Name: Date:

Student Exploration: Cell Types

Vocabulary: ATP, bacteria, carbon dioxide (CO2), cell, cellular respiration, compound light
microscope, eukaryote, multicellular, muscle cell, neuron, organelle, photosynthesis, prokaryote,
protist, red blood cell, root hair cell, tissue, unicellular, white blood cell

Prior Knowledge Questions (Do these BEFORE using the Gizmo.)

1. How do you know if something is alive? Describe some of the characteristics of living things.

Living things use energy, maintain homeostasis, and reproduce

2. Humans, plants and mushrooms are all alive. What do these organisms have in common?

Humans, plants, and mushrooms all are made of cells. Humans, plants, and mushrooms
also maintain homeostasis. Mushrooms and animals share a similar chemical called fungi.
All of these things reproduce. Humans, plants, and mushrooms all take in and use energy.
Humans, plants, and mushrooms grow and develop through time. Humans, plants, and
animals all have something in common other than being alive.
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Gizmo Warm-up
In the Cell Types Gizmo, you will use a light microscope to compare and
contrast different samples. On the LANDSCAPE tab, click on the Elodea leaf.
(Turn on Show all samples if you can’t find it.) Switch to the MICROSCOPE
tab to observe the sample as it would appear under the microscope. By
default, this microscope is using 40x magnification.

1. Drag the Coarse focus slider until the sample is focused as well as possible. Then, improve

the focus with the Fine focus slider. What do you see? I see green rectangular cells with a

dark green out line

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2. Select the 400x magnification. If necessary, adjust the fine focus. Now, what do you see?

I see a plant cell with a nucleus, vacuole, cell wall, cell membrane and chloroplast
3.

The individual chambers you see are cells, the smallest functional unit of an organism.

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 Get the Gizmo ready:
Activity A:  On the LANDSCAPE tab, click on the woman’s
Observing cells right arm to choose the Human skin sample.
 Select the MICROSCOPE tab.

Introduction: Complex organisms are made up of smaller units, called cells. Most cells are too
small to be seen by the naked eye. Microscopes are used to magnify small objects, so here you
will use a compound light microscope to observe the cells of different organisms.

Question: What are similarities and differences between cells from different organisms?

1. Match: Read about each microscope part. Match the description to the part on the diagram.

b Stage: Platform where a slide is placed.

a Eye piece: Lens at the top of the microscope

that the user looks though. This lens most commonly
magnifies a sample by 10x.

d Coarse focus knob: Large knob that moves

the stage up and down to focus the sample.

c Fine focus knob: Small knob that moves the

stage over a short distance to refine the focus.

e Objective lens: A second lens that further

magnifies the sample. Microscopes usually have
several objective lenses with different magnifications.
The total magnification is the product of the eyepiece
magnification and the objective lens magnification.

f Slide: A rectangular piece of glass upon

which a sample is mounted for viewing under a
microscope.

2. Manipulate: With 40x selected, use the Coarse and Fine focus sliders to focus on the
sample. Then, choose 400x and focus on the sample using the Fine focus slider.

A. Which focus knob is easier to use at 40x? 400x is easier

B. Turn on Show labels. What structures can you see in human skin cells?

Cytoplasm, nucleus, cell membrane

C. Turn off Show labels and turn on Show scale bars. The scale bar has a width of 20
micrometers, or 20 μm. (There are 1,000 micrometers in a millimeter.)

Using the scale bar, about how wide is a human skin cell? 40

(Activity A continued on next page)

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Activity A (continued from previous page)

3. Observe: An organelle is a cell structure that performs a specific function. Observe the
samples below under the highest magnification. Click the Show labels checkbox to label
the organelles. List the organelles and approximate size of the cells in each sample.

Sample Organelles Estimated size (μm)

Cytoplasm, cell membrane, nucleus
Mouse skin 18

Cytoplasm, cell membrane, nucleus, striation

Fly muscle 40

Cytoplasm, cell membrane, nucleus, vacuole,

chloroplast
Maple leaf 12

Cytoplasm, cell membrane, nucleus, vacuole,

chloroplast, cell wall
Elodea 41

Cytoplasm, cell membrane, nucleus, vacuole,

chloroplast, cell wall, septum
Fungus 13

What do all of these samples have in common? They all have similar organelles

In eukaryotic cells, genetic material is contained inside a distinct, membrane-bound

nucleus. Plant and animal cells are classified as eukaryotes.

4. Observe: Click on the cow and observe E. coli under the highest magnification. Notice the
microscope magnification is larger for this organism, and notice the scale bar is smaller.

A. What is the approximate size of E. coli? Approximately 0.5 µm in width by 2 µm in

lengths

B. What organelles are present in E. coli? Cell wall, cell membrane, cytoplasm,
flagellum, pilus, nucleoid

C. What organelle is missing from E. coli? Bacteria

E. coli is an example of a bacteria. Bacteria are classified as prokaryotic cells

because their DNA is not contained in a membrane-bound nucleus.

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5. Compare: Look at the Sand/silt sample under the microscope.

A. Turn on Show labels. Does sand/silt have any internal structures? Particles are
much larger than clay and are quite inactive chemically because of their mineral
composition and limited surface area.

B. Do you think sand or silt is alive? Explain. I think it’s alive because of the smaller
size silt has a bigger time holding water and nutrients

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 Get the Gizmo ready:
Activity B:
 On the LANDSCAPE tab, click on the woman’s
Specialized cells
head to choose the human neuron sample.

Question: How do a cell’s specialized structures relate to its function?

Their main function is to translate messenger RNA or mRna, into strings of amino acids called
proteins and those are the small cellular components

1. Collect data: Use the microscope to observe the samples listed in the table below. For each
sample, estimate the cell size and check off the organelles that are present. If there is no
column for an organelle, list it in the Special structure(s) column.

Estimated Cell Special

Sample Nucleus Cytoplasm
size (μm) membrane structure(s)
Human neuron 15 yes yes yes Dendrite, axon
Human skin 30 yes yes yes N/A
Human muscle 18 yes yes yes striation
Yes White and red blood
Human blood 20 Yes yes
cells

2. Observe: Select the human skin sample. On the MICROSCOPE tab, choose the 400x
magnification, focus on the sample, and turn on Show labels. Click on the Nucleus label. If
necessary, adjust the Stage sliders to see the full description.

A. What is the function of the nucleus? It stores the cell’s hereditary materials, or
DNA and it coordinates the cell’s activities

B. What is the function of the cytoplasm? Gives shape to the cell

C. What is the function of the cell membrane? Separates the cytoplasm and it only lets
molecules enter and exit

3. Observe: Select the human neuron sample. Focus the cells at 400x. Turn on Show labels.

A. Click on the axon label to read the description. What is its function? Neurons
transmit messages in the form of electrical and chemical signals

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 B. What is the function of a dendrite? They conduct electrical messages to the neuron cell
body for the cell to function.
C. Neurons transmit messages in the form of electrical and chemical signals, through axons
and dendrites, from one part of the body to another.

Neurons transmit messages in the form of electrical and chemical signals, through
axons and dendrites, from one part of the body to another.

(Activity B continued on next page)

Activity B (continued from previous page)

4. Compare: Select to the human muscle sample. Observe the sample at 400x.

A. What do muscle cells have that other cell types do not? Muscles provide the involuntary
"pumps" necessary to circulate blood through the body.

B. What is a striation and how does it help muscle cells function? Their main function is
heart contraction, they produce the ANP, which lowers the blood pressure.

5. Compare: Select the human blood sample. Observe at 400x. Look under Show information
on the right-hand side of the Gizmo.

A. What is the function of red blood cells? They transport oxygen to body cells and
deliver carbon dioxide to the lungs.

B. What is the function of white blood cells? They protect the body against both
infectious disease and foreign invaders.

C. What organelle is missing from the red blood cells? Mitochondria

6. Compare: Compare the human and animal samples (human and mouse skin; human and
worm neurons; human and fly muscle; human and frog blood).

A. In general, are there any major differences that you can see? Explain. Animals
can’t self-reflect, human brain possess qualities that no animal can, and humans
possess the faculty of speech.

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 B. What organelle do frog RBCs have that human RBCs do not? In a frog, you can
see a dark spot in the middle of the cell. Most mammalian red blood cells have
no nucleus. This allows the red blood cell to use all of its volume to transport
oxygen.

7. Extend your thinking: Many types of cells, such as the ones in this activity, live together in
groups, called tissues. A tissue is a group of similar cells that together carry out a specific
function. Describe how the skin cells, neurons, muscle cells, and blood cells you have
observed relate to the functions of skin, nerve, muscle, and blood tissue.

You can write your answer on another sheet of paper.

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 Activity C: Get the Gizmo ready:
Plants and  On the LANDSCAPE tab, select the Microalgae
unicellular life sample.

Introduction: Most of the animals and plants we are familiar with are multicellular, they are
made up of many cells. However, many living things only consist of a single cell. These
microscopic organisms are unicellular.

Question: How are unicellular organisms similar to multicellular organisms?

They both use many different cells to function
1. Observe: Compare the microalgae, the Elodea leaf cells, the maple leaf cells, and the root
hair cells at 400x. Sketch each below:

Microalgae Elodea Maple leaf Root hair

Microalgea, Elodea, Maple leaf, Root hair
● Size:20
● Cell wall
● Cell membrane
● Cytoplasm
● Vacuole
● Chloroplast
● Nucleus

A. What structures do all of these cells have in common? They share the same size
and organelles

B. What structures are missing from the root hair cells? Chloroplasts

What is the purpose of this structure, and why do you think it is missing from the root hair cells?
To collect water and mineral nutrients present in the soil and take this solution up through
the roots to the rest of the plant.

C.

Photosynthesis is the ability of some organisms to generate food from sunlight.

Cells that are not exposed to sunlight will not take part in photosynthesis.

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 D. How are the algae cells different from the other cells? Algae can either be
unicellular and multi- cellular while plants are multicellular

Microalgae are examples of unicellular organisms. Each cell is a single organism.

2. Explore: Which other samples in the Gizmo do you think represent unicellular organisms?

Microalgae are examples of unicellular organisms. Each cell is a single organism.

(Activity C continued on next page)

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Activity C (continued from previous page)

3. Observe: Switch to the Protist sample. Protists are unicellular organisms common in ponds
On the MICROSCOPE tab, select the 100x radio button and focus the image.

A. Watch the motion of the protists at 100X and 400X. What structures allow each
protist to move?

Amoeba: pseudopodium Euglena: flagellum Paramecium: cilium

B. In the table below, draw the structures that allow the protists to move on their images
on the left and describe the structures in the spaces on the right:

Projections of the cell membrane extends and

contracts to move the organism forward, and
Amoeba
help the organism trap and ingest food
particles.

A long thin whip like cell structure that rotates

Euglena
around allowing the organism to swim

Short hair like vibrating structure that moe

Paramecium
surrounding liquid or help the organism move

C. Which protist is photosynthetic? How do you know? The algae are a polyphyletic and

paraphyletic group of organisms. They are defined in differing ways, but are usually

considered to be the photosynthetic organisms excepting plants.

4. Compare: On the LANDSCAPE tab, click on the cow to switch to the E. coli sample. On the
MICROSCOPE tab, select 2500x, focus the image and turn on Show labels.

A. Find two structures that help E. coli move and describe them below:

Name: flagellum Description: a long thin whip like structure

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 Name: pilus Description: short hair like structure
Do protists (amoeba, Euglena, Paramecium) use similar structures to move?

Explain. The paramecium has cilia, which are similar to pili because they both are
short and hair like. The Eugena also has flagella

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 Get the Gizmo ready:
Activity D:
 On the LANDSCAPE tab, select the worm to
Are cells alive? choose the Worm neuron sample.
 Select the TEST FOR LIFE tab.

Introduction: All organisms need energy from food to function. During cellular respiration,
cells use glucose from food to produce ATP, a molecule that stores energy for the cell, and
carbon dioxide (CO2). You can test for the products of respiration to see if your sample is alive.

Question: How can you test if cells are alive?

1. Observe: The first row of the dish contains an ATP reagent that will glow if ATP is in the
liquid. The second row of the dish contains phenol red, a reagent that turns orange when the
liquid is acidic. Each row of the dish contains an example of a positive test (positive control),
an example of a negative test (negative control), and the sample.

A. Click Play ( ). What happens?

B. Does the worm neuron sample produce ATP? How do you know? Yes, because it
was still alive

C. What happens to the phenol red? The worm dies

D. When CO2 combines with water it forms carbonic acid. How does this explain the

phenol red result? It kills the worm because it is an acid

E. Based on the test results, are the worm neurons alive? yes

2. On the LANDSCAPE tab, select the Maple leaf sample. Return to the TEST FOR LIFE tab.

A. Click Play. Does the maple leaf sample produce ATP? no

B. What happens to the phenol red? It turns green

In the light, plant leaves undergo photosynthesis, using CO2, water, and light energy
to produce food. In the dark, plants cannot perform photosynthesis.

C. Click Reset ( ), then click on the light switch to turn off the lights. Click Play to

run the experiment in the dark. What happens? The leaves turn red

D. Based on the test results, are maple leaves alive? no

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(Activity D continued on next page)

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Activity D (continued from previous page)

3. Collect data: Using the table below, select the sample on the LANDSCAPE tab. Perform the
experiment in the light on the TEST FOR LIFE tab. Turn off the light by clicking on the light
switch and perform the experiment again in the dark. Record the results below.

Sample Light - ATP Light Respiration Dark - ATP Dark - Respiration

E. coli yes yes yes No
Fungus yes yes yes no
Human skin yes yes no no
Maple leaf no yes yes no
Root hair no yes no no
Protists yes yes no no
Sand/silt no yes no no

Analyze: Which of the samples in the above table are alive? Fungus, human skin, maple
leafs, and sand

How do you know? Because they remained alive

4. Discuss: Based on the results of the experiment, which samples from the table above are

likely to undergo photosynthesis? E.coli, fungus, and root hair

How do you know? Because none of the, have an organelle that gives them food

5. Analyze: Small particles of silt are about the same size and shape as a cell.

A. Is silt alive? no

B. How do you know? Because when I tested them for life in the dark and in the light, it
tested negative

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