Cell Structures Flashcards
(218 cards)
List the units of length from largest to smallest (with symbol and equivalent in metres)
Describe the one limitation of a light microscope
- long wavelength of light = only distinguish 2 objects if they are 0.2µm apart
How can the limitations of a light microscope be overcome
electron microscope
- uses beam of electrons because of their shorter wavelengths
- therefore you can distinguish objects 0.1nm apart
What is the object
The material under the microscope
What is the image
The appearance of the material when viewed through the microscope
What is the magnification
How many times bigger the image is when compared to the object
What is the equation to work out size of image
Size of image = magnification x Size of real object
What is the resolution, or resolving power
the minimum distance apart that 2 objects can be in order for them to appear as separate items
What does the resolving power depend on
- The wavelength or form of radiation used
What is the resolving power for a typical light microscope
0.2 µm
—> closer than that = will appear as a single item
Does increasing magnification always increase resolution
No
what is cell fractionation
the process where cells are broken up and the different organelles they contain are separated
why is potato homogenised using a cold, isotonic buffer
- Cold: reduce enzyme activity that could break down organelles
- Isotonic: stop water levels being too high/low which would cause organelles to burst/shrink
- buffered: so pH doesn’t fluctuate (changes in pH could alter structure of organelles or affect functionality of enzymes)
what are the 2 stages of cell fractionation
- Homogenation
- Ultracentrifugation
What happens during Homogenation
- cells are broken up by homogeniser (blender)
- releasing organelles from cells
- the resultant fluid = homogenate
- which is then filtered to remove any complete cells and large pieces of debris
where does ultracentrifugation happen
fragments in homogenate are separated in a machine called a centrifuge
what does a centrifuge do
spins tubes of homogenate at high speeds in order to create a centrifugal force
describe the ultracentrifugation process for animal cells
- Tube of filtrate is placed in centrifuge and spun at a slow speed
- heaviest organelles (nuclei) are forced to the bottom of the tube, forming a thin sediment/pellet
- fluid at top of tube (supernatant) is removed, leaving just the sediment of nuclei
the removed supernatant is transferred to another tube and spun faster than before - next heaviest organelle (mitochondria) are forced to the bottom of the tube
- This process continues in a way that at each increase in speed the next heaviest organelle is sedimented and separated out.
what is the speed of centrifugation/ revolutions min-1 for:
- nuclei to be separated
- mitochondria to be separated
- lysosomes to be separated
- nuclei: 1 000
- Mitochondria: 3 500
- Lysosomes: 16 500
why has cell fractionation and ultracentrifugation been useful
allowed detailed study if structure and function or organelles by showing what isolated components do
why are light microscopes considered to have a poor resolution
light has a relatively long wavelength
what are the 2 main advantages of electron microscopes
- electron beam has a shorter wavelength and the microscope can therefore resolve objects well = it has a high resolving power
- electrons are - charge = the charged beam can be focused using electromagnets
what is one of the main disadvantages of an electron microscope
Because electrons are absorbed or deflected by the molecules in the air, a near vacuum has to be created within the chamber of the electron microscope