Both Prokaryote and Eukaryote cells consist of Cell wall, (however this is not present in animal cells) - this is made of Peptidoglycan (though the plant cell is made of cellulose microfibrils embedded in a layer of calcium pectate and hemicelluloses). The cell wall provides support for a plant cell, and …show more content…
Most notably the lack of a nucleus in prokaryotes and membrane bound organelles. The DNA of prokaryotes floats freely around the cell; the DNA of eukaryotes is held within its nucleus. The organelles of eukaryotes allow them to exhibit much higher levels of intracellular division of labour than is possible in prokaryotic cells. Another physical difference is the size of both cells. A prokaryote is only 0.5-5 μm, whilst Eukaryotes are on average 10 times bigger at up to 40μm. Mitochondria are absent from Prokaryotes, yet found in Eukaryotes, as are chloroplasts (though chloroplasts are not found in animal cells). One difference as far as existence is concerned, is that prokaryotes are believed to be the first form of life around 3.5 billion years ago. Eukaryotes are much younger, and believed to have existed around 1.5 billion years ago when the cells developed a nucleus- multicellular organisms are younger still at 0.5 billion years