LESSON 2 CELL TYPES AND CELL MODIFICATION

Introduction

In the previous module, we have mentioned that cell is the smallest unit of a living
thing and the basic building blocks of all organisms. Now, take a moment and look at
yourself. How many organisms do you see? Your first thought might be that there's just
one: yourself. However, if you were to look closer, at the surface of your skin or inside your
digestive tract, you would see that there are actually many organisms living there. That’s
right - you are home to around 100 trillion bacterial cells! This means that your body is
actually an ecosystem. It also means that you—for some definitions of the word you—
actually consist of both of the major types of cells: prokaryotic and eukaryotic. For
example, we classify both animal and plant cells as eukaryotic cells; whereas, we classify
bacterial cells as prokaryotic.

a. Microcaus, a prokaryote in b. Candida albicans (a c. Frog red blood cell, a

the surface of the skin. eukaryote) is a yeast cell and eukaryote
the agent of candidiasis and
britannicaencyclopedia.com thrush. microscopyu.com/
https://bio.libretexts.org/

In addition, cell structures follow the rule of “form fits functions”. Just like how your
hands are made for holding, gripping, catching etc., cells were structurally specialized
and modified so that they can perform their function efficiently and effectiv ely.

In this lesson, we will be interested in differentiating prokaryotic from eukaryotic

cells and identify some common cell modifications in an organism.

Learning Outcomes

When you have completed this lesson, you should be able to:

a. compare the characteristic of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells;

b. identify different types of cells;
c. explain the functions of different cell types; and
d. describe some cell modifications that lead to adaptation to carry out
specialized functions.

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 LET’S TRY!
This time, before you proceed and explore the following topics, answer the following
questions below so you can assess yourself about what you know about the topic. After
completing the questions, you may check your answer against those provided in the Answer
key found at the end of the lesson. If your answer to this pre-assessment is one hundred percent
correct, you may skip and proceed to the next module.

I. For each question or incomplete statements below, there are four suggested answers
or completions. Choose the letter that answers the question or completes the
statement.

___ 1. Which of the following is TRUE about eukaryotes?

a. They are unicellular.

b. They are multicellular.
c. They’re both multicellular and unicellular.
d. They are generally smaller than prokaryotes.

___ 2. Bacteria is a form of ___________________ cell.

a. Prokaryotic c. Specialized cell

b. Eukaryotic d. Modified cell

___ 3. Which of the following statement is NOT TRUE?

a. Prokaryotes contains ribosomes.
b. Eukaryotes contains cytoplasm.
c. Prokaryotes contains DNA in the nucleus.
d. Eukaryotes contains DNA in the nucleus.

___ 4. Prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells have many differences, but they also share some
common features. Which of the following may be found in either type of cell?
a. golgi bodies c. nucleus
b. mitochondria d. ribosomes

___5. Which of the following structure DID NOT undergo specialization to carry out a specific
function?
a. Guard Cell c. Red blood cell
b. Mitochondria d. Roothair cell

____6. Which of the following refers to the process that occurs after cell division where
the newly formed cells are structurally modified so that they can perform their
function efficiently and effectively?
a. Cell growth
b. Cell Transcription
c. Cell Differentiation
d. Cell Transfer

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___7. A scientist studying aquatic life discovers a new organism. He studies it under the
microscope and draws a diagram of what he sees. Which of the following best
describes the newly found organism?

a. The organism is eukaryotic, because it has cilia.

b. The organism is eukaryotic, because it has a nucleus.
c. The organism is prokaryotic, because it has cytoplasm.
d. The organism is prokaryotic, because it has a cell membrane.

___8. Which of the following is TRUE?

a. Blood is an example of a connective tissue cell.
b. Epithelial cells are specialized for communication inside a living system.
c. A nerve cell is generally made of squamous, cuboidal and stratified
components.
d. Muscle cells provide structural strength to the body and also defend against
foreign invaders.

____9. Which best distinguishes prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells?

a. Prokaryotes possess a nucleus whereas eukaryotes do not, but eukaryotes show

greater compartmentalization that allows for greater regulation of gene
expression.
b. Eukaryotic cells contain a nucleus whereas prokaryotes do not, and eukaryotes
show greater compartmentalization that allows for greater regulation of gene
expression.
c. Prokaryotic cells are less complex and perform highly-regulated gene
expression whereas eukaryotes perform less-regulated gene expression.
d. Eukaryotic cells are more complex and perform less-regulated gene expression
whereas prokaryotic cells perform highly-regulated gene expression.

____10. Which of the following cells were modified by losing its nucleus to contain and
transport greater amount of oxygen to an organism’s system?
a. Red blood cells
b. Muscle cells
c. Root hair cells
d. Phloem and xylem

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 LET’S DISCOVER!
Today we are going to learn about the two major types of
cells: eukaryotes and prokaryotes. Eukaryotes are the cells that make up our body, and
they have many parts called organelles. Prokaryotes are cells that are found in bacteria,
and they do not have organelles. Even though the two types of cells are very different,
they are both able to eat, breathe, grow and reproduce.

To begin, inspect the illustration of eukaryotic and prokaryotic below. Compare

their structure, parts and where are located.

Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/what-are-prokaryotes-and-eukaryotes-129478

After inspecting the illustration above, identify the differences and similarities of
prokaryotic cell and eukaryotic cell by creating a Venn diagram. Then, answer the
questions that follows.

Prokaryotes vs Eukaryote Venn Diagram

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 LET’S CHECK YOUR PROGRESS!

Answer the following questions in no more than 3 sentences.

Q1. How will you compare the nucleoid of both cells?

Q2. Which type of cell contains organelles?

Q3. Based on the illustration, which type do you think is more complex? Why?

I. A CLOSER LOOK TO THE TYPE OF CELLS

There are some key ingredients that a cell needs in order to be a cell, regardless
of whether it is prokaryotic or eukaryotic. All cells share four key components:

Plasma Membrane - outer covering of the cell

Cytoplasm - region outside the nucleus but inside the plasma membrane.

DNA- is the genetic material of the cell

Ribosome - molecular machines that synthesize proteins.

Despite these similarities, prokaryotes and eukaryotes differ in a number of important

ways.

A. Prokaryotic Cells

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 A prokaryote is a simple, single-celled organism that lacks a nucleus and
membrane-bound organelles. The main thing to keep in mind for now is that prokaryotic
cells are not divided up on the inside by membrane walls, but consist instead of a single
open space.

The majority of prokaryotic DNA text is found in a central region of the cell called
the nucleoid, and it typically consists of a single large loop called a circular chromosome.
The nucleoid and some other frequently seen features of prokaryotes are shown in the
diagram below of a cut-away of a rod-shaped bacterium.

Bacteria are very diverse in form, so

not every type of bacterium will have
all of the features shown in the
diagram.

Most prokaryotes have a

peptidoglycan cell wall and many
have a polysaccharide capsule. The
cell wall acts as an extra layer of
protection, helps the cell maintain its
shape, and prevents dehydration.
The capsule enables the cell to
attach to surfaces in its environment.
Some prokaryotes have flagella, pili, or fimbriae. Flagella are used for locomotion. Pili
exchange genetic material during conjugation, the process by which one bacterium
transfers genetic material to another through direct contact. Bacteria use fimbriae to
attach to a host cell.

A. Eukaryotic Cells

Did you remember the phrase “form follows function”? Our natural world also
utilizes the principle of form following function, especially in cell biology, and this will
become clear as we explore eukaryotic cells. Unlike prokaryotic cells, eukaryotic
cells have:

1) a membrane-bound nucleus;
2) numerous membrane-bound organelles such as the endoplasmic reticulum,
Golgi apparatus, chloroplasts, mitochondria, and others; and
3) several, rod-shaped chromosomes.

Because a membrane surrounds eukaryotic cell’s nucleus, it has a “true nucleus.”

At this point, it should be clear to you that eukaryotic cells have a more complex
structure than prokaryotic cells. Organelles allow different functions to be
compartmentalized in different areas of the cell. All animals are eukaryotes. Other
eukaryotes include plants, fungi, and protists.

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 List of Several Examples of Eukaryotes

The Protists
- one-celled eukaryotes.
- include amoebas, parameciums and kelp. All
algae, except blue-green algae (now known
as cyanobacteria) are eukaryotes.

- can have one cell or many cells

The Fungi - microscopic examples include yeasts such as
those that make beer, wine and cheese, as
well as the organisms that cause athlete's foot
and ringworm.
- Macroscopic examples include mushrooms
and truffles.

The Plants - all of the roughly 250,000 species of plants --

from simple mosses to complex flowering plants

The Animals - metazoans or members of the Kingdom

Animalia.

LET’S CHECK YOUR PROGRESS!

Q4. Which best distinguishes prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells?

Q5. Antibiotics are medicines that are used to fight bacterial infections. These
medicines kill the prokaryotic cells without harming human cells. What part or parts of
the bacterial cell do you think antibiotics target? Why do you think so?

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II. FOUR MAIN TYPES OF CELLS

Even though there are several hundred cell types in the body, all of them can be
grouped into just four main categories, or tissues. This makes them easier to
understand. Below is the summary of groups of cells. Each will be thoroughly discussed
in the succeeding lessons.

Type of Cell Description

- are tightly attached to Generally classified

one another. They cover based on shape:
over the interior of hollow
Epithelial Cells organs, like blood vessels a. flat (squamous)
or digestive organs, or else b. cube-shaped
form the surface of things, (cuboidal)
like the skin. c. tall (columnar)

- are specialized for

communication. They All nerve cells have three
send signals from the brain parts:
to muscles and glands that a. soma
control their functions. b. dendrites
Nerve Cells
They also receive sensory c. axon
information from the skin,
the eyes, and the ears,
and send this information
to the brain.
- are specialized for
contraction. They pull and Three types:
tug on bones and tendons a. smooth
to produce motion. They b. skeletal
also form the thick outer c. cardiac
Muscle Cells walls of hollow organs, like
blood vessels and
digestive organs, and can
contract to regulate the
diameter of these hollow
organs.
Types:
- provide structural a. fibroblast
strength to the body and b. fat cells
Connective Tissue Cells also defend against c. cartilage cells
foreign invaders like d. bone cells
bacteria. e. blood

Each type of cell in an organism is especially equipped for its role. Cells of
the digestive system, for instance, are vastly different in structure and function from
cells of the skeletal system. Cells of the body depend on each other to keep the body
functioning as a unit.

III. CELL SPECIALIZATION/DIFFERENTIATION

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 How do you think a cell become specialized? Can you still recall the second
postulate of the cell theory? If you recall that “Organisms is composed of one or more
cells”, then you are correct. This does not necessarily mean that that the body of multi-
cellular organisms are made up of many but identical cells. Instead, organisms are
composed of a wide variety of cells, with each cell being specialized to perform a specific
function. Of course, in order to be specialized, they need to undergo certain processes.
For instance, red blood cells loses their nucleus to contain more oxygen-carrying
hemoglobin and transport greater amount of oxygen in the blood and boost the
metabolism.

The lack of nucleus in the red blood cells is an

adaptation to accommodate more
hemoglobin, thus resulting to more transported
oxygen.
Photo Credit: https://www.bioexplorer.net/cell-specialization.html/

Although there are already known genes involved in the process of cell specialization,
the exact process of how cells specialize remained unknown just until April 2010. The cell
life cycle is composed of the interphase (growth stage) and
either mitosis or meiosis (division stage). We will discuss more about cell growth in the
succeeding lessons. Some cells continue to undergo cell cycle all throughout their lifespan
while some terminate in a definite time period. Basically, it is during interphase that cells
specialize and it is also during this phase that genes can be selectively activated or
deactivated. Differentiation occurs many times during the cell cycle as it starts from the
cell being a zygote up to more complex ones like tissues. It continues up to adulthood
when the cells (adult stem cells) divide to replace cells and worn-out tissues.

All in all, differentiation alters the size of the cell, form and structure, physiological
response, and even metabolic activities.

Examples Of Some Cell Specialization And Their Adaptation

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 You will learn below that in order to function efficiently, living organisms differ in
the type of cells they are made of. The following are just some of the most common
specialized cells in plant and animal cells.

1. Xylem And Phloem

Plants have specialized cells that function mainly for

transport. They have the xylem (tissue) that function to
transport water (from the roots to the leaves) whereas the
phloem for the transport of nutrients and organic
substances (from the leaves to the plant body).

In order to carry these functions out, the xylem vessels are

consisted of both living plant cells with very thick cell
wall and dead cells. The absence of protoplasm and
cross-wall in the xylem vessel provides no obstacle for water to flow up the xylem
vessel. On the other hand, the phloem is made up of living cells that are arranged
in columns.

2. Root Hair Cells

As their name suggests, root hair cells are cells

located in the minute projections in the roots of plants.
Basically, these structures function to increase
absorption of water and nutrients from the soil.

In general, these cells are characterized by having a

large surface area which then increases surface area
for absorption. In addition to that, these cells also
contain a lot of mitochondria that sustain the
high energy requirement for active transport.

3. Muscle Cells

Another specialized cells in animals are the muscle cells

which generally have spindle-shaped cell body containing
numerous mitochondria.

• Such specialization enables the muscle cells to perform

their function during the contraction and relaxation of
muscles in order to produce movements.
• Another thing is that by having a lot of mitochondria,
muscle cells generate a lot of ATP (energy) which then sustains the high
energy requirement for locomotion.

Photo Credits: 1,2 and 3 Retrieved from https://www.bioexplorer.net/cell-specialization.html/

LET’S CHECK YOUR PROGRESS!

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 I. Briefly answer the following questions.

Q6. Aside from containing greater amount of hemoglobin, what do you think is/are the
other reasons on why red blood cells differentiate by losing their nucleus?

Q7. Can you imagine a life where evolution never permitted cell specialization?
What do you think could have happened?

II. Below is an incomplete table. Your task is to write “YES” OR “NO” if the cell
component is present in each type of cell.

PROKARYOTIC CELL EUKARYOTIC CELL

Cell Component
Present in rod-shape Present in Animal
Present in Plant Cells?
bacterium cell? Cells?

1. Plasma membrane

2. Cytoplasm

3. Nucleolus

4. Nucleus

5. Ribosomes

6. Mitochondria

7. Peroxisomes

8. Vesicles and
vacuoles

9. Centrosome

10. Lysosomes

11. Cell wall

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 PROKARYOTIC CELL EUKARYOTIC CELL

Cell Component
Present in rod-shape Present in Animal
Present in Plant Cells?
bacterium cell? Cells?

12. Chloroplasts

13. Endoplasmic
reticulum

14. Golgi apparatus

15. Flagella

16. Cilia

III. TRUE OR FALSE: Write TRUE if the statement is correct and FALSE if otherwise.
________17. Cell differentiation alters the size of the cell and its psychological
response only.
________18. Nerve Cell provide structural strength to the body and also defend
against foreign.
________19. Guard cells are characterized by having a large surface area which then
increases surface area for absorption.
________20. Fungi, protist and bacteria are prokaryotes.

LET’S WRAP UP!

You have now completed the essential contents of this module. Let us now
summarize what we have learned so far.

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A. PROKARYOTIC CELLS

Prokaryotes are single-celled organisms of the domains Bacteria and Archaea. All
prokaryotes have plasma membranes, cytoplasm, ribosomes, and DNA that is not
membrane-bound. Most have peptidoglycan cell walls and many have
polysaccharide capsules. Prokaryotic cells range in diameter from 0.1 to 5.0 μm.

B. EUKARYOTIC CELLS

Like a prokaryotic cell, a eukaryotic cell has a plasma membrane, cytoplasm, and
ribosomes, but a eukaryotic cell is typically larger than a prokaryotic cell, has a true
nucleus (meaning a membrane surrounds its DNA), and has other membrane-
bound organelles that allow for compartmentalizing functions.

Animal cells also have a centrosome and lysosomes. The centrosome has two
bodies perpendicular to each other, the centrioles, and has an unknown purpose
in cell division. Lysosomes are the digestive organelles of animal cells.

Plant cells and plant-like cells each have a cell wall, chloroplasts, and a central
vacuole. The plant cell wall, whose primary component is cellulose, protects the
cell, provides structural support, and gives the cell shape. Photosynthesis takes
place in chloroplasts. The central vacuole can expand without having to produce
more cytoplasm.

C. FOUR MAIN TYPES OF CELL

a. Epithelial Cells – are attached to one another to cover interior of hollow organs
or surface of things
b. Nerve cells – are specialized for communications
c. Muscle cells – specialized for contraction
d. Connective Tissue cells - provide structural strength to the body
D. CELL DIFFERENTIATION

The process wherein “general” or “common” cells evolve to form specific cells
that have specific functions.

KEY TO “LET’S TRY!”

1. c
2. a
3. c
4. d
5. b
6. c

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 7. b
8. a
9. b
10. a

REFERENCES

J. Young, (2018): Basic Types of cells Retrieved from

https://untamedscience.com/biology/cells/basic-types-of-cells/

M.A Clark, M. Douglas and J Cho ( 2018), Biology 2e: OpenStax Retrieved from
https://openstax.org/books/biology-2e/pages/4-introduction

Cell Specialization Retrieved from https://www.bioexplorer.net/cell-specialization.html/

Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic cells Retrieved from https://www.proprofs.com/quiz-

school/quizshow.php?title=mtuznzqznatfmb&q=10

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