Ce ll Biolog y

A cell is chemica l system tha t is a ble to ma inta in its

structure a nd reproduce
Cells a re the funda menta l unit of life
All living things a re cells or composed of cells
There are two fundamentally different forms of cells.

1. Proka ryotic cells

rela tively simple cells -
lack nuclear membra ne
a nd many orga nelles -
ba cteria a nd their
rela tives a re all
prokaryotic

2. Euka ryotic cells - more

complex cells - have a
nucleus a nd many
orga nelles
all cells of pla nts,
animals, fungi, a nd protists
 CON..
Why a re cells sma ll?
 As cell size
increa ses the
volume
increa ses much
fa ster tha n the
surfa ce a rea .
Cells obta in
nutrients, ga in
informa tion a nd
rid wa ste
through their
pla sma
membra ne.
As cell size increa ses, a cell’s a bility to excha nge with its environment
becomes limited by the a mount of membra ne a rea tha t is a va ila ble
for excha nge
Cells and organelles
Most cells are small
Organelles, Macromolecules, & Atoms

Prokaryotic: 1-10 m
Eukaryotic: 10 - 100 m (1m = 0.001mm)
 Cell Theory
 Cells are the fundamental unit of life - nothing less than a
cell is alive.
 All cells arise from preexisting cells
 Cells contain the information necessary for their own
reproduction
 No new cells are originating spontaneously on earth
today
 Cells are the functional units of life
 All biochemical processes are carried out by cells
 Groups of cells can be organized and function as
multicellular organisms
 Cells of multicellular organisms can become specialized in
form and function to carry out sub processes of the
multicellular organism.
Prokaryotic cell structure
•Small, with a plasma membrane surrounded by a rigid cell wall
 Cell wall may be covered with a capsule made of polysaccharides

 Few or no
membra ne
enclosed spa ces
within the
cytopla sm
No nucleus - DNA
is in a region ca lled
the nucleoid
• DNA is circula r a nd
na ked (ha s no
protein a ssocia ted
with it)
 Con..
 Ba cteria often ha ve fla g e lla with a single protein core
(fla gellin) tha t they ca n use to move in a rota ry corkscrew
like fa shion
 The rota ry
motor of
proka ryotic
fla gella is
powered by
proton flow
through the cell
membra ne.
Rota ting
structures a re
ra re in na ture.
 Con..

 Membra ne enclosed spa ces a llow cell functions to be

compa rtmenta lized a nd isola ted from other functions
 Proka ryotes la ck membra ne enclosed spa ces in their
cytopla sm

 Some proka ryotes a re

photosynthetic
 The biochemica l
ma chinery for tra pping
light energy is conta ined
within a highly folded
pla sma membra ne
 Eukaryotic cell structure
 Larger, with a typical plasma membrane with many organelles
 Nucleus, Endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus,
Mitochondria, Chloroplasts, Lysosomes,Vacuoles, Vesicles
Cytoplasm with a cytoskeleton - protein tubules and fibers
 cell wall found in plants (cellulose), fungi (chitin), some
protists
 Cellula r Orga nelles
• Nucle us - the la rgest a nd most obvious membra ne
bound compa rtment - controls cell a ctivities
 conta ins the nucleolus - a da rkened region where ribosoma l
RNA is synthesized
 conta ins chromosome s - consist of DNA wra pped a round
proteins
Con..
 Nucleus is surrounded by the nucle a r e nve lope - a
double membra ne
 Nuclea r membra ne ha s nucle a r pore s tha t control entry a nd
exit of ma teria ls
 Chromosome
Consists of both DNA a nd protein - seen a s chromosomes
when highly condensed in prepa ra tion for cell division

 The most common proteins

a re histone s
 DNA is coiled a round
histones in a regula r pa ttern
tha t produces structures
ca lled nucle osome s.
 Endopla smic reticulum (ER) –
 a web-like series of membra nes within the cytopla sm in the
form of fla ttened sheets, sa cs, tubes, crea tes ma ny membra ne
enclosed spa ces - sprea ds throughout the cytopla sm
 ha s connections with the outer membra ne of the nucleus a nd
the pla sma membra ne
Functions:
-circula tion
a nd tra nsport
-stora ge of proteins
a nd minera ls
-synthesis of lipids,
ca rbohydra tes,
a nd proteins
-A la rge surfa ce
a rea for enzyme
a ction
Con..
 Two types of ER - rough a nd smooth
 Roug h ER - studded with
ribosomes site of synthesis of
ma ny proteins a ll ribosomes on
rER a re a ctively involved in
protein synthesis -
 Smooth ER - site for
synthesis of steroids a nd
other lipids
 Ca ++ stora ge in muscles
detoxifica tion of drugs, toxins,
a lcohol (especia lly in liver)
 The highly convoluted surfa ce
provides a la rge surfa ce a rea
for enzyma tic a ctivities
Ribosome s
 protein synthetic
ma chinery
two subunits - la rge
a nd sma ll - ea ch ma de
of protein a nd
ribosoma l RNA (rRNA)
subunits a ssocia te when
they a re synthesizing
proteins
protein synthesis occurs
on ribosomes tha t a re
free-floa ting in the
cytopla sm a nd on
ribosomes a tta ched to
ER
rRNA is synthesized in
 Golg i a ppa ra tus
 a collection of membra nes a ssocia ted with
the ER composed of fla tten sa cs ca lled
secretory vesicles
 concentra tes a nd pa cka ges proteins synthesized on the ER

 The Golgi is functiona lly a ssocia ted with the ER.

Con..
Proteins synthesized
on the ER a re
concentra ted interna lly
a nd tra nsport vesicles
a re budded off
Tra nsport vesicles
fuse with the Golgi,
dump their contents into
the Golgi
 Golgi pa cka ges
proteins in vesicles so
tha t they ma y be Secretory vesicles - used for
excreted from the cell, excretion - lea ve the Golgi a nd
or used within the cell move to pla sma membra ne where
they fuse a nd dump their contents
outside
 Con..

 The Golgi Appa ra tus a lso forms lysosomes

 Lysosomes - vesicles filled with digestive enzymes - used for
intra cellula r digestion

 Pa rticles ca n be
ta ken into cell
by pha gocytosis
a nd vesicle fused
with lysosome
 The components
of orga nelles
ca n be recycled
a fter digestion
by lysosomes
Microbodies: Peroxisomes a nd Glyoxisomes
 vesicles tha t form through growth a nd division within
the cytopla sm
Glyoxisomes
 a re found in pla nts - conta in enzymes tha t convert fa ts into
ca rbohydra tes

 Peroxisomes - used
for removing rea ctive
compounds from the
cytopla sm - crea te
H2O2 a s a byproduct
a nd degra de it with
the enzyme ca ta la se
 Mitochondria
 cellula r powerhouses - the site of much of the energy
ha rvest by cells
 ha ve double membra ne structure
 inner membra ne folded into inwa rd projections ca lled
crista e
 two spa ces within the mitochondrion –
the ma trix a nd the inte rme mbra ne spa ce
Con..

 The site of oxygen consumption within cells

 Have their own DNA that is similar to prokaryotic DNA
 Have their own ribosomes that are similar in
construction to prokaryotic ribosomes
 Synthesize many, but not all, of their own proteins
 Mitochondria replicate by binary fission - similar to
prokaryotic cell division
 Centrioles
a re pa rt of specia lized region of the cell ca lled the
ce ntrosome (cell center)

 found in a nima ls a nd most protists

 the centrioles a re involved in
the production of microtubule s
 microtubules ha ve ma ny
functions including moving
chromosomes during cell division
 centriole structure - 9 triplets
of microtubules surrounding a
hollow core
 Cytoskeleton
 sca ffolding of proteins tha t tra nsport ma teria ls, position a nd
move orga nelles, ma inta in a nd cha nge cell sha pe, a nd
orga nize enzymes into functiona l a ssocia tions
 3 components - a ctin fila ments, microtubules, a nd
Intermedia te fila ments

a ll a re polymers of
sma ller protein subunits -
lengthen through a ddition
of polymer subunits,
Con..
a ctin fila me nts - involved in cell movements a nd in
membra ne deforma tions - sma llest components of the
cytoskeleton
microtubule s - hollow tubes ma de of proteins ca lled tubulins
responsible for cell movements a nd movements of orga nelles
within the cytopla sm, movement of chromosomes during cell
division - la rgest components of the cytoskeleton
inte rme dia te fila ments
- 8 stra nded protein fibers -
pla y a role in cell structure,
a nchoring orga nelles a nd in
tra nsport of ma teria ls within
the cytopla sm a nchor
neighboring cells to ea ch other
in tissues
 Nucleic Acids
DNA & RNA
What are/ What do they do ?

 Nucleic acids are polymers of nucleotides

§ Nucleic acids are polymers of nucleotides
§ Nucleotides are carbon ring structures containing nitrogen linked
to a 5-carbon sugar (a ribose)
§ In eukaryotic cells nucleic acids are either
§ Deoxyribose nucleic acids (DNA)
§ Ribose nucleic acids (RNA)
 What do they do
Dictate amino-acid sequence in proteins
Give information to chromosomes, which is then passed from
parent to offspring
The chemical link between generation
The source of genetic information in chromosomes
Con..
The nucleus contains the cell’s DNA (genome) RNA is synthesized
in the nucleus and exported to the cytoplasm

Two types of Nucleotides (depending on the sugar they contain)

1- Ribonucleic acids (RNA)
The pentose sugar is Ribose (has a hydroxyl group in the 3rd
carbon---OH)
2- Deoxyribonucleic acids (DNA)
The pentose sugar is Deoxyribose (has just an hydrogen in the
same place--- H) Deoxy = “minus oxygen”
 FUNCTION
DNA : Genetic material - sequence of nucleotides encodes different
amino acids
RNA : Involved in the transcription/translation of genetic material
(DNA) Genetic material of some viruses
Nucleotide structure
 Despite the complexity and diversity of life the structure of DNA is dependent
on only 4 different nucleotides

 Diversity is dependent on the nucleotide sequence

 All nucleotides are 2 ring structures composed of:

 5-carbon sugar : b-D-ribose (RNA)

b-D-deoxyribose (DNA)

 Base Purine
Pyrimidine

 Phosphate group A nucleotide WITHOUT a phosphate group is a

NUCLEOSIDE
 Nucleotides and Nucleosides
• Nucleotide =
– Nitrogeneous base
– Pentose
– Phosphate

• Nucleoside =
– Nitrogeneous base
– Pentose

• Nucleobase =
– Nitrogeneous base
 Chemical Structure of DNA vs RNA
 Ribonucleotides have a 2’-OH
 Deoxyribonucleotides have a 2’-H
 Phosphate Groups

§ Phosphate groups are what makes a nucleoside a

nucleotide
 Phosphate groups are essential for nucleotide
polymerization O
Basic structure:
O P O X
Number of phosphate groups determines
nomenclature O
Con..
• It is the order of these base pairs that determines genetic makeup
• One phosphate + one sugar + one base = one nucleotide
• Nucleotides are the building blocks of DNA – thus, each strand of
DNA is a string of nucleotides
 Con..

Sanger dideoxy sequencing incorporates dideoxy

nucleotides, preventing further synthesis of the DNA strand
 Purine and Pyrimidine
 Pyrimidine contains two pyridine-like nitrogens in a six-membered
aromatic ring
 Purine has 4 N’s in a fused-ring structure. Three are basic like
pyridine-like and one is like that in pyrrole
Names of Nucleosides and Nucleotides
 AMP, ADP and ATP
 Additional phosphate groups can be added to the nucleoside 5’-
monophosphates to form diphosphates and triphosphates
 ATP is the major energy source for cellular activity
 Functions of
Nucleotides and Nucleic Acids
the building block molecule of nucleic acid--nucleotide

• Nucleotide Functions:
– Energy for metabolism (ATP)
– Enzyme cofactors (NAD+)
– Signal transduction (cAMP)

• Nucleic Acid Functions:

– Storage of genetic info (DNA)
– Transmission of genetic info (mRNA)
– Processing of genetic information (ribozymes)
– Protein synthesis (tRNA and rRNA)
This chemical substance is present in the nucleus of all cells in all
living organisms

DNA controls all the chemical changes which take place in cells

The kind of cell which is formed, (muscle, blood, nerve etc) is

controlled by DNA
The Deoxyribonucleotides
 Primary Structure of Nucleic Acids
• The primary structure of a nucleic acid is the nucleotide sequence
• The nucleotides in nucleic acids are joined by phosphodiester bonds
• The 3’-OH group of the sugar in one nucleotide forms an ester bond to
the phosphate group on the 5’-carbon of the sugar of the next
nucleotide
 Reading Primary Structure

• A nucleic acid polymer has a free

5’-phosphate group at one end and a
free 3’-OH group at the other end
• The sequence is read from the free
5’-end using the letters of the bases
• This example reads
5’—A—C—G—T—3’
 Secondary Structure: DNA Double Helix
• In DNA there are two strands of nucleotides that wind together in
a double helix
- the strands run in opposite directions
- the bases are arranged in step-like pairs
- the base pairs are held together by hydrogen bonding
• The pairing of the bases from the two strands is very specific
• The complimentary base pairs are A-T and G-C
- two hydrogen bonds form between A and T
- three hydrogen bonds form between G and C
• Each pair consists of a purine and a pyrimidine, so they are the
same width, keeping the two strands at equal distances from each
other
 Base Pairing in DNA: The Watson–Crick Model

• In 1953 Watson and Crick noted that DNA consists of two

polynucleotide strands, running in opposite directions and coiled
around each other in a double helix
• Strands are held together by hydrogen bonds between specific
pairs of bases
• Adenine (A) and thymine (T) form strong hydrogen bonds to each
other but not to C or G
• Guanine (G) and cytosine (C) form strong hydrogen bonds to each
other but not to A or T

• The strands of DNA are complementary because of H-bonding

• Whenever a G occurs in one strand, a C occurs opposite it in the
other strand
• When an A occurs in one strand, a T occurs in the other
Properties of a DNA double helix
 The strands of DNA are antiparallel
 The strands are complimentary
 There are Hydrogen bond forces
 There are base stacking interactions
 There are 10 base pairs per turn
C0N..
 double helix Structure consists of “major” grooves and “minor”
grooves
 Major grooves are critical for binding proteins that regulate DNA
function

Minor
Groove

Major
Groove
 Ribonucleic Acid (RNA)

• RNA is much more abundant than DNA

• There are several important differences between RNA and DNA:
- the pentose sugar in RNA is ribose, in DNA it’s deoxyribose
- in RNA, uracil replaces the base thymine (U pairs with A)
- RNA is single stranded while DNA is double stranded
- RNA molecules are much smaller than DNA molecules
• There are three main types of RNA:
- ribosomal (rRNA), messenger (mRNA) and transfer (tRNA)
 RNA is found inside and outside of the nucleus; DNA is found
only inside the nucleus
Types of RNA
 Con..

§ Messenger RNA (mRNA)

• Its sequence is copied from genetic DNA
• It travels to ribsosomes, small granular particles in the cytoplasm of
a cell where protein synthesis takes place
 Transfer RNA (tRNA)
• Transports amino acids to the ribosomes where they are joined
together to make proteins
• There is a specific tRNA for each amino acid
• Recognition of the tRNA at the anti-codon communicates which
amino acid is attached

Based on McMurry, Organic Chemistry,

Chapter 28, 6th edition, (c) 2003
• C0n..
• Ribosomes are the sites of protein synthesis
- they consist of ribosomal DNA (65%) and proteins (35%)
- they have two subunits, a large one and a small one
• Messenger RNA carries the genetic code to the ribosomes
- they are strands of RNA that are complementary to the DNA of the gene
for the protein to be synthesized
 Ribosomal RNA (rRNA)
• Ribosomes are a complex of proteins and rRNA
• The synthesis of proteins from amino acids and ATP occurs in the ribosome
• The rRNA provides both structure and catalysis
Con..
The information constituting an organism’s genotype is carried in its
sequence of bases
– The DNA is transcribed into RNA, which is translated into a
protein
DNA

TRANSCRIPTION

RNA

TRANSLATION

Protein

Figure 10.6A
 Gene 1 Gene 3

DNA molecule

Gene 2

DNA strand

TRANSCRIPTION

RNA

Codon
TRANSLATION

Polypeptide
Amino acid
Figure 10.7
• Con..
Transcribed strand

DNA

Transcription

RNA

Start Stop
codon Translation codon

Polypeptide
Figure 10.8B
Ribosomes build proteins
The “words” of the DNA “language” are three bases in a row called codons
The codons in a gene specify the amino acid sequence of a protein

Next amino acid

Growing to be added to
polypeptide polypeptide
tRNA P site A site
molecules
Growing
Large polypeptide
subunit
tRNA

P A
mRNA
mRNA
binding
site
Codons

mRNA Small
subunit

Figure 10.12A-C