1 Cells: an introduction.- 1.1 Introduction.- 1.2 Microscopy.- 1.3 Structure of cells.- 1.4 Classification of organisms by cell structure.- 1.5 The cell membrane.- 1.6 Membrane compartments.- 1.7 The cytosol.- 1.8 Compartmentation of eukaryotic cells.- 1.9 Cell fractionation.- 1.10 Overview.- 2 Bacteria and viruses.- 2.1 Introduction.- 2.2 Eubacteria.- 2.3 Archaea or Archaebacteria.- 2.4 Viruses.- 2.5 Viroids.- 2.6 Prions.- 2.7 Bacteria and viruses in biochemical research.- 2.8 Overview.- 3 Cell culture and biotechnology.- 3.1 Introduction.- 3.2 The beginnings of animal and plant cell culture.- 3.3 Animal cell culture.- 3.4 Plant cell culture.- 3.5 The scale-up of animal and plant cell cultures.- 3.6 Animal cell products.- 3.7 Plant cell products.- 3.8 Overview.- 4 Chromatin and the nucleus.- 4.1 Introduction.- 4.2 Transformation in Streptococcus pneumoniae.- 4.3 The Hershey and Chase experiment.- 4.4 Tobacco mosaic virus.- 4.5 Evidence that DNA is the genetic material in eukaryotes.- 4.6 Exploiting DNA as the genetic material.- 4.7 The nucleoid.- 4.8 The nucleus.- 4.9 The nucleolus.- 4.10 Origin of the nucleus.- 4.11 Overview.- 5 Biological membranes.- 5.1 Introduction.- 5.2 Chemical components of biological membranes.- 5.3 Organization and fluidity of membrane components.- 5.4 Junctions between cells.- 5.5 The membrane as a dynamic entity.- 5.6 Cell signalling and cell recognition.- 5.7 Membrane transport.- 5.8 Overview.- 6 Mitochondria and chloroplasts.- 6.1 Introduction.- 6.2 Energy transduction pathways in mitochondria and chloroplasts.- 6.3 Mitochondria.- 6.4 Chloroplasts.- 6.5 Biogenesis of mitochondria and chloroplasts.- 6.6 Evolutionary origins of mitochondria and chloroplasts.- 6.7 Overview.- 7 The cytoskeleton.- 7.1 Introduction.- 7.2 A brief history.- 7.3 The isolation and characterization of cytoskeletal proteins.- 7.4 Microfilaments.- 7.5 Intermediate filaments.- 7.6 Microtubules.- 7.7 The erythrocyte cytoskeleton.- 7.8 Movement of cells during the embryonic development of animals.- 7.9 Concluding remarks.- 7.10 Overview.- 8 The extracellular matrix.- 8.1 Introduction.- 8.2 Composition and structural diversity.- 8.3 The fibrous proteins.- 8.4 The ground substance.- 8.5 Extracellular matrix diversity.- 8.6 Focal adhesions: specialized cytoskeleton-extracellular matrix associations.- 8.7 Molecules that mediate cell adhesion.- 8.8 Membrane receptors for extracellular matrix macromolecules.- 8.9 Cell movement and matrix interaction.- 8.10 Regulation of receptor expression and function.- 8.11 Reciprocity, gene expression and cell shape.- 8.12 Overview.- 9 Eukaryotic cell walls.- 9.1 Introduction.- 9.2 Cell walls of flowering plants.- 9.3 Algal and protist cell walls.- 9.4 Fungal cells walls.- 9.5 Overview.- 10 Animal hormones and local mediators.- 10.1 Introduction.- 10.2 Structure and classification of animal hormones and local mediators.- 10.3 Structures of receptors in the cell membrane for hormones and local mediators.- 10.4 Cyclic AMP as a second messenger.- 10.5 Signalling by cyclic GMP: atrial naturetic peptides and nitric oxide.- 10.6 Inositol trisphosphate and diacylglycerol as second messengers.- 10.7 Receptors signalling through tyrosine phosphorylation.- 10.8 Steroid hormones penetrate the cell membrane.- 10.9 Overview.- 11 Plant hormones.- 11.1 Introduction.- 11.2 Biosynthesis and general effects of major plant hormones.- 11.3 Mechanisms of plant hormone action.- 11.4 Second messengers.- 11.5 Other plant growth regulators.- 11.6 Interactive effects of plant hormones.- 11.7 Overview.- 12 Nerves, neurotransmitters and their receptors.- 12.1 Introduction.- 12.2 Resting potential.- 12.3 Action potential.- 12.4 Synaptic transmission, neurotransmitters and receptors.- 12.5 The generation of action potentials by sensory stimuli.- 12.6 Overview.- 13 Muscle contraction.- 13.1 Introduction.- 13.2 The cell biology of skeletal muscle.- 13.3 Other muscle types.- 13.4 Structural proteins of muscle.- 13.5 Energetics of muscle contraction.- 13.6 The role of Ca2+ in the regulation of muscle contraction and metabolism.- 13.7 Factors controlling muscle gene expression.- 13.8 Overview.- 14 Immunological defence.- 14.1 Introduction.- 14.2 Specificity of the immune response.- 14.3 Non-specific immunity.- 14.4 Specific immunity.- 14.5 The structure and function of antibodies.- 14.6 Cells and tissues of the specific immune response.- 14.7 Clonal selection.- 14.8 Antigen-presenting cells.- 14.9 Receptors on B and T lymphocytes.- 14.10 The major histocompatibility complex.- 14.11 Diversity of the immune response.- 14.12 Overview.- 15 Differentiation and development.- 15.1 Introduction.- 15.2 Stages of development in animals.- 15.3 Development in plants.- 15.4 Species used in the study of development.- 15.5 Totipotency, gene activity and differentiation.- 15.6 Determination, differentiation and developmental genetics.- 15.7 Positional information and the formation of pattern.- 15.8 Cell lineage studies.- 15.9 Cell differentiation and development in the nervous system.- 15.10 Overview.- 16 The cell cycle and cell death.- 16.1 Introduction.- 16.2 The cell cycle.- 16.3 Cell death.- 16.4 Overview.- Answers to questions.