1. Ch 2.1 Unicellular Organisms

2. Unicellular Organisms living things made of a single cell – usually smaller than a speck of dust – live everywhere that can sustain life water, soil, in or on multicellular organisms – while simple, unicellular organisms still perform basic activities such as: move, eat, respond to stimuli, reproduce, and expel waste that results from cellular activity

3. Examples of Unicellular Organisms phytoplankton – live in the oceans and contain chlorophyll to convert the sun’s energy into food – provide most of the oxygen in the Earth’s atmosphere – are the foundation of the ocean’s food chain

4. Examples of Unicellular Organisms bacteria – decomposers that complete the cycling of matter by converting nitrogen in soil into a form of nitrogen that can support plant life

5. How Unicellular Organisms Move paramecia – use tiny hairs, called cilia, that act like oars and propel the organism along cilia

6. How Unicellular Organisms Move E. coli bacteria – move by rotating a flagellum that looks like a tail flagellum

7. The Amoeba thrive in water-based environments – in fresh or salt water – in wet, decaying vegetation – in wet soil – in other living organisms (including us!)

8. The Amoeba similar to typical animal cells – surrounded by a selectively permeable cell membrane – contain nucleus (or nuclei), cytoplasm, food vacuoles, and a special vacuole that pumps water out of the cell to prevent it from bursting – water enters the amoeba by osmosis – oxygen diffuses into the organism, while carbon dioxide waste diffuses out of the organism

9. The Amoeba can be carnivorous, herbivorous, or omnivorous predators – preying upon organisms such as bacteria and algae catch prey by changing shape to surround its prey – “amoeba” comes for the Greek word meaning change

10. The Amoeba amoeba eating two paramacia – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvOz4V699gk http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvOz4V699gk as the amoeba engulfs its prey, the food it has engulfed becomes a food vacuole. Enzymes digest the food, the amoeba absorbs the nutrients, and the vacuole disappears waste is eliminated through the cell membrane