Section 5: Cell Processes Flashcards
(196 cards)
Plasma membrane structure
A thin, 8nm flexible and sturdy barrier that surrounds cytoplasm of a cell
2 back-to-back layers of 3 types of lipid molecules; glycolipid and cholesterol, which are scattered among a double row of phospholipid molecules
Fluid mosaic model
Describes membrane structure
‘sea of lipids in which proteins float’
What makes up the membrane? (%)
50% lipid and 50% protein, held together by H bonds
Lipid is barrier to entry/exit of polar substances
Proteins are ‘gatekeepers’ - regulate traffic across lipid bilayer
Why is the plasma membrane critical for cellular function and evolution?
DNA, mitochondria and cytoplasm can’t be freely floating around in primordial suit and must be contained in a membrane so there’s a difference between the inside and outside of the cell
What is the ‘outside’ for a single cell
The outside world, so must have a barrier which enables it to partition itself from the outside world
Phospholipids - lipids
Comprises 75% of lipids
Phospholipid bilayer
2 parallel layers of molecules
Phospholipid - amphipathic
Phospholipids will orient themselves to provide the lowest energy structure
Each molecule has both a polar and non-polar region
Non-polar hydrophobic tails face each other and exclude water so water is outside of lipid bilayer
Water interacts with polar head groups - excluded from hydrophobic core
Membrane fluidity
Membranes are fluid structures and lipids can move around within the plane of the membrane leaflet and allow lateral diffusion of proteins within the lipid bilayer
Lipids rarely flip flop between membrane leaflets –> lipid composition of leaflets can be asymmetric
Fluidity of membrane is determined by…
Lipid tail length: longer tail = less fluid
No. of double bonds: more double bonds = increased fluidity
Amount of cholesterol: more cholesterol embedded = decreased fluidity
What does fluidity determine
Properties of lipid bilayer - how many molecules can get through it
Can maintain differences in lipid composition - diff on one side of membrane facing inside and membrane facing outside
e.g. water diffusion
Membrane fluidity - double bonds
Introduces kinks in the tail, which allows them to pack less tightly to give more fluidity –> membrane is less stable
Types of membrane proteins
Integral proteins
Peripheral proteins
Integral proteins
AKA transmembrane protein
Amphipathic
Extend into / completely across cell membrane - able to sense molecules on outside and inside of cell for movement across membrane
Peripheral proteins
Attached to either inner or outer surface of cell membrane and are easily removed from it (by changes in ionic strength)
Peripheral membrane proteins - cytoskeleton proteins
Linked to membrane proteins embedded in lipid bilayer, which can bend and change shape of membrane or hold membrane proteins in a particular place
Can easily break these interactions by exposing membrane to an ionic solution to break chemical bonds and strip peripheral proteins from membrane
Integral proteins - hydrophobic regions
Have hydrophobic regions that span hydrophobic core of lipid bilayer
Usually consist of non-polar amino acids coiled into helices to form a protein
Integral proteins - hydrophilic ends
Interact with aqueous solution
Removal of an integral protein
Must break interactions between hydrophobic lipids and hydrophobic amino acids
To break the lipid, use detergent to dissolve lipid and stabalise membrane –> isolate integral membrane proteins
Membrane proteins can act as…
Receptor proteins - sense signals, e.g. from blood, and bind those receptors and transfer signals inside the cell
Cell identity markers - can be a sense of ‘self’
Linkers - provide links to other cells, sheets of tissue, or parts of CT e.g. tendons and BM
Enzymes - on surface of membrane, can catalyse enzymatic activity, e.g. break down glucose
Ion channels and transporter proteins - move molecules across cell membrane
Ion channels vs transporters
Transport diff things and use diff forces to do the transferring
Membrane - selective permeability
Membrane allows some substances to cross but excludes others because of the way specific molecules interact with lipid bilayer
What is the lipid bilayer (im)permeable to
Permeable to:
- nonpolar, uncharged molecules (O2, N2, benzene)
- lipid soluble molecules (steroids, fatty acids, some vitamins)
- small uncharged polar molecules (water, urea, glycero, CO2)
Impermeable to:
- large uncharged polar molecules (glucose, amino acids)
- ions (Na+, K+, Cl-)
Why are ions impermeable
Although they are small, they have an electric charge and so will be repelled by non-polar hydrophobic core of lipid bilayer - can only be moved through integral proteins