Beyond the Textbook: Biology 101: Cell Organelle Size Matters

We all go through school forced to learn useless information, but we students must learn. As a result, many of us turned to resources like Crash Course, Khan Academy, Extra Credits, and more to pass a test and move on. As a result, we leave high school and enter college feeling like we missed the lessons that matter most. This is J. J. Bartel, Author, Scientist, Historian, Gamer, and this is Beyond the Textbook for Biology 101.

If students do not ask for refunds after the scientific method and chemistry conundrum, they usually learn about cells next. Prokaryotic, Eukaryotic, plant, and animal cell parts and bits slammed into students fast, and eyes swirl about from the information tsunami. Most people learn at this point that ” The mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell.”. It is students desperate to parse apart the multitude of cell organelles that cling on to anything familiar. The meme is so beloved because it is a liferaft when drowning in all the information.

It is tempting to list the most common cell organelles, compare them to human or computer parts, and then say, “Cells are not so different from humans.” Comparing cells to ourselves is a biological classic, and this one loves the classics. However, it is best to start with microscopes to make valuable content.

In the 1400s and before that time, the best way to view the world was through the human eye. It was not until the 1500s that some form of microscope began to be designed and made. The first microscopes were not much more potent than a magnifying glass. Even then, it takes many years for microscopes to be made powerful enough to see some smaller bacterial or fungal cells. Putting aside what is in a cell, this outside observation of a basic microscope was powerful.

It allowed people to figure out that some cells were motile, that they moved about, and that others did not seem to move much. Cells, like bacteria, archaea, and some fungi, seemed to have things like flagella. These unique tails propel the organism forward. Some cells are round, while other cells are rod-like. Some cells seemingly vibrated and had this irregular look. Some cells survive in groups and packs. It is hard to find some cells alone; instead, multiple scores of cells touch and interact with each other. Many of these cells created chemicals that formed a protective slime barrier against predation or could help catch prey cells for consumption. Granted, one does not need a microscope to see slime, but not all slime is the same. Considering that even a weak microscope can reveal so much information beyond our sight, it begs the question, “What else will we find with stronger scopes?”

Looking at something like spoiled wine or pond water would reveal a scattered, moving, chaotic life. If one kept this material for a while, living organisms would persist. The visual was drastically different when looking at complex, multicellular life such as tree leaves or animal tissue. The order would stand out. Cells would be next to each other, and each was the same. Cells did not change unless the organism did. Tree leaves had a different look than the bark or the roots. Animal brains under microscopes look drastically different from muscle tissue. This is not to say that there was no cell variation. Some cells were small, while others were large, as if they were a fusion of cells. If looking at a piece of a healthy plant or animal part, the cells were unmoving. Worse, the cut material often dies, so these cells cannot survive outside that order.

Over time, people figured out that some cells survive alone, and others need to be together. It was not until much later, with much more powerful microscopes, that one could begin to see inside the cells. This is when many aspects of cells begin to make sense. The skin of cells would become known as the phospholipid bilayer, a double layer of phosphorous and fat. The large nucleus manages the cell. Mitochondria and chloroplasts are the powerhouses of cells. Chloroplast bundles could appear bright green, while mitochondria can be easily dyed and seen under a lens. That is mostly transparent but slightly opaque fluid between everything else that gets called cytoplasm. What else could we know if we got an even stronger microscope?

People wondered if a more powerful microscope could see even more inner workings of the cell. Inventions and innovations like scanning electron microscopes and more powerful cameras allowed scientists to see new levels of detail. With significant scientific advancements, we can find organelles like the Golgi Apparatus and the Endoplasmic Reticulum or E.R. The E.R. has two significant sides, the smooth, which absorbs toxins, poisons, and chunks of viral RNA to break down into something harmless. The rough E.R. is rough because of the ribosomes that make things for the cell. These ribosome products are often sent to the Golgi Apparatus for further modification. This one remembered Golgi. That apparatus is like a cell heart. Much like how animal hearts pump blood all over the body, the Golgi Apparatus also sends chemicals to the various parts of the cell.

I could go on, but the point sticks. Everyone likes to compare cell organelles to humans or computers. Having some equivalents can help people understand the material for the first exam in a course. That ignores an essential aspect of cell biology. The bigger, general cell aspects were discovered first. We knew of cell shapes, movement, and slime first. The small specifics are the final details that scientists discovered. In life, you can not deal with the details if you do not deal with the big picture. We could only discover mitochondria or chloroplasts if we first discover cells. If you want to understand something, start with the big idea, as general as you can. Only after exploring the general idea can one deal with specifics. Learning to start large, then going small is an idea that is the powerhouse of your mind.

If you thought this was helpful, I have a book, The Lost Soul of Scholastic Study, available on Amazon, and until next time cultivate some greatness.