• Animal and plant cells are types of?eukaryotic?cells, whereas bacteria are a type of?prokaryote
• Prokaryotes have a cellular structure distinct from eukaryotes:
  • Their?genetic material?is not packaged within a membrane-bound nucleus and is usually circular (eukaryotic genetic material is packaged as linear chromosomes)
  • Prokaryotes lack membrane-bound?organelles
  • They are many (100s/1000s) of times smaller than eukaryotic cells
  • Their?ribosomes?are structurally smaller (70 S) in comparison to those found in eukaryotic cells (80 S)

   

Prokaryotic cells are often described as being ‘simpler’ than eukaryotic cells, and they are believed to have emerged as the first living organisms on Earth

Prokaryotic & Eukaryotic Cells Comparison Table