Difference Between Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic Cells

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2/26/2017 DifferenceBetweenProkaryoticandEukaryoticCells|Structure,Characteristics,Comparison
http://pediaa.com/differencebetweenprokaryoticandeukaryoticcells/ 1/11
Home»Science»Biology»CellBiology»DifferenceBetweenProkaryoticandEukaryoticCells
DifferenceBetweenProkaryoticandEukaryotic
Cells
February25,2017 •byLakna •7minread
0
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MainDifference–Prokaryoticvs
EukaryoticCells
All living organisms can be divided into prokaryotes and
eukaryotes. Bacteria and archaea belong to prokaryotes.
Eukaryotes are the organisms in kingdom protista, fungi,
plantae and animalia. Prokaryotic cells don’t have possess
nucleus,nuclearmembranesandnucleoli.Buteukaryoticcells
consist of a true nucleus enclosed by two membranes. Thus,
thekeydifferencebetweenprokaryoticandeukaryoticcellsisthatprokaryoticcellsarelackingmembranebound
organellesincludingnucleuswhileeukaryoticcellsconsistofmembraneboundorganellesincludinganucleus.
Thisarticlelooksat,
1.WhatareProkaryoticCells
–StructureandCharacteristics
2.WhatareEukaryoticCells
–StructureandCharacteristics
3.WhatisthedifferencebetweenProkaryoticandEukaryoticCells
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2/26/2017 DifferenceBetweenProkaryoticandEukaryoticCells|Structure,Characteristics,Comparison
http://pediaa.com/differencebetweenprokaryoticandeukaryoticcells/ 2/11
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2/26/2017 DifferenceBetweenProkaryoticandEukaryoticCells|Structure,Characteristics,Comparison
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WhatareProkaryoticCells
Unicellularorganismswhichdon’thavemembraneboundorganelleslikenucleusandmitochondriaarereferredtoas
prokaryoticcells.Theseorganismsaredividedintotwogroupsdependingonthecomponentsofthecellwall:Bacteria
and Archaea. In prokaryotes, the cell membrane encloses watersoluble proteins, DNA and metabolites in the
cytoplasm.Theydonotpossessseparatecompartments,butmicrocompartmentsactasprimitiveorganelleswhichare
createdbyproteinshells.
Mostprokaryotesare0.2to2µminsize.Fourtypesofshapescanbeidentifiedinbacteria:sphericalshaped(cocci),
rodshaped(bacilli),spiralshaped(spirochaete) and commashaped (vibrio). Cyanobacteria also form largecolonies
andmyxobacteria containingmulticellularstages inthelife cycle.Bacteriaconsistofaprimitivecytoskeletonanda
cell wall made up of peptidoglycan: a polymer of linked carbohydrates and small proteins. Cell wall provides
protectiontothecell,maintainstheshapeandpreventsdehydration.Somebacteriapossessanoutermostlayercalled
capsulewhichissticky,helpingthecelltoattachtosurfaces.Flagella,awipelikestructurehelptomovebyactingas
arotormotor.Ontheotherhand,fimbriae,anumeroushairlikestructurealsohelptheattachment.
Somebacteriaconsistofaglycocalyxwhichcoversthecellmembranesurroundings.Bacterialcytoplasmisagellike
substancewhichdissolvesavarietyoforganicmoleculestogetherwithcellularcomponents.Small70Sribosomesare
present for the protein synthesis. Genomic DNA is found in a region called nucleoid in the cytoplasm. Bacteria
consist of a single circular chromosome. Some DNA pieces are found in the cytoplasm as circular plasmids. The
structureofaprokaryoticcellisshowninfigure1.
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2/26/2017 DifferenceBetweenProkaryoticandEukaryoticCells|Structure,Characteristics,Comparison
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Figure1:ProkaryoticCellStructure
Both bacteria and archaea exhibit asexual reproduction via binary fission. Bacterial gene transfer occurs in three
methods: transduction mediated by bacteriophages, conjugation mediated by plasmids, and natural transformation.
Thisiscalledhorizontalgenetransfer.Rodlikestructurescalledpiliallowthegenetictransfer.Archaealgenetransfer
occursthroughcytoplasmicbridges.
Sinceprokaryotes consist of great diversity,they obtain energy from inorganiccompoundslike hydrogen sulfide in
additiontothephotosynthesisandorganiccompounds.TheycanalsobealiveinharshconditionssuchasAntarctica
snowsurfaces, hot springs and undersea hydrothermal vents. Archaea are extremophiles, livingin extremes ofpH,
temperatureandradiation.Eukaryotesarethoughttobeevolvedfromprokaryotes.
WhatareEukaryoticCells
Eukaryotes are unicellular or multicellular organisms,
which have membraneenclosed organelles such as
specially nucleus, mitochondria, golgi apparatus and
chloroplasts in plants. Multicellular eukaryotes contain
specialized tissues made by different types of cells.
Eukaryotes can be identified under four kingdoms:
KingdomProtista, Kingdom Plantae, KingdomFungi, and
KingdomAnimalia.
Aeukaryoticcellislargerinsize(10to100µm)compared
to prokaryotes. In eukaryotes, various cell types such as
animalcells,plantcellsandfungalcellscanbeidentified.Eukaryoticcytoskeletonis composed of microfilaments,
microtubulesandintermediatefilaments.Itplaysavitalroleincellularorganizationanditsshape.Plantsandfungi
possessacellwallmadeupofcellulose,hemicellulose,pectinandchitinrespectively.
Eukaryotic cells are composed of a variety of membranebound organelles. The nucleus is enclosed by two
membranescalled nuclearenvelop.Nuclearmembrane formstheendoplasmicreticulum(ER)whichisinvolved in
proteinmaturation and transportation.Ribosomes are large, 80S in size and they are bound to the ER. Ribosome
boundERisreferredtoasroughER.Vesiclesarepresentfor thetransformationof variousmoleculeswithin thecell
such as golgi bodies, lysosomes and peroxizomes. Mitochondria is also surrounded by two phospholipid bilayers.
TheycovertsugarintoATPstoutilizeasenergy.Plantcellscontainchloroplastsforthephotosynthesis.Thestructure
ofatypicalplantcellisshowninfigure2.
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2/26/2017 DifferenceBetweenProkaryoticandEukaryoticCells|Structure,Characteristics,Comparison
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Figure2:Plantcellstructure
Usually,eukaryotesarecomposedofmorethanonechromosomesinthe nucleus.Thesechromosomesarelinearand
most of the times they exist in multiple copies called homologous. Eukaryotes reproduce either asexually through
mitosisorsexuallythroughmeiosisfollowedbythefusionofgametes.
DifferenceBetweenProkaryoticAndEukaryoticCells
Definition
ProkaryoticCell:Prokaryoticcellsdon’tpossessnucleusandmembraneboundorganelles.
EukaryoticCell:Eukaryoticcellspossessmembraneboundorganellesincludingthenucleus.
Sizeofthecell
ProkaryoticCell:Thesecellsarenormally0.2to2µmindiameter.
EukaryoticCell:Thesecellsarenormally10to100µmindiameter.
Nucleus
ProkaryoticCell:Prokaryoticcellshavenotruenucleus,nonuclearmembranesornucleoli.
EukaryoticCell:Eukaryoticcellsconsistofatruenucleuswithnuclearmembranesandnucleoli.
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Prokaryotic Cell:Prokaryotic cells consist of single, circular DNA molecule in the nucleoid, They don’t have
histonesorexons.
EukaryoticCell:Eukaryoticcellsconsistofmultiple,linearchromosomesinthenucleus.TheycontainHistones,and
exons.
MembraneboundOrganelles
ProkaryoticCell:Prokaryoticcellsdonothavemembraneboundorganelles.
EukaryoticCell:Membraneboundorganellessuchasmitochondria,chloroplast,ERandvesiclesarepresent.
Flagella
ProkaryoticCell:Flagellaaremadeupoftwoproteins.
EukaryoticCell:Somecellswithoutcellwallcontainflagella.
Glycocalyx
ProkaryoticCell:Glycocalyxactsasacapsule.
EukaryoticCell:Someeukaryoticcellsthatdon’thavecellwallspossessaglycocalyx.
CellWall
ProkaryoticCell:Prokaryoticcellsaremostlymadeupofpeptidoglycans.Theyarechemicallycomplex.
Eukaryotic Cell:Eukaryotic cells are made up of cellulose, chitin and pectin. Prokaryotic cells are chemically
simple.
PlasmaMembrane
ProkaryoticCell:Carbohydratesandsterolsarenotfoundintheplasmamembrane.
EukaryoticCell:Carbohydratesandsterolsservesasreceptorsontheplasmamembrane.
Cytoplasm
ProkaryoticCell:Prokaryoticcellsareprimitivecytoskeletonwithnocytoplasmicstreaming.
EukaryoticCell:Eukaryoticcellshavecomplexcytoskeletonwithcytoplasmicstreaming.
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Ribosomes
ProkaryoticCell:Prokaryoticcellsaresmallinsize,70S.
EukaryoticCell: Eukaryotic cells arelargein size, 80S.70Sribosomesarepresentinorganelleslikemitochondria
andchloroplast.
CellDivision
ProkaryoticCell:Celldivisionoccursthroughbinaryfission.
EukaryoticCell:Celldivisiontakesplacethroughmitosis.
SexualReproduction
ProkaryoticCell:Nosexualreproduction,horizontalgenetransferandrecombinationcanbeobserved.
EukaryoticCell:Sexualreproductionhappensthroughmeiosis.
Examples
ProkaryoticCell:Bacteriaandarchaeaareexamples
EukaryoticCell:Protista,fungi,plantsandanimalsareexamples.
Conclusion
Prokaryoticcellstransporttheir metabolites through the cytoplasm, but eukaryotic cells consistofdifferentkindsof
vesiclestotransportdifferentmetabolites.Proteinsynthesis in eukaryotic cells occurs in 80Sribosomesattachedto
theER.Synthesisedpolynucleotidechainsenter the ER. Protein folding and transportation intovariouspartsofthe
cellaremaintainedbytheER.Therefore,thekeydifferencebetweenprokaryoticandeukaryoticcellsstemsfromthe
presenceorabsenceofthenucleusandthemembraneboundorganelles.
Reference:
1.“Prokaryote”.Wikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia,2017.Accessed22Feb2017
2.“Prokaryoticcells”.KHANACEDAMY,2017.Accessed22Feb2017
3.“Eukaryote”.Wikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia,2017.Accessed22Feb2017
4.“Eukaryoticcells”.LearnScienceatScitable,NatureEducation,2017.Accessed22Feb2017
ImageCourtesy:
1.“Averageprokaryotecellen.svg”.ByMarianaRuizVillarreal,LadyofHats–Ownwork(PublicDomain)via
CommonsWikimedia
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AbouttheAuthor:Lakna
Lakna,agraduateinMolecularBiology&Biochemistry,isaMolecularBiologistandhasa
broadandkeeninterestinthediscoveryofnaturerelatedthings
2.“Plantcellstructureen.svg”.ByLadyofHats–SelfmadeusingAdobeIllustrator(PublicDomain)viaCommons
Wikimedia
0
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