Basic Components of Living Systems Flashcards
Specification reference: 2.1.1
What is a microscope?
Instrument that enables you to magnify and object many times
Cell theory
- Plant and animal tissue is composed of cells
- Cells are the basic unit of all life
- Cells only develop from existing cells
Positives of light microscopes
- Easily available
- Cheap
- Portable
- Can be used to observe dead and living organisms
How many lenses do compound light microscopes have?
- Objective lens: Placed near the specimen
2. Eyepiece lens: Where the specimen is viewed
Objective Lens
Produces a magnified image which is magnified by the eyepiece lens. Configuration allow more magnification and less chromatic abberation
Magnification
How many times larger the image is than the actual size of the object being viewed.
Resolution
Ability to see individual objects as separate entities. Which then produces a detailed image.
Diffraction
Tendency for light waves to spread as they pass through samples.
How can resolution be increased?
By using beams of electrons which have a wavelength a thousand times shorter than light.
Magnification Equation
size of image / actual size of the image
Electron microscopy
- A beam of electrons with a wavelength of less than 1 nm is used to illuminate species.
- More detail of the ultra structure can be seen as electrons have smaller wavelength than light waves
- Magnification of x 500000 and will still have a clear resolution
What are the two types of electron microscopes?
Transmission electron microscopes
Scanning electron microscopes
Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM)
A beam of electrons is transmitted through a specimen and focused to produce an image. This has the best resolution with resolving power of 0.5 nm.
Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM)
A beam of electrons sent across the surface of the specimen and the reflected electrons are collected. The resolving power is from 3-10nm (not as good as TEM). Produces a 3D image.
Ultrastructure
Features that can be seen with an electron
Artifacts
Visible structure structural detail caused by processing the specimen and not a feature of a specimen
Laser scanning confocal
Moves a single spot of focused light across the specimen (point illumination). This causes fluorescence from the components labeled with a ‘dye’.
Conventional optical microscopes
Use visible light to illuminate specimens and a lens to produce a magnified image.
Fluorescent microscopes
Have a higher light intensity is used to illuminate a specimen that has been treated with a fluorescent dye.
Fluorescence
The absorption and re-radiation of light. Light of a longer wavelength and lower energy is emitted and used to produce a magnified image.
Cells
The basic unit of all living things
What are the two types of cell?
Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic
Prokaryotes
Are single-celled organisms with a simple structure of just a single undivided internal area called the cytoplasm (composed of cytosol which is made of water and organic molecules)
Eukaryotes
Made up of multicellular organisms (animals, plants, fungi). They have a more complicated structure containing a membrane-bound nucleus and cytoplasm which contains many membrane-bound cellular components.