Carbohydrates

Plasma membranes also contain carbohydrates, predominantly glycoproteins, but with

some glycolipids (cerebrosides and gangliosides). For the most part, no glycosylation
occurs on membranes within the cell; rather generally glycosylation occurs on the
extracellular surface of the plasma membrane.

The glycocalyx is an important feature in all cells, especially epithelia with microvilli.
Recent data suggest the glycocalyx participates in cell adhesion, lymphocyte homing, and
many others.

The penultimate sugar is galactose and the terminal sugar is sialic acid, as the sugar
backbone is modified in the golgi apparatus. Sialic acid carries a negative charge,
providing an external barrier to charged particles.

Glycoprotein

N-linked protein glycosylation (N-glycosylation of N-glycans) at Asn residues (Asn-x-

Ser/Thr motifs) in glycoproteins.[1]

Glycoproteins are proteins that contain oligosaccharide chains (glycans) covalently

attached to polypeptide side-chains. The carbohydrate is attached to the protein in a
cotranslational or posttranslational modification. This process is known as glycosylation.
In proteins that have segments extending extracellularly, the extracellular segments are
often glycosylated. Glycoproteins are often important integral membrane proteins, where
they play a role in cell-cell interactions. Glycoproteins also occur in the cytosol, but their
functions and the pathways producing these modifications in this compartment are less
well-understood.[2

The carbohydrates are found on the outer surface of all eukaryotic cell membranes, and are
attached to the membrane proteins or sometimes to the phospholipids. Proteins with
carbohydrates attached are called glycoproteins, while phospholipids with carbohydrates
attached are called glycolipids. The carbohydrates are short polysaccharides composed of a
variety of different monosaccharides, and form a cell coat or glycocalyx outside the cell
membrane. The glycocalyx is involved in protection and cell recognition, and antigens such as the
ABO antigens on blood cells are usually cell-surface glycoproteins