Comparing Cells
Prelab Summary
What are cells?
1. Fill in the name and function of the structures and label the cells.
2. “Plants and animals obtain food in different ways.” What microscope evidence would you
use to prove this statement?
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3. What is the purpose of staining?
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4. What characteristics do all cells have in common? (List as many as you can)
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5. Describe the procedure for making a wet mount.
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Comparing Cells
Plant cells and animal cells share many structures. However, each cell type has some unique
characteristics. In this lab, you will use the microscope to examine and compare cells from
different organisms.
Problem
What do plant and animal cells have in common?
Materials
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Five microscope slides
Thinly sliced onion pieces
Eye dropper
Methylene blue
5 cover slips
Microscope
Prepared slides of human cheek cells
Elodea
Amoeba Cells
Euglena Cells
cork
Procedure
1. Refer to p.R9 in your textbook if you need to review instructions
on using a microscope and making a wet mount.
Station 1: Cork
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Using the precut pieces of cork, place a piece on a microscope slide and cover with a
cover slip.
Observe the thinnest edge of the cork you can find
Record your observations and drawings in Table 1
Station 2: Onion Cells
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Using the forceps, peel a thin strip of onion skin from the inner concave section of the
onion
Place a drop of water on the microscope slide. Place the onion skin flat in the drop of
water.
Cover the onion skin with a cover slip and stain with Methylene Blue.
Find the cells under low power and observe under medium power.
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Record your observations and drawings in Table 1
Station 3: Elodea Leaf Cells
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Remove a Leaf from near the growing tip of the Elodea Plant. The leaf should be bright
green.
Place the leaf in a drop of water on a clean slide. Cover with a cover slip.
Examine under low and medium magnification. Observe the large green chloroplasts
and other structures within the plant cell.
You may notice movement inside of some of the Elodea cells. This movement is call
cytoplasmic streaming.
Record your observations and drawings in Table 1
Station 4: Human Cheek Cells
- Place the prepared human cheek cell slide on the microscope
- Observe under low and medium powers
- Record your observations and drawings in Table 1
Station 5: Amoeba Cells
- Using a pipet, take four or five drops from the bottom of the Amoeba culture and place
them on a clean slide.
- Cover with a cover slip
- Observe them under low and medium magnification.
- Record your observations and drawings in Table 1
Station 6: Euglena Cells
- Using a pipet, take one drop from the Euglena culture and place on a clean slide.
- Cover with a cover slip.
- Observe under low and medium powers.
- Record your observations and drawings in Table 1
Station 7: Euglena Cells
- Place on drop of protoslo solution on a clean slide
- Add two drops of the Euglena culture to the protoslo, mix with a tooth pick and add a
cover slip.
- Observe under low, medium, and high power.
- Record your observations and drawings in Table 1
Table 1:
Comparison of Plant and Animal Cells
Observations
Cork Cells
Onion Cells
Elodea Cheek Cells
Human Cheek Cells
Amoeba Cells
Euglena Cells
Euglena Cells with
Protoslo
Drawings
Analysis
1. Contrast the unique characteristics of each cell type.
2. What type of cells did you examine, eukaryotic or prokaryotic? Explain your answer.
3. Why do you think it was necessary to add the methylene blue to the slides? What effect
did it have on the onion cells?
4. How are Elodea similar to onion cells? Which organelles were present in the Elodea that
were not present in the onion?
5. What structures are present in human cheek cells that are also present in onion cells?
What structures are different?
6. Do you see cytoplasmic streaming in the Amoeba? What might be the purpose of this?
How does it relate to movement?
7. How does the locomotion of the Euglena differ from the Amoeba?
8. Describe how a Euglena is both plan and animal like.