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From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com Image: Compound microscope objectives, T. Port
 Introduction
to

Cell Biology

For additional resources on this lecture topic, see

the Prokaryotic Cell Main Page on SPO. Images: Prokaryotic Cell Diagram, Eukaryotic Cell Diagram, Plant cell, M. Ruiz
 Q: Why are you in this class?
“Because it is a requirement to get into
my program of study.”

Why else?

Because everything alive is made of cells.

(including the patients you will care for and many of
the microbes that cause disease)

From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com

 Everyday Cell Biology
Who was Henrietta Lacks and why were her cells
so important to medical science?

Let’s explore the amazing story of Henrietta Lacks

and her immortal cells.

Q: What does the Henrietta Lacks story have to do

with cell biology?

Watch
a video
of HeLa
cells
dividing
in vitro.

Images: Book, “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by

Rebecca Skloot; Apoptotic HeLa cell, Wiki; Fluorescence
image of cultured HeLa cells, Wiki From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com
 The Cellular Level of Organization
• Living things are constructed of cells.

• Living things may be unicellular or multicellular.

• Cell structure is diverse but all cells share common characteristics.

• Cells are small so they can exchange materials with their surroundings.

- Surface area relative to the volume decreases as size of cell increases.

- This limits the size of cells.

• Cell Theory states:

1. All organisms are composed of one or more cells.

2. Cells are the basic unit of structure and function in organisms.

3. All cells come only from other cells.

From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com
 Size of Living Things

1 m = 100 cm = 1,000mm = 1,000,000 µm = 1,000,000,000nm

1mm = 1000 µm = 1000000nm
1 µm = 1000nm
Click link for an interactive
“Size of Microscopic Things”
animation on Cells Alive.
From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com
 Anton van ___________: “Animalcules”
(Pronounced Lay-when-hook)

1632 - 1723
 As a tailor, used lenses to examine cloth. It
was probably this that led to his interest in lens
making.

 He assembled hundreds of microscopes, some

of which magnified objects 270 times.

 As he looked at things with his microscopes, he

discovered “micro” organisms - organisms so
tiny that they were invisible to the naked eye.

 He called these tiny living organisms

“animalcules”. He first described bacteria and
the protozoans.

Images: Leeuwenhoek portrait 1680, Jan Verkolje (I);. Replica of

Leeuwenhoek microscope, Jacopo Werther; Man with scope,
source unknown From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com
 Anton van Leeuwenhoek: “Animalcules”
(Pronounced Lay-when-hook)

Watch Video:
Below is a poem about Van Leeuwenhoek by Maxine Kumin, from the “Pond Life Under the
fantastic book of science-related poetry The Tree That Time Built. Microscope”
The Microscope
Anton Leeuwenhoek was Dutch. He sold pincushions, cloth, and such.
The waiting townsfolk fumed and fussed, as Anton’s dry goods gathered
dust.

He worked, instead of tending store,

At grinding special lenses for
A microscope. Some of the things
He looked at were: mosquitoes’ wings,
the hairs of sheep, the legs of lice,
the skin of people, dogs, and mice;
ox eyes, spiders’ spinning gear,
fishes’ scales, a little smear
of his own blood, and best of all,
the unknown, busy, very small
bugs that swim and bump and hop
inside a simple water drop.

Impossible! Most Dutchmen said.

This Anton’s crazy in the head!
We ought to ship him off to Spain!
He says he’s seen a housefly’s brain!
He says the water that we drink
Is full of bugs! He’s mad, we think!

They called him dumkopf, which means dope.

That’s how we got the microscope.

From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com
 Only TWO Basic Types of Cells

_____________________ _____________________

Cells:
- are the building blocks of life!
- All living things are made of one or more cells.
- only come from other cells.
- are , really small. How small are they?

From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com Images: Prokaryotic Cell Diagram & Eukaryotic Cell Diagram, M. Ruiz
 Prokaryotes…The “studio apartment” of cells.

From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com Image: Prokaryotic cell diagram, M. Ruiz,
 Prokaryotes can be our
friends… Gut
• Human body has ~ 100 trillion microbes in Flora
intestines (10x more than the total number of
human cells in the body).

• Bacteria that live on and in us without

usually causing harm are called
normal flora.
• Bacteria = ~ 60% of the dry mass of poo.

• Relationship between gut flora and humans

mutualistic … win/win.
• Gut microbes perform many useful
functions:
– preventing growth of harmful, pathogenic
bacteria
– producing vitamins for host (such as biotin
and vitamin K)
– producing hormones to direct host to store
fats
– keeping our immune system on its toes

Images: E. coli, Rocky Mountain Laboratories,

From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com NIAID, NIH; Human Gastrointestinal Tract, Wiki
 Prokaryotes can be our
foes… Clostridium

 Members of this genus have a couple of bacterial

weapons that make them particularly tough
pathogens.

 Vegetative cells are obligate anaerobes killed by

exposure to O2, but their endospores are able to
survive long periods of exposure to air.

 Known to produce a variety of toxins, some of

which are fatal.

- Clostridium tetani = agent of tetanus

- C. botulinum = agent of botulism

- C. perfringens = one of the agents of gas gangrene

- C. difficile = part of natural intestinal flora, but

resistant strains can proliferate and cause
pseudomembranous colitis.

Images: Man with Tetanus, Sir Charles Bell; Clostridium

botulinum, PHIL #2107; Wet Gangrene, Wiki From the Virtual Microbiology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com
 Prokaryotes Bacterial “cousins”…
one friend, one foe…
Staphylococcus
GRAM-POSITIVE
Facultative anaerobe
coccus-shaped Staphylococcus aureus,
Golden staph
(One of the reasons
Coccus-shaped bacteria, which divides in a way that snot gets yellow when
results in grape-like clusters. you are sick.)

- Staphylococcus aureus (golden staph), most common cause of

staph infections.

- Approximately 20–30% of general population “Staph carriers."

- S. aureus can cause illnesses ranging from minor skin infections to

life-threatening diseases, such as meningitis, toxic shock syndrome Gram
(TSS) & septicemia. Stain
Our buddy
- MRSA = Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus Stapylococcus
epidermidis.
- One of the four most common causes of nosocomial infections,
often causing postsurgical wound infections.

- S. epidermidis is normal flora which inhabits the skin of healthy

humans.

Image: Mannitol salt plates, T. Port; S. aureus, Janice

From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com Haney Carr , PHIL #10046; Gram stain Staph, T. Port
 Prokaryotes
Bacteria
are
EVERYWHERE!

Images: Various types of bacterial growth media

inoculated with different types of samples, T. Port From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com
 Eukaryotes…The “mansion” of cells.

Images: Animal cell & Plant cell, M. Ruiz From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com
 Eukaryotes…
are also everywhere.
(but you can see SOME of them)

Lulu’s poo was examined for

parasites, and they found the
single-celled eukaryotic
microbe, Giardia.

Her favorite treat

is a bully stick,
made from bull
penises.

Her sock monkey

is cotton, a plant
product..
She likes to eat acorns,
when playing outside. Lulu, the puppy, is a multicellular
eukaryotic organism.
Images: Giardia, Public Health Image Library, (PHIL) #11649;
#11632 & #3394; Dog poo & Lulu with sock monkey, T. Port;
Oak leaves and acorns, Wiki, Pizzle sticks, Wiki. From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com
 Confused?
Here are some links to fun resources that further
explain Cell Biology:

• Cell Structure: Prokaryotes Main Page on the Virtual Micrboiology

Classroom of Science Prof Online.
• Cell Structure: Eukaryotes Main Page on the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom
of Science Prof Online.

• “How big is a…” interactive diagram from Cells Alive website.

• “Cells” music video by They Might Be Giants.
• Prokaryotic & Eukaryotic: Two Types of Biological Cells, an article
from SPO.

• Prokaryotic Cell: Structures, Functions & Diagrams, an article

from SPO.
• Eukaryotic Cell: Structures, Functions & Diagrams article from SPO.
• Cell Structure tutorials and quizzes from Interactive Concepts in Biochemistry.
• Cells Alive interactive website.
• Eukaryotic Cell Tour an Animated Science Tutorial.
• “The Cell Song” lyrics by The Cell Squad, Freedom Middle School, Nashville, TN..
• Biology4Kids – Cell Biology Main Page by Raders.

(You must be in PPT slideshow view to click on links.)

From the Virtual Cell Biology Classroom on ScienceProfOnline.com

 Are you feeling blinded by science?

Do yourself a favor. Use the…

Virtual Cell Biology

Classroom (VCBC) !

The VCBC is full of resources to help you succeed, including:

• practice test questions

• review questions
• study guides and learning objectives
• PowerPoints on other topics

You can access the VCBC by going to the Science Prof Online website
www.ScienceProfOnline.com
Images: Blinded With Science album, Thomas Dolby; Endomembrane system, Mariana Ruiz, Wiki