Eukaryotes and prokaryotes — AQA GCSE Biology
Test yourself on Eukaryotes and prokaryotes with AQA GCSE practice questions.
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Eukaryotes and prokaryotes explained
Eukaryotic cells are the building blocks of plants, animals, fungi and protists.
Read the full explanation
Every one is bounded by a partially permeable cell membrane that controls what enters and leaves. Inside is cytoplasm, a watery jelly where most chemical reactions of the cell happen. The genetic material, DNA, sits inside a nucleus bounded by its own membrane, so the DNA is separated from the cytoplasm. This shared plan explains why plant and animal cells look similar under a light microscope: both show a nucleus, cytoplasm and membrane. Plant cells add a cellulose cell wall, a permanent vacuole and chloroplasts, but these are extra features, not part of the definition of a eukaryote. A cheek cell and a root hair cell both fit this description.
Your focus
- Label the cell membrane, cytoplasm and nucleus on diagrams of plant and animal cells.
- State the function of each of these three structures.
- Explain why plant and animal cells are classified as eukaryotic.
Eukaryotes and prokaryotes exam tips
Marking Points
- Names the cell membrane as the partially permeable boundary controlling entry and exit of substances.
- Identifies cytoplasm as the site of most chemical reactions in the cell.
- States that eukaryotic genetic material is DNA.
- States that the genetic material is enclosed within a nucleus bounded by a membrane.
- Applies the term eukaryotic to plant and animal cells and distinguishes them from prokaryotes.
- Recognises that plant cells also contain a cell wall, vacuole and chloroplasts, while animal cells do not.
Examiner Tips
- 💡Label a diagram with straight lines that touch the structure, and spell membrane and cytoplasm correctly.
- 💡When asked for differences, compare plant and animal cells feature by feature rather than listing one cell type alone.
- 💡Use the word eukaryotic only after you have named the nucleus, so the term is clearly earned.
Common Mistakes
- Saying the cell wall controls what enters the cell; correct this by naming the cell membrane as the controlling boundary and the wall as support.
- Describing the nucleus as the site of chemical reactions; correct this by placing reactions in the cytoplasm and giving the nucleus the role of holding genetic material.
- Treating chloroplasts or a vacuole as features of all eukaryotic cells; correct this by restricting those structures to plant cells.