Investigation- TEK 4A
Prokaryotes vs Eukaryotes; Ashley Benhayoun: McDowell P7
Prokaryotic cell
Eukaryotic Cell
What did I do?
For Tek 4A, I needed to compare and contrast eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells. In this lab, I found two pictures of a prokaryotic and eukaryotic cell under a microscope. I did this in order to see what was similar and what was completely different between the two cells. I stated my observations and conclusions below.
What did I see/learn?
Under a microscope, I got to see the structures of a eukaryotic and prokaryotic cell. The first thing I noticed was that the eukaryotic cell had a big, dark dot in the middle, which meant it was the nucleus. This is something prokaryotic cells don’t have, while eukaryotic cells always have this. I also saw that the nucleus had a white blob surrounding it which was the nucleolus, which is something prokaryotes don’t have. In the prokaryotic cell, I saw a white blob in the middle was was the nucleoid. This contains all or most of the prokaryotic cell’s genetic material, and eukaryotes do not have this organelle. The prokaryotic cell in this picture could have had a capsule, but otherwise, this is an structure that eukaryotic cells lack. Also, the eukaryotes are the only ones that have a mitochondria, which can be seen in the picture. When observing, I could see that they were similar in some ways. The eukaryote and prokaryote both have ribosomes all over their cells. They both also have cell membranes, but the prokaryote lacks membrane bound organelles which the eukaryote has.