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Cell Structure
& Organization
Biology Practical Skills
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General Guidelines
Specific Guidelines
Drawing
Wet Mount Preparation
Use of Light Microscope
Calcualtion of Magnification
Manipulation
& Measurement
Model Anwers Provided
Discussion
Questions
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DRAWING

TOPIC: CELL STRUCTURE AND ORGANIZATION
AIM: To draw an animal/plant cell as seen under a light microscope

SKILL CRITERIA MARK
Drawing
Clarity
1. Clean, continuous lines of even thickness
2. No shading or unnecessary details ( some hatching is acceptable)
3. Large/Reasonable size
4. Two-dimensional

Labelling Lines
1. Neat, drawn with a ruler
2. Lines do not cross each other
3. Lines touch structures ( no arrowheads)
4. Adequate space for labelling on right

Labels/Annotations
1. All in lower case print script
2. Correctly labelled structures ( 2 all; 1- most)
3. Labels are spelled correctly (2-all; 1-most)

Accuracy
1. Structures are typical of specimen
2. Proportions are reasonable

Title
In uppercase printscript in a standard position e.g. below the drawing
Includes
o Orientation
o Name of the specimen ( and Classification)
o Stain used ( if any)
o Magnification
At the end of the title rounded up 1 d.p.
Reasonable/correctly calculated
4





4





5




2



3

Total 18

SPECIFIC GUIDELINES

The mark scheme above is a general mark scheme. For this practical in
which cell diagrams are drawn

Labels/Annotate
Animal or plant cells: cell membrane, nucleus, cytoplasm
Plant cell only: Cell wall, chloroplast, vacuole
Note any stained structures in annotations

Title
View: DRAWN UNDER A LIGHT MICROSCOPE
Magnification X ( magnification of eye piece * magnification of
objective lens) ; usually at 200 X magnification or more

Accuracy
One complete cell is adequate
Include parts of neighbouring cells to show relationship


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MEASUREMENT & MANIPULATION


SKILL
TOPIC: CELL STRUCTURE AND ORGANIZATION
AIM: To examine animal/plant cell as seen under a light microscope

Manipulation






















Measurement
Wet Mount Preparation
1. Places a small drop of relevant fluid/stain with a teat dropper
2. Lowers cover slip slowly with forceps/needle and at an angle; very
few bubbles
3. Removes excess fluid on or near coverslip with absorbent paper
4. Holds slides at the edges

Set-up and Use of Light Microscope

Care before Use
1. Carries microscope using arm, supports the base and places gently
on the bench
2. Uses lens tissue to clean lenses; does not touch with fingers
3. Turns on microscope after ensuring illumination is on minimum setting;
Adjusts the lamp setting to ~2/3 maximum

Use/Focusing the Specimen
4. Select a low-powered objective lens
5. Places the slide on the stage, with the specimen over the light; adjust
with clips
6. Low-powered objective lens
uses coarse and then fine controls
7. High-powered objective lens
checks first that the distance between the stage and lens is
adequate
uses fine controls only

Care after Use
8. Removes slide only after turning back to lowest magnification and
lowering the stage
9. Cleans stage - if necessary, cleans eyepiece with lens tissue,
10. Sets illumination at minimum and unplugs power cable, winding
around the stand, below the stage
11. Replaces dust cover, once light sources have cooled


Calculates object magnification as a product of the magnifications of the
ocular and objective lenses
4






3


5







4




2
Total 18
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LAB QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
1. State the function/s of any 3 visible organelles/structures (3)

Cell Wall
Provides mechanical support and maintains turgor by preventing osmotic bursting of
the cell

Cell Surface Membrane
Selectively permeable barrier which controls the exchange of substances between
the cell and its environment

Cytoplasm
Aqueous medium in which organelles and other structures are suspended. Site of most
cellular reactions

Nucleus
Contains DNA - the molecule of inheritance and controls all the activity of the cells

Chloroplast (plant cells only)
Site of photosynthesis. (May contain starch granules stain violet with iodine)

Vacuole ( large vacuoles in plant cells are easily visualized)
Sac which serves as storage for various substances. In plants the vacuole contains cell
sap sugars, mineral salts, organic acids, etc.

2. Name 3 organelles which are visible at higher resolution (electron microscopy) but are not visible
under the light microscope. (3)

Endoplasmic reticulum, ribosomes, Golgi apparatus, mitochondria, centriole, lysosome

3. What is the significance of placing a drop of iodine/methylene blue/name of vital stain on the slide?
(2)
Biological structures are mostly transparent so need to be stained to create contrast and
increase visibility. Iodine/methylene blue is used to stain cells and is an example of a vital stain
(stains which are non-toxic to living tissue at low concentrations).
4. Why must the cover-slip be lowered slowly and at an angle? (1)
This technique reduces the formation of air bubbles between the cover slip and the specimen.
Air bubbles distort images and hinder observation of the specimen.

5. What is the purpose of a cover slip?(2)
The cover slip protects the objectives lens from stains, water, oils (for oil immersion) and dirt. It
also prevents the specimen from drying out, and undergoing structural changes/deterioration as
it becomes crenated (animal cell) or plasmolyzed (plant cell).