• 1. Identify whether it is a?prokaryotic or eukaryotic?cell - is a?nucleus?present
  2. Identify which eukaryotic cell it is (plant or animal) by looking for a?cell wall?or?vacuole
  3. Identify the?organelles present?in the cells and consider their functionWhen interpreting electron micrographs to deduce the function of the cell it is important to:

Electron micrograph of cell 1

• The cell had a?nucleus?- it is a?eukaryotic cell
• This cell did?not have?a?cell wall?or?central vacuole?- it is an?animal cell
• The cell has a?large u-shape nucleus?- it can manipulate itself through small pores
• There are a large number of?lysosomes?in the cell - it can?digest substances?found within the cell
• There are a large number of?mitochondria?- it has sufficient?energy?for the many metabolic reactions
• The deduction, therefore, is that this cell needs a lot of energy to break down substances that enter the cell and that it can move where it wants. This cell is a?macrophage

Electron micrograph of cell 2

• The cell had a?nucleus?- it is a?eukaryotic cell
• This cell did?not have?a?cell wall?or?central vacuole?- it is an?animal cell
• There are a?large number of mitochondria?- it requires significant energy for?many metabolic reactions
• The cell has?microvilli?packed closely together (brush border) - it needs to?increase the surface area?and prevent any substance from crossing into the cell
• The deduction, therefore, is that this cell needs a lot of energy to control what enters or exits this cell and that the cell requires a lot of the substance to be absorbed. This cell is a?ciliated epithelium of the small intestine