Gray - signals, receptors and activation of downstream signalling Flashcards
(167 cards)
What is the aim of signalling in unicellular organisms?
- to keep own cell viable
How does signalling in unicellular organisms work?
- respond to changes in env (eg. external medium) –> eg. if runs out of phosphate shuts down pathways using it and tries to prod more
- detected at cell surface
- info relayed inside cell
- gene expression enables cell to cope w/ new ec env
What is signalling in multicellular organisms, and why is it needed?
- subset of genes expressed in particular cell type
- control of expression enables cells (or tissues) to carry out specialised function
- for coop and coord of cells to ensure correct function of whole org and prevent uncontrolled prolif
- ec signalling molecules control processes in cells µ - m away
What is a tissue?
- cells w/ similar origin that might respond in similar way
- come together as organ to perform function
What are the 4 basic types of tissue?
- endothelial
- nervous
- connective
- muscle
What is Dictyostelium and how is signalling important for it?
- euk on borderline of uni and multi-cellularity
- normally single celled
- but aggregate when challenged (not enough nutrients etc.) into multicellular organism and behaves like one
- poss due to secreting signals to communicate w/ other cells –> some cells sacrificed for the greater good
How are gap junctions important connections?
- allow signalling molecules (eg. cAMP, Ca2+) to be passed directly between some animal cells
- areas where plasma membranes are close
- connexin proteins form ‘gap junction’ tubes controlling passage of small molecules
- plants have plasmodesmata
What does the plasma membrane define?
- interface between cell and its env
What is an important role of membrane assoc proteins in signalling?
- many facilitate signal transduction
- membrane composition important in signal transduction
How does membrane composition vary due to lipid rafts?
- lipid rafts are more rigid lipid micro-envs on cell surface, due to sat FA tails, lots of GPI-anchored and assoc proteins, so can pack more closely –> can favour specific protein interactions and activate signalling cascades
- more fluid when unsat kinky tails, glycerol and TM rich proteins present, so cant pack as closely
What is the process of cell-to-cell communication by ec signalling?
- synthesis of signalling molecule by signalling cell
- release of signal by signalling cell (may have to be processed to be released) and transport to target cell (eg. diffuse, carried in blood)
- detection of signal by specific receptor protein
- change in cellular behaviour triggered by receptor signal complex
- removal of signal to terminate cellular response
Why are receptors always proteins?
- only molecules complex enough
What is the aim of signal transduction in multicellular organisms?
- process by which ec signals bring about their characteristic effects inside cell, as info is converted from 1 form to another
How do receptor proteins exhibit ligand binding and effector specificity?
- ligands (signals/1st messengers), eg. hormones, GFs, neurotransmitters, bind/activate specific receptors, either w/in or on surface of target cells
- receptor proteins bind to and interact w/ physiologically active substances to relay signals (across membrane or into nucleus)
- approx 100 - 100,000 receptors per cell
Why do receptors need a v high affinity for signals?
- signals at v low conc (approx 10^-8M)
Once interaction is made, what can receptor-ligand complexes reg?
- cellular metabolism (eg. adrenaline) and enz activity (eg. activating kinase)
- nuclear activity leading to transcrip of specific genes and activation of TFs
- cell dev/differentiation/division
- changes in cytoskeleton
What does generating an intracellular response usually involve?
- release of a 2nd messenger w/in target cell
- eg. Ca2+, cAMP, IP3
What distances can ec signalling molecules operate over?
- various, from short to long
How can ec signalling molecules operate over long distances?
- eg. hormones in blood (ENDOCRINE signalling), transpiration stream
- diff effects in diff cell types dep on receptors and cellular machinery
- can reach any cells but only those w/ receptors able to respond
How can ec signalling molecules operate over short distances?
- only affect target cells in close prox
- paracrine signalling
- conc that reaches cell could cause variety of responses, or could be all or nothing (ie. need certain amount of receptor occupied to cause response)
What is autocrine signalling?
- DIAG*
- target sites are on same cell
- eg. GFs during tumour formation
What is an example of signalling by plasma membrane attached proteins?
- to differentiate cells during development
- DIAG*
- delta tells particular cell to become neuron, but don’t want all cells to
- expresses delta on surface, but doesn’t excrete it, so only seen by adj cells
- receptor notch binds and undergoes proteolysis, releasing part of protein into cell, goes into nucleus and suppresses expression of delta
- self reinforcing and inhibiting
What are the 3 major structural classes of cell surface receptors?
- multi subunit receptors (ion channels)
- 7 pass receptors (GPCR)
- single pass receptors (TGF, RTK, cytokine)
What makes a good signal?
- unique enough to relay defined signal and only be detected by correct receptors
- usually small enough to travel easily
- synthesised, alt or released quickly to be switched on rapidly
- degraded or re-sequestered quickly to cease signalling