Lesson 1: discovery of the cell and the cell theory

Question 1

discovered
and coined the term cell as
observed from a bark of an oak
tree. He used the word cell to
describe the tiny compartments
seen on the specimen. He

presented this idea in his best-
selling book the “Micrographia”.

Answer 1

Robert Hooke

Question 2

was the first to use the
microscope and
observe a living cells,
specifically protozoa
and bacterial cell.

Answer 2

ANTON VAN LEEUWENHOEK

Question 3

discovered the
fluid content of the cell and called it
“sarcode” which was later identified as
protoplasm by J.E Purkinje in 1839,
containing the cytoplasm, nucleus, and
the organelles.

Answer 3

FELIX DUJARDIN

Question 3

he observed and
described a small, dense, round body
within a plant cell, which he called the
“nucleus” that is later identified as the
control center of the cell, holding the
genetic material of an organism.

Answer 3

ROBERT BROWN

Question 4

concluded
that all plant tissues are composed of
cells. He emphasized that the cell is
the fundamental unit of structure and
function in plants.

Answer 4

MATTHIAS SCHLEIDEN

Question 5

extended
Schleiden’s findings to animals in 1839.
He concluded that all animal tissues
are also composed of cells,
establishing that cells are the basic
unit of life in both plants and animals.

Answer 5

THEODOR SCHWANN

Question 6

he emphasized
that cells are not just the basic unit of
structure and function but also the
fundamental unit of life of an organism.
* This idea helped solidify the
understanding that life processes starts
at cellular level.

Answer 6

CARL HEINRICH BRAUN

Question 7

observed that a cell can
only occur from another
cell through cell division,
debunking Aristotle’s
widely accepted notion of
spontaneous generation.

Answer 7

RUDOLF VIRCHOW