FUNDAMENTAL UNIT OF

LIFE
CBSE, CLASS IX , BIOLOGY
• Our Earth is full of life forms.
• There are plants and animals of various
size and shape AND there are the
micro-organisms.

What are these life forms made of ?

And who found the answer first ??
Who were all responsible for the
discovery???
Which instrument helped to make the
discovery????
 The instrument which helped the
discovery is called a
MICROSCOPE
The 1st compound
microscope was
made by a Dutch
maker of reading
glasses Zacharias
Janssen in the late
1500’s
• Antony Van
Leeuwenhoek made a
simple microscope (mid
1600’s)
• Which magnified
things 270
times( 270X )
• Early microscope
lenses made images
larger but the image
was not clear
 MODERN MICROSCOPES
• A microscope is
simple or compound
depending on how
many lenses it
contains
• A lens makes an
enlarged image &
directs light towards
your eye
• A simple
microscope has
one lens

• Similar to a
magnifying glass

 Magnification is the
change in apparent
size produced by a
microscope
• A compound
microscope has
multiple lenses
(eyepiece &
objective lenses)
 The basic unit of life is the cell. (Hooke

• In 1665, an English
scientist named Robert
Hooke made an
improved microscope and
viewed thin slices of cork
(portion of the bark of a
tree) viewing plant cell
walls
• Hooke named what he
saw "cells" , which
means “little room” in
Latin
 CELL THEORY
1. The Basic unit of life is a
Cell- proposed by Hooke
2. All living things are made of
one or more cells- this was
proposed by Matthias
Schleiden (botanist studying Hooke
plants) and Theodore
Schwann (zoologist studying Schleiden
animals) .
3. All cells divide and come
from old cells (pre-existing
cells)- proposed by Virchow
Schwann

Virchow
micro organisms or macro
organisms- All are made up of
Cells.
 Bacterial cell
This is how cells look like , under
the microscope.
All organisms, big or small are
made of CELLS.

Human Cheek cells Onion peel cells

Cell Diversity: Cells are of different kinds. They also differ in
size and shape which are related to the specific function they
perform.
What are cells made up of ?
What is the structural
organisation of Cells?
 A cell is the smallest unit that is
capable of performing life functions.
 Prokaryotic Cells
(proh KAYR ee yah tihk)
• cells without
membrane-bound
structures
EX: bacteria
pond scum
 Eukaryotic Cells
(yew KAYR ee yah tihk)

• cells with membrane-

bound structures
EX: animals, plants,
fungi and protists
 CELL MEMBRANE/PLASMA
MEMBRANE
• Outer covering, protective
layer around ALL cells
• For cells with cell walls,the cell
membrane is inside the cell
wall
• Allows food, oxygen, & water
into the cell & waste products
out of the cell.
• It allows the entry and exit of
certain materials in and out of
the cell and prevents the
movement of some other
materials
• Therefore , plasma membrane
is also called SELECTIVELY
PERMEABLE MEMBRANE
How do the movement of substances into and out
of the cell take place?
Diffusion involves movement of molecules from higher concentration to lower concentration
across the plasma membrane.
Carbon dioxide (CO2) moves in and out of the cells by the process of diffusion.
 Osmosis is the movement of water or solvent through a semi-
permeable membrane from a region of high water concentration to a
region of low water concentration.
Water moves in and out of the cells by osmosis .
Both diffusion and osmosis are physical or
mechanical processes and do not require
spending of energy for their performance
by cells.
 CELL WALL
• Formed outside the cell
membrane
• gives shape
• is made of cellulose
• Is non-living
• Secreted by the cell itself
to protect the cell
membrane and cytoplasm
• A cell wall is found in
plants, algae, fungi, &
most bacteria.
 Functions of cell wall
• Permits the plant cell to become turgid. As water enters
the vacuole by osmosis, the plant cell expands.
• The cellulose Microfibrils is very strong which provide
mechanical strength to support the cell.
• Permeable to water and substances to solution.
• It has narrow pores, called pits, through which fine
strands of cytoplasm, called Plasmodesmata, are able to
pass. These intercellular connections allow exchange of
materials between the living cell contents.
• The cell walls of adjacent cells are glued together by the
middle lamella.
 CYTOPLASM

• This is gelatin-like
substance inside cell
membrane
• constantly flows
• Also called as
protoplasm
protoplasm
• The cell organelles
are suspended in the
cytoplasm
 CYTOSKELETON

• scaffolding-like
structure in
cytoplasm
• helps the cell
maintain or change
its shape
• made of protein
NUCLEUS
• control center of the cell
which is bounded by two
nuclear membranes
• Directs all cell activities
• Contains instructions for
everything the cell does
• These instructions are
found on a hereditary
material called DNA
• Usually the largest
organelle
 NUCLEAR MEMBRANE
• separates nucleus from
cytoplasm
• controls movement of
materials in & out of
nucleus through the
nucleopore
• It is connected to the
Endoplasmic reticulum
• Encloses the nucleoplasm,
nucleolus and chromatin
network (chromosome)
 NUCLEOLUS
• Also called “little nucleus”
• Found in the nucleus
• not bounded by any
membrane
• is rich in protein and RNA
molecules
• is the site of Ribosome
formation- factory of
ribosomes.
• Ribosomes are helpful in
protein synthesis in the
cytoplasm
 CHROMOSOMES
• The chromatin material is thin,
thread-like intertwined mass of
chromosome material
• Our genes are on our
chromosomes.
• Chromosomes are made up of
a chemical called DNA
• DNA is often called the
blueprint of life.
• In simple terms, DNA contains
the instructions for making
proteins within the cell.
• DNA is a very long polymer.
• The basic shape is like a
twisted ladder or zipper.
• Helps in cell division
 CHLOROPLASTS
• Green organelles that make food ,found only in plant
cells
• Contains chlorophyll- the green pigment
 CHLOROPHYLL
• A green pigment that
gives leaves & stems
their color
• Captures sunlight
energy that is used to
produce food called
glucose
• Glucose is a type of
sugar
 MITOCHONDRIA
• Organelles that release
energy from food
• This energy is released
by breaking down food
into carbon dioxide
• called the powerhouse
as they release energy
from food
• Some muscle cells have
20,000 mitochondria
RIBOSOMES

• Ribosomes are made

in the nucleolus
• They are dense,
spherical and
granular particles
• Float freely or
attached to the
endoplasmic reticulum
(ER)
• Play an important role
in protein synthesis
ENDOPLASMIC RETICULUM

• a folded membranous
network enclosing a fluid-
filled lumen which almost
fills up the intracellular
cavity.
• moves materials (proteins)
around in a cell like a conveyor
belt
• It occurs in three forms:
i) Cisternae
(ii) Vesicles
(iii) Tubules.
• Smooth ER(SER) – ribosomes
not attached to ER
• Rough ER(RER) – ribosomes
attached to ER
 Functions of ER:

• It forms supporting skeletal framework of the cell.

• ER provides a pathway for distribution of nuclear
material from one cell to other.
• Certain enzymes present in SER synthesize fats (lipids),
steroids and cholesterol.
• RER performs the transport proteins which are
synthesized by ribosomes on their surface.
• SER plays an important role in the bio-synthesis of
cholesterol.
• SER is also involved in the process of detoxification.
 GOLGI BODIES (GAWL jee)
• consists of a set of smooth,
flattened membranous sac
like structures called
Cisternae
• stacks of membrane i.e.
Cisternae, tubules, vesicles
and Golgian vacuoles
• In plant cells, Golgi apparatus
consists of many
unconnected units called
dictyosomes
• is absent in bacteria, blue
green algae, mature sperms
and RBCs of mammals and
other animals
Functions of Golgi apparatus:

• The main function of Golgi body is secretory.

• It acts as a station or assembly area for the
storage, processing and packaging of various
cellular secretions.
• It produces vacuoles or secretory vesicles
which contain cellular secretions e.g. enzymes,
proteins, melanin pigment, etc.
• Golgi apparatus is also involved in synthesis of
cell wall, plasma membrane and Lysosomes.
VACUOLES
• Temporary storage
spaces
• Store food, water,
waste
LYSOSOMES (LI- suh- sohmz)
• Tiny spherical sac-like
structures evenly
distributed in cytoplasm
• surrounded by single
membrane and contains
powerful digestive enzymes
capable of breaking down
all organic materials
• The word "lysosome" is
Latin for "kill body."
• If Lysosome burst, its
enzyme eats up (digest)
other organelles of its own
cell. Therefore, these are
known as ‘suicide bags’
 Functions of Lysosomes:

• They serve as intracellular digestive system,

hence called digestive bags. They destroy any
foreign material which enter the cell and thus,
protect the cell from bacterial infection.
• Lysosomes also remove the worn-out and
poorly working cell organelles by digesting them
to give yield to their new replacements.
• When cell gets damaged, Lysosomes may burst
and the enzymes eat up their own cells.
FROM CELL TO ORGANISM
Cell
The basic unit of life

Tissue
Group of cells working together

Organ
Group of tissues working together

Organ System
Group of organs working together

Organism
Any living thing made of 1 or more cells