Overview of Organisms & Diversity

Prokaryotes Prokaryotes are thought the earth’s oldest organisms They are the most abundant ones. Bacteria are prokaryotes. Prokaryotes are also the most metabolically diverse of all living organisms. There are two structurally and metabolically different groups of bacteria. They are so different that they are in separate kingdoms.  Archaebacteria and Eubacteria are different from each other in many ways:  Eubacteria have cell walls made of peptidoglycan, archaebacteria do not.  The plasma membranes of archaebacteria contain lipids not found in any other living thing.  The gene translation machinery of archaebacteria is similar to eukaryotes, but not eubacteria.  Examples of archaebacteria are methanogens, halophiles or thermophiles.

Eukaryotes Most eukaryotes have mitochondria. The theory of endosymbiosis proposes that mitochondria are the descendents of symbiotic, aerobic eubacteria that entered larger cells and then stayed there as symbionts. Eukaryotes contain a membrane- bound nucleus, internal membranes, and organelles such as mitochondria and chloroplasts. Another characteristic that distinguishes eukaryotes from prokaryotes is division of the nucleus by mitosis.

Evolution of Sexual Reproduction Asexual reproduction is primitive and prevalent. The oldest eukaryotes reproduce asexually. In a stable environment, asexual reproduction produces many identical offspring in a short time. Asexual reproduction is also advantageous because no energy is spent finding a mate. Sexual reproduction has advantages. Sexual reproduction provides a way to shuffle genetic material and increase genetic variability in the offspring. Genetic diversity is the raw material of evolution. It appears that sexual reproduction first evolved as a way to repair damaged DNA strands. Eukaryotes have life cycles. Many protists are haploid. Animals and most plants are diploid, and produce haploid gametes.

Multicellularity Unicellular organisms have limits on their size. As a cell grows, it reaches a point where there is too little surface area to meet the needs of the cell’s volume. Multicellular organisms are made of many cells that are permanently associated with each other, each with a special function. The advantage of multicellularity is that it allows cells to become specialized. True multicellularity only occurs in eukaryotes. § In multicellular organisms, cells are grouped into tissues, tissues into organs, organs into organ systems, and finally systems into the organism. CellsTissuesOrgansOrgan SystemsOrganism

Kingdom Archaebacteria Characteristics of archaebacteria:  All are unicellular prokaryotes.  Cell walls lack peptidoglycan.  Genes have introns.  Their plasma membranes contain lipids that are not found in any other living things.  They may be either autotrophic or heterotrophic.  They may be the ancestors of eukaryotic cells.  Living archaebacteria are divided into three groups that live in extreme environments: halophiles, thermophiles and acidophiles. Cell wall without peptidoglycan Plasma membrane Genetic material Cytoplasm with ribosomes

Kingdom Eubacteria Characteristics of eubacteria:  All are unicellular prokaryotes.  Cell walls contain peptidoglycan.  Genes lack introns.  All reproduce asexually by binary fission.  They may be either autotrophic or heterotrophic. Some are photosynthetic.  Extremely diversified groups  Certain types may be ancestors of mitochondria and chloroplasts. Genetic material Cytoplasm with ribosomes Cell wall with peptidoglycan Plasma membrane

Kingdom Protista  Characteristics of protists:  All are eukaryotic.  Most are unicellular, but some are multicellular.  Protists can be autotrophic, heterotrophic, or both at the same time.  All reproduce asexually, but some can also reproduce sexually.

Kingdom Fungi  Characteristics of fungi:  All are eukaryotic.  Most are multicellular, but some are unicellular.  Cell walls are made of chitin, not cellulose.  Fungi have filamentous bodies called hyphae.  They are all heterotrophs with external digestion of food. They serve as primary decomposers.  Fungi reproduce either sexually or asexually.

Examples of fungi Common names of fungi with pictures

Kingdom Plantae  Characteristics of plants:  All plants are eukaryotic.  All plants are multicellular.  All plant cells have cell walls made of cellulose.  Most consist of two basic parts: roots and shoots.  Most plants are terrestrial and photosynthetic autotrophs.  Plants have evolved highly specialized structures for reproduction and survival on land.  Plants reproduce sexually, although some can also reproduce asexually.

Kingdom Animalia  Characteristics of animals:  All animals are eukaryotes.  All are multicellular with cells that lack cell walls.  Most reproduce sexually.  All are heterotrophs with internal digestion of food.  Animals have specialized tissues for movement and reaction to stimuli.  Animals inhabit nearly every kind of environment in the biosphere.