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A prokaryote (/ p r oʊ ˈ k ær i oʊ t,-ə t /; less commonly spelled procaryote) [1] is a single-celled organism whose cell lacks a nucleus and other membrane-bound organelles. [2] The word prokaryote comes from the Ancient Greek πρό ( pró ), meaning 'before', and κάρυον ( káruon ), meaning 'nut' or 'kernel'. [ 3 ]
Typical eukaryotic animal cell structure. Eukaryotes have a nucleus where DNA is contained. They are usually larger than prokaryotes and contain many more organelles. The nucleus, the feature of a eukaryote that distinguishes it from a prokaryote, contains a nuclear envelope, nucleolus and chromatin.
Cells are broadly categorized into two types: eukaryotic cells, which possess a nucleus, and prokaryotic cells, which lack a nucleus but have a nucleoid region. Prokaryotes are single-celled organisms such as bacteria, whereas eukaryotes can be either single-celled, such as amoebae, or multicellular, such as some algae, plants, animals, and fungi.
Prokaryotes lack membrane-bound organelles, such as mitochondria or a nucleus. [6] Instead, most prokaryotes have an irregular region that contains DNA, known as the nucleoid . [ 7 ] Most prokaryotes have a single, circular chromosome , which is in contrast to eukaryotes, which typically have linear chromosomes. [ 8 ]
Eukaryotes are organisms whose cells have a nucleus enclosed within membranes, whereas prokaryotes are the organisms that do not have a nucleus enclosed within a membrane. [ 1 ] [ 2 ] [ 3 ] The three-domain system of classifying life adds another division: the prokaryotes are divided into two domains of life, the microscopic bacteria and the ...
The three-domain system adds a level of classification (the domains) "above" the kingdoms present in the previously used five- or six-kingdom systems.This classification system recognizes the fundamental divide between the two prokaryotic groups, insofar as Archaea appear to be more closely related to eukaryotes than they are to other prokaryotes – bacteria-like organisms with no cell nucleus.
Non-cellular life, also known as acellular life, is life that exists without a cellular structure for at least part of its life cycle. [1] Historically, most definitions of life postulated that an organism must be composed of one or more cells, [2] but, for some, this is no longer considered necessary, and modern criteria allow for forms of life based on other structural arrangements.
Archaea and bacteria are generally similar in size and shape, although a few archaea have very different shapes, such as the flat, square cells of Haloquadratum walsbyi. [6] Despite this morphological similarity to bacteria, archaea possess genes and several metabolic pathways that are more closely related to those of eukaryotes, notably for ...