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Chapter 3
Plant Cells
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Methods to study cells
Plant biologists today use a variety of methods to study cells
Eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells
The structure of plant cells
The plasma membrane is the outer boundary of the cell
The nucleus is the cell’s control center
Biological membranes
The fluid–mosaic model describes membrane structure
Membranes perform many functions
Passage of materials across biological membranes
Diffusion is the movement of a substance from a region of high concentration to a region of lower
Focus On: The Evolution of Eukaryotic Cells
CHAPTER OBJECTIVES
1. Contrast prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells.
2. Describe the functions of the following 10 parts of a plant cell: nucleus, plasma membrane,
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LECTURE OUTLINE
I. Microscopy is one of the most important methods used to study plant cells.
A. What contributions did van Leeuwenhoek and Hooke make to the discovery and
II. In what ways are prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells the same and in what ways are they
different?
A. Both cells have a plasma membrane, cytoplasm, and genetic material.
B. Eukaryotic cells have their genetic material in a nucleus and they have other
specialized structures called organelles.
III. What are the basic structures of the plant cell?
A. The cytoplasm with its organelles fills most of the interior of the cell.
D. Cells have two energy-converting organelles
1. Plants and algae have plastids.
a. What is the function of the chloroplast?
b. What is the structure of the chloroplast?
c. What are leucoplasts and chromoplasts, and how are they
related to chloroplasts?
F. The cytoplasm of the cell is compartmentalized by complex membranes.
1. What is the endoplasmic reticulum (ER)?
a. What are the rough ER and the smooth ER?
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manufacture and export of materials from the cell?
d. What are vesicles?
H. The cell wall provides firm support.
6. What is the middle lamella?
IV. How are plant and animal cells alike? How are they different?
V. Cells cannot exist without the plasma membrane.
A. Describe the fluid-mosaic model of plasma membrane structure.
B. What are the molecular components of membranes and how are they arranged?
C. What is the importance of the phospholipid bilayer?
D. How do substances move through the plasma membrane?
1. What is diffusion?
KEY TERMS
active transport, p. 60
carrier proteins, p. 60
cell signaling, p. 56
cytoplasmic streaming, p. 55
cytoskeleton, p. 54
dictyosome, p. 53
homeostasis, p. 57
hydrophilic, p. 57
hydrophobic, p. 57
microtubules. p. 54
mitochondrion, p. 51
nuclear envelope, p. 48
nucleolus, p. 48
primary cell wall, p. 56
prokaryotic cell, p. 48
resolving power, p. 46
ribosome, p. 52
solutions, p. 59
solvent, p. 59
stroma, p. 50
turgid, p. 54
TEACHING TIPS
1. Illustrate your diffusion lecture by opening a small vial of a highly volatile liquid, such as
peppermint oil, banana oil, camphor, clove oil, etc. You can be obvious about it, or, to have a
2. Illustrate the fluid mosaic model with colored water, salad oil, and small colored plastic beads
that will float in the oil. This emphasizes the “fluid” part of the model. You can go on from
there to explain that some protein “beads” are held more or less in place by the cytoskeleton.
3. As a lab/discussion activity, ask students to form small groups of 3 or 4 and define the cell
from a functional viewpoint. Since the cell is the basic functional unit if life, tell them to first