform.
● A single-celled organism, like amoeba, captures and
digests food, respires, excretes, grows and
reproduces.
● Similar functions in multicellular organisms are
carried out by groups of specialised cells forming
different tissues.
● Tissues, in turn, form organs.
 Shape of Cells

Indefinite Definite
/irregular

Spherical Spindle

Long branched
● How do you define the shape of amoeba in the
figure?
● Amoeba has no definite
shape, unlike other organisms.
● It keeps on changing its
shape.
● Observe the projections of
varying lengths protruding out
of its body.
● These are called
pseudopodia (pseudo :
false; podia : feet).
● These projections appear and
disappear as amoeba moves
or feeds.
● A white blood cell (WBC) in human blood is
another example of a single cell which can change
its shape.
● But while WBC is a cell, amoeba is a full fledged
organism capable of independent existence.
● What shape would
you expect in
organisms with
millions of cells?
● The different
shapes are related
to their specific
functions.
● Some are branched
like the nerve cell
or a neuron
● The nerve cell
receives and
transfers messages,
thereby helping to
control and
coordinate the
working of different
parts of the body.
● Can you guess, which part of the cell gives it shape?

● Components of the cell are enclosed in a

membrane.
● This membrane provides shape to the cells of
plants and animals.
● Cell wall is an additional covering over the cell
membrane in plant cells.
● It gives shape and rigidity to these cells.
● Bacterial cell also has a cell wall.
Plant Cell Animal cell
Bacterial
Cell
 Size of Cells
● The size of cells in living organisms may be
as small as a millionth of a metre (micrometre
or micron) or may be as large as a few
centimetres.
● However, most of the cells are microscopic in
size and are not visible to the unaided eye.
● They need to be enlarged or magnified by a
microscope.
● The smallest cell
is 0.1 to 0.5
micrometre in
bacteria.
● The largest cell measuring 170 mm
×130 mm, is the egg of an ostrich.
 Activity 8.2
● Boil a hen’s egg. Remove the shell.
● What do you observe?
● A white material surrounds the yellow part.
● White material is albumin which solidifies on
boiling.
● The yellow part is yolk.
● It is part of the single cell.
● You can observe this single cell without any
magnifying device
NO
● The size of the cells has no relation
with the size of the body of the animal
or plant.
● It is not necessary that the cells in the
elephant be much bigger than those in
a rat.
● The size of the cell is related to its
function.
● For example, nerve cells, both in the
elephant and rat, are long and branched.
● They perform the same function, that of
transferring messages.
 Cell Structure and Function

● You have studied in Class VII about the digestive

organs which together constitute the digestive
system.
● Each organ in the system performs different
functions such as digestion, assimilation and
absorption.
● Similarly, different organs of a plant
perform specific/specialised functions.
● For example, roots help in the absorption of
water and minerals.
● Leaves, as you have learnt in Class VII, are
responsible for synthesis of food.
CELL

TISSUE

ORGAN

ORGAN
SYSTEM
ORGANISM
● Each organ is further made up of smaller
parts called tissues.
● A tissue is a group of similar cells
performing a specific function.
● Paheli realised that an organ is made up of
tissues which in turn, are made up of cells.
● The cell in a living organism is the
basic structural unit.
 Parts of the Cell

The basic components of a cell are

CELL MEMBRANE

CYTOPLASM

NUCLEUS
 CELL MEMBRANE

The cytoplasm and

nucleus are
enclosed within the
cell membrane, also
called the plasma
membrane.
● FUNCTION
The membrane
separates cells from
one another and also
the cell from the
surrounding medium.
( PROTECTION).
● Give shape to the
cell.
● FUNCTION
The plasma
membrane is
porous and allows
the movement of
substances or
materials both
inward and
outward. ( GATE )
 Activity 8.3
● In order to observe the basic components
of the cell, take an onion bulb.
● Remove the dry pink coverings (peels).
● You can easily separate these from the
fleshy white layers of the bulb with the help
of forceps or even with your hand.
● You can also break the onion bulb and
separate out thin layers.
● Place a small piece of the thin onion peel in
a drop of water on a glass slide.
● The thin layer can be cut into smaller
pieces with the help of a blade or forceps.
● Add a drop of methylene blue
solution to the layer and place a
coverslip on it.
● While placing the coverslip ensure
that there are no air bubbles under
the coverslip.
● Observe the slide under the
microscope.
● The boundary of
the onion cell is the
cell membrane
covered by another
thick covering
called the cell wall.
● EX- PLANT CELL
BACTERIAL CELL
 The central dense
round body in the
centre is called the
nucleus.

The jelly-like substance

between the nucleus and
the cell membrane is
called cytoplasm.
Why it is not seen in animal
cells?
● In addition to the cell membrane,
there is an outer thick layer in cells
of plants called cell wall.
● This additional layer surrounding
the cell membrane is required by
plants for protection.
● Plant cells need protection against
variations in temperature, high wind
speed, atmospheric moisture etc.
● They are exposed to these variations
because they cannot move.
● Cells can be observed in the leaf peel
of Tradescantia, Elodea or Rhoeo. You
can prepare a slide as in the case of
onion.
 Activity 8.4
● Take a clean tooth pick, or a matchstick with
the tip broken.
● Scrape inside of your cheek without hurting it.
● Place it in a drop of water on a glass slide.
● Add a drop of iodine and place a coverslip over
it.
● Alternatively, add 1-2 drops of methylene blue
solution.
You can identify the cell membrane, the
cytoplasm and nucleus. A cell wall is
absent in animal cells
CYTOPLASM
● It is the jelly-like substance present
between the cell membrane and the
nucleus.
● Various other components, or organelles, of
cells are present in the cytoplasm.
● These are mitochondria, golgi bodies,
ribosomes, etc.
● You will learn about them in later classes
 CELL WALL

PLASMA MEMBRANE

CYTOPLASM

NUCLEUS
GOLGI BODIES
MITOCHONDRIA
RIBOSOMES
 Nucleus
● It is an important component of the living cell.
● It is generally spherical and located in the centre of
the cell.
● It can be stained and seen easily with the help of a
microscope.
● Nucleus is separated
from the cytoplasm by
a membrane called the
nuclear membrane.
● This membrane is also
porous and allows the
movement of materials
between the cytoplasm
and the inside of the
nucleus.
● With a microscope
of higher
magnification, we
can see a smaller
spherical body in
the nucleus. It is
called the
nucleolus.
● In addition, nucleus
contains thread-like
structures called
chromosomes.
● These carry genes and
help in inheritance or
transfer of characters from
the parents to the
offspring.
. The chromosomes can be seen only when the cell divides.
 GENE
● Gene is a unit of inheritance in living organisms.
● It controls the transfer of a hereditary characteristic
from parents to offspring.
● This means that your parents pass some of their
characteristics on to you.
● If your father has brown eyes, you may also have brown
eyes.
● If your mother has curly hair, you might also end up
having curly hair.
● However, the different combination of genes from
parents result in different characteristics.
 FUNCTIONS OF NUCLEUS

● Inheritance
● Acts as control centre of the activities of the cell
● Living unit
● Maintain the cell function and structure.
● The entire content of a living cell is known as
protoplasm.
● It includes the cytoplasm and the nucleus.
● Protoplasm is called the living
substance of the cell.

NUCLEUS + CYTOPLASM=
PROTOPLASM
 NUCLEUS

PROKARYOTIC EUKARYOTIC
CELL CELL
(pro : primitive; (eu : true;
karyon : nucleus) karyon: nucleus)
PROKARYOTIC
CELL
(pro : primitive; karyon : nucleus)
● The nucleus of the bacterial cell is not well-
organised like the cells of multicellular
organisms.
● There is no nuclear membrane.
● The cells having nuclear material without
nuclear membrane are termed prokaryotic
cells.
● Examples are bacteria and blue green algae.
EUKARYOTIC
CELL
(eu : true; karyon: nucleus)
● The cells, like onion cells and cheek cells
having well-organised nucleus with a nuclear
membrane are designated as eukaryotic cells.
● All organisms other than bacteria and blue
green algae are called eukaryotes.
● While observing the
cells under the
microscope, did you
notice any blank-
looking structures in
the cytoplasm?
● It is called vacuole.
● It could be single and big as in an onion cell.
● Cheek cells have smaller vacuoles.
● Large vacuoles are common in plant cells.
● Vacuoles in animal cells are much smaller.
● You might have noticed several small coloured bodies
in the cytoplasm of the cells of Tradescantia leaf.
● They are scattered in the cytoplasm of the leaf cells.
These are called plastids.
● Some of them contain green pigment called
chlorophyll.
● Green coloured plastids are called chloroplasts.
● They provide green colour to the leaves.
● You may recall that chlorophyll in the chloroplasts of
leaves, is essential for photosynthesis.
Comparison of Plant and Animal Cells
 PERIPHERY CENTER
PRESENT PRESENT
LESS, DENSE MORE, SPARSE
CHLOROPLAST PRESENT ABSENT
SINGLE,LARGE MULTIPLE,SMALL