CELL DIVERSITY pp. 72-73

Why are cells so small?

Volume increases quicker than the surface area can keep up

What does this mean for the cell?

Cell size

What does this mean for the cell? INCREASES SURFACE AREA The smaller the volume the more surface area to do work Increases amount of membrane available to do work I.E. Chloroplast: more area to absorb sunlight

DECREASES OVERALL SIZE Distance to center increases as cell size increases Difficulty exchanging materials (such as nutrients, oxygen, and waste products) across the cell or in and out of the cell

Compartmentalization Eukaryotes are much bigger than prokaryotes and require organelles to do a specific job to maintain homeostasis These organelles are membrane bound and have a higher surface area to do work EX. Mitochondria or the endoplasmic reticulum

Types of Cells Cells have become specialized (i.e. epithelial vs nerve cell) to do a specific job in the body The cell shape is related to function of the cell