Using a Microscope to See Different Types of Cells

All organisms are made up of cells - a cell is the simplest collection of

matter that can live. Most cells are very small, so we need to use a
microscope to see them.

Each cell can live alone, doing everything it needs, or it can live
together with other cells by forming many-celled organisms like humans,
other animals, and plants. Our bodies consist of more than a billion cells,
with each type of cell having its own special function. All the different cells
communicate and cooperate with each other to accomplish all the functions
that our bodies need. In contrast, there are organisms called Protists that
are single-celled organisms and do all the different functions that are needed
to live.

In this lab, we will be using a microscope to look at different types of

cells. A microscope (micro = tiny or small; scope = to see) is really just two
magnifiers or lenses working together. The objective lens (near the object)
is down near the slide and the other is inside the cylinder that you look into
(it is called the eyepiece, being near your eye). Together, these lenses are
able to magnify an object much more than a single lens can. You can
change how much you magnify an object by using different objective lenses.

Part 1: Parts of the microscope and safety

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Identify each part on the microscope and note its function

ocular lens

coarse focusing knob

arm

fine focusing knob

revolving nose piece

objective lens

stage clips

stage

diaphragm

base

light

Part 2: Resolving Power

1. Cut a small lower case ‘e’ from a magazine or newspaper

2. Describe its appearance with the naked eye
Description:

3. Obtain a glass slide, cover slip and medicine dropper

4. Prepare a wet mount by placing a drop of water on the slide, placing the
‘e’ on the slide and then covering with a cover slip
5. Remove air bubbles if necessary – watch the teacher demonstration!!
6. Adjust the nosepiece to the 4X objective lens and put the slide on the
stage with the ‘e’ as it would normally appear. Click stage clips in place.
7. Adjust the course and then fine adjustment knobs until the ‘e’ is focused –
teacher demonstration!!
8. Sketch what you see – you will observe a circular field of view – do not
sketch it

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9. Move from low to medium and finally to high power

***Remember – only adjust the fine focus on high power***

Part 3: Comparing Human Hair

1. Obtain two pieces of human hair

2. Place them on a clean, dry slide so that they form an X
3. Cover with a cover slip
4. Observe and focus under low, medium and high power

Question: Are both threads in focus?

Question: Which objective is the best for showing the detail of the threads?

Question: Under which objective is the bottom thread clearest when the
top thread is in focus?

Question: As you move from low to high power objectives, describe the
change in light intensity.

Part 4: Determining the Field of View and Magnification of a

Drawing

Materials:
plastic ruler

In order to determine the magnification of a drawing, we must know the size

of the circular field of view that our object is in.

1. On 4X objective, place the ruler on the stage and determine the wider
across in mm – watch the teacher demonstration!!
2. Repeat the procedure for 10X and 40X.

4X
10X
40X

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The magnification is the product of the lens system. Therefore, my
magnifications are:

Magnification of a Drawing

Magnification = size of drawing

real size of object

1. Draw the items viewed

2. Measure one of the typical items such as a cell in your drawing in mm
Example: 1 cell = 20 mm

3. Estimate the real size of a cell on the screen.

Example: At 40X magnification (which is medium power), my field of
view measured to be 1.6 mm and I had 8 cells across the screen.
Therefore, each cell took up .2 mm of space

4. Calculate the magnification

Example: 20 mm / .2 mm =

The magnification must appear as a whole number on the front of

your drawing

Part 5: Drawings in Biology

Drawings should be…

neat
on blank white paper
done with a pencil
drawn without the field of view
accurate – draw only what you see
able to capture the form (shape) – then add some detail
fairly artistic…but don’t get carried away
titled on the front with the magnification

Part 6: Plant Cells

Materials
• Slide
• Coverslip
• Onion
• Scalpel

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 • Iodine

1. Obtain a 2 cm2 section of scale from an onion bulb

2. Using a scalpel, remove a single layer from the inner side of the scale leaf
of the onion. The extracted tissue must be transparent

3. Place the tissue on a glass slide and add two drops of water. Holding the
cover slip with your thumb and forefinger, touch it to the surface of the slide
at a 45 degree angle. Gently lower the cover slip, allowing the air to escape.
If air bubbles are present, gently tap the slide with the eraser end of a pencil
to remove them.

4. Focus under low-power magnification. Identify a group of cells that you

wish to study and move the slide so that the cells are in the center of the
field of view.

5. Study on medium.
Sketch what you see.

6. Slowly decrease light intensity by adjusting the diaphragm of the

microscope.

What light intensity reveals the greatest detail?

7. Remove the slide from the microscope and place a drop of iodine on one
edge of the cover slip. Touch the opposite edge of the cover slip with the
edge of a paper towel. This will draw the stain onto the slide.
8. View under medium power.

Why was the iodine used?

9. View under high power.

Prepare a formal drawing of a group of cells – be sure to count the

number of cells across the screen for magnification!!

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10. Rotate back to low and clean the slide.

Part 7: Cells in Humans (cheek cells and bacteria in the mouth &
blood cells on prepared slide)

Materials:
• Toothpicks
• Clean microscope slides (two per student)
• Cover slips
• 0.1% Methylene blue
• Water
• Prepared slides of human blood

Procedure for cheek cells in your mouth

1. Hold a toothpick flat against your inner cheek and scrape the inside of
your cheek. This will release some of the cells lining your cheek.

2. Spread the cells on a clean slide by rubbing the toothpick flat against the
slide. Make sure you get plenty on the slide so you can easily find them
under the microscope - you want to be able to see a kind of smear on the
slide with just your eyes.

3. Add no more than one or two drops of methylene blue stain on the cells.
Count to ten and then carefully place the cover slip over the area starting at
an angle to avoid bubbles. Always put the slide on the microscope stage
using the lowest power of the objective lens. Look around and when you see
something, go to a higher power as needed to find the actual cells.

The methylene blue stain allows you to see the cells clearly. Look carefully
for some pale irregular shapes with a blue circle or oval in the middle. Most
cheek cells will show this; the oval is the nucleus of the cell, where the DNA
is located. The DNA contains all the instructions for the cell's activities
through its life.

4. Look at your slide under the microscope.

Prepare a formal drawing of your cells – be sure to count for

magnification!!

Are any of your cells in groups?

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Procedure for Blood Cells

Look at a prepared slide of human blood. The blood cells have been stained
with a dye similar to methylene blue. Find the red cells; they are the ones
you see everywhere. What do they do for us? Look carefully: do the red
blood cells have nuclei? See if you can find some other cells with nuclei
between the red cells.

Draw a few red blood cells and any cells that you see that have
nuclei.

Part III: Pond or Aquarium Water

Materials
• Pond water sample
• Slide
• Coverslip

Place a few drops of pond or aquarium water on a slide and put a cover
slip on top. If possible, include some decaying leaves or bits of plant matter,
as they will prevent the protists in the pond or aquarium water from being
squashed. Do not use any dye (methylene blue), as it will kill the
protists!

Look at the slide under your microscope starting at low power. Look
near the decaying leaves of the water plants and try to find living cells -- if
the cells or animals are moving they probably are alive.

Sketch what you see. If you can identify any parts, label them.

We will try to figure out what organisms you have discovered.

Part 8: Comparisons

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1. How do you think the cheek cells and red cells get food as
compared to the Paramecia and Amoebas? Why don’t the cheek
cells move around? Do you know how red cells get from one place
to another in your blood? Are there bacteria in your blood? How
about on your hands?

2. Could cheek cells or blood cells survive as a single-celled

organism? Why or why not?

3. What function is served by the cells of the epithelial tissue of

plants and animals?

4. In what ways do the onion cells cells differ from those of the
animal epithelium?

5. Explain why the cells of the onion bulb do not appear to have any
chloroplasts.

6. Why are the cells of the onion and animal epithelium classified as
eukaryotic cells?

7. Explain why microscopes are stored with the low-power objective

lens in position.

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8. Astigmatism is a common disorder in which the lens of the eye
has an asymmetrical shape. Most people have symmetrical lenses –
the top half is identical in shape to the bottom half. Explain why
individuals why have astigmatism may experience difficulties
distinguishing fine detail with the naked eye.

9. Explain why resolving power decreases as the thickness of the

objective lenses increases.