L2: Plant Cell Overview and Methods

Question 1

Components of cells or biological macromolecules

Answer 1

proteins, carbohydrates, lipids, nucleic acids

Question 2

What does the cell do?

Answer 2

Manufacture, structure, transit, power, storage, waste

Question 3

Cytoplasm

Answer 3

all contents of a cell inside the plasma membrane, except the nucleus (includes the organelles and cytosol)

Question 4

Cytosol

Answer 4

the liquid component of the cytoplasm, surrounding the organelles

Question 5

Manufacture parts of the cell

Answer 5

Nucleus (head office, cytoplasm (factory floor), cytosol, ribosomes, ER, Golgi, vesicles, plastids

Question 6

Power parts of the cell

Answer 6

plastids (chloroplasts), mitochondria, breakdown of storage organelles

Question 7

Storage components of the cell

Answer 7

plastids (chromoplasts and leucoplasts), vacuoles, oil bodies

Question 8

chromoplasts

Answer 8

pigment synthesis

Question 9

Leucoplasts

Answer 9

lack pigment

Question 10

amyloplasts

Answer 10

starch synthesis and storage

Question 11

apoplast

Answer 11

extracellular space (outside of the plasma membrane); includes cell wall

Question 12

symplast

Answer 12

region within the plasma membrane

Question 13

waste components of the cell

Answer 13

Vacuole (crystals), apoplast, peroxisomes, entire cell via programmed death

Question 14

peroxisomes

Answer 14

break down fatty acids and waste

Question 15

structure components of the cell

Answer 15

cell wall, vacuole/cytoplasm

Question 16

protoplast

Answer 16

plant cells that have their cell walls removed (enzymatic treatment)

Question 17

How are new cell walls created?

Answer 17

formed during cytokinesis
microtubules carry vesicles that merge into cell plate that expands outwards until it hits the parental wall
when the cell plate fuses with the parental wall, it officially becomes a cell wall

Question 18

transit components of the cell

Answer 18

cytoskeleton (microfilaments and microtubules), golgi, vesicles, cell wall, plasma membrane

Question 19

how does the plant do shipping and receiving?

Answer 19

via plasmodesmata, diffusion, transporters

Question 20

Intracellular

Answer 20

within a cell

Question 21

intercellular

Answer 21

between cells

Question 22

plasmodesmata

Answer 22

tiny cytoplasmic connections between adjacent plant cells (found in primary cell walls)

Question 23

cells sharing plasmodesmata form a ______

Answer 23

symplasm

Question 24

Microscopes

Answer 24

an instrument that magnifies an object

Question 25

micrograph

Answer 25

photographs taken with a microscope

Question 26

light microscopy

Answer 26

uses photons
lower magnification potential than electron microscopy (range of scales)
can look at both living and dead materials

Question 27

Electron microscopy

Answer 27

Uses a focused beam of electrons
examine objects on a very fine scale (subcellular features)
higher magnification than light microscopy
typically dead/preserved specimens

Question 28

types of electron microscopy

Answer 28

Scanning electron microscopy
Transmission electron microscopy

Question 29

Scanning electron microscopy (SEM)

Answer 29

for visualizing surface topography (typically dead sample)
magnifies sample 1-2 million X/times

Question 30

Transmission electron microscopy (TEM)

Answer 30

visualizing anatomy, high magnifications for subcellular details (internal anatomy) (sample is dead)
produces 2D image that is magnified >50 million times

Question 31

Types of light microscopes

Answer 31

Dissecting/stereo, compound, confocal

Question 32

What do stains do?

Answer 32

allow us to visualize other things in the cell

Question 33

Dissecting/stereo microscopes

Answer 33

observing specimen surface features with up to 70X magnification
sample can remain alive

Question 34

Compound microscope

Answer 34

more than one lens to create magnified image up to 1000X magnification
observing specimens internal anatomy (sections)

Question 35

Confocal microscopes

Answer 35

uses laser light to scan samples that have been dyed
allows surface and internal anatomy observation without cutting the specimen (sample can remain alive_

Question 36

anatomical planes

Answer 36

planes are lines that cut/divide a specimen into different components

Question 37

Transverse plane

Answer 37

cross-section that runs through middle (cut horizontal)

Question 38

radial plane

Answer 38

along the radius

Question 39

tangential plane

Answer 39

cut to show side

Question 40

How prepared slides are made

Answer 40

Fix specimen
dehydrate specimen
embed specimen in paraffin wax or resin
section with microtome
mount sections on slide
stain
add coverslip and seal