Cell Transport

1. Describe a cell membrane. Why is it called a fluid mosaic?

• The plasma membrane (also known as the cell membrane or cytoplasmic membrane) is
a biological membrane that separates a cell's interior from its surrounding environment.
The plasma membrane's primary function is to protect the cell from its surroundings.
The plasma membrane, which is made up of a phospholipid bilayer with embedded
proteins, is selectively permeable to ions and organic molecules and regulates the
movement of substances in and out of cells. Plasma membranes must be extremely
flexible in order for cells like red blood cells and white blood cells to change shape as
they pass through narrow capillaries.
• The fluid mosaic model describes the plasma membrane's framework as a mosaic of
components, including phospholipids, cholesterol, proteins, and carbohydrates, that
give the membrane its fluid character. The thickness of plasma membranes varies from
5 to 10 nm. In comparison, human red blood cells are approximately 8 m wide, or 1,000
times wider than a plasma membrane when viewed under a light microscope.
2. What are the different components of the cell Membrane? Enumerate and describe their
functions.

• Phospholipid – it is located at the main fabric of membrane, form barriers in cellular

membranes to protect the cell, as well as barriers for organelles within the cells.
Phospholipids serve as conduits for various substances across membranes. Membrane
proteins are found in the phospholipid bilayer and behave as enzymes or transport
mechanisms for the cell membrane.
• Cholesterol – Attached between phospholipids and between the two phospholipid
layers, aids in the regulation of membrane fluidity across a wide range of physiological
temperatures. It has a hydroxyl group that interacts with the polar head groups of
phospholipids and sphingolipids in the membrane. These coexist with the nonpolar fatty
acid chains of other lipids. Cholesterol also prevents protons (positive hydrogen ions)
and sodium ions from passing through plasma membranes.
• Integral Proteins – Embedded within the phospholipid layer(s), they serve a variety of
important purposes. Among these functions are channeling and transporting molecules
across the membrane. Other essential proteins serve as cell receptors. Cell adhesion is
mediated by some integral membrane proteins (sticking of a cell to another cell or
surface). Carbohydrate chains on the outside of cell membranes and attached to some
proteins serve as labels that identify the cell type.
• Peripheral Proteins – on the inner or outer surface of the phospholipid bilayer; not
embedded within phospholipids, extrinsic proteins, do not interact with the
hydrophobic core of the phospholipid bilayer. Instead, they are usually bound to the
membrane indirectly by interactions with integral membrane proteins or directly by
interactions with lipid polar head groups. Peripheral proteins localized to the cytosolic
face of the plasma membrane include the cytoskeletal proteins spectrin and actin in
erythrocytes and the enzyme protein kinase C.

• Carbohydrates – generally attached to proteins on the outside membrane layer, have

two primary functions: they participate in cell recognition and adhesion, either cell-cell
signaling or cell-pathogen interactions, and they serve as a structural barrier.