Cell membrane structure

• Serves as a boundary between the cell and the environment

• Functional organelle
• It excludes certain substances while permanently includes others
• Other substances may pass freely through it
• It is considered as partially permeable
• Found in all domains of organisms (archaea, eubacteria, eukaryotes)
• Can only be seen with electron microscope
• About 10 nm thick.
Cell membrane structure

• Phospholipids are the most abundant lipid in the plasma membrane

• Phospholipids are amphipathic molecules,( containing hydrophobic
and hydrophilic regions)
• The fluid mosaic model states that a membrane is a fluid structure
with a “mosaic” of various proteins embedded in it
early studies

• In 1935, Hugh Davson and James Danielli proposed a sandwich

model in which the phospholipid bilayer lies between two layers of
globular proteins
• Later studies found problems with this model, particularly the
placement of membrane proteins, which have hydrophilic and
hydrophobic regions
• In 1972, S. J. Singer and G. Nicolson proposed that the membrane is a
mosaic of proteins dispersed within the phospholipid bilayer, with
only the hydrophilic regions exposed to water
Early studies

• Freeze-fracture studies of the plasma membrane supported the fluid

mosaic model
• Freeze-fracture is a specialized preparation technique that splits a
membrane along the middle of the phospholipid bilayer
Freeze fracture

Layer separation

Proteins in
the
membrane
Cell membrane: light microscope
Cell membrane structure : Light microscope
Cell membrane : electron microscope

Cell
A

Cell
B
Cell membrane structure: phospholipid
Cell membrane structure : 2D
Cell membrane structure : 2D
Cell membrane structure : 3 D
Cholesterol
Cholesterol function
• As temperatures cool, membranes switch from a fluid state to a solid
state
• The temperature at which a membrane solidifies depends on the
types of lipids
• Membranes rich in unsaturated fatty acids are more fluid than those
rich in saturated fatty acids
• Membranes must be fluid to work properly; they are usually about as
fluid as salad oil
Cholesterol function
• The steroid cholesterol has different effects on membrane fluidity at
different temperatures
• At warm temperatures (such as 37°C), cholesterol restrains movement
of phospholipids
• At cool temperatures, it maintains fluidity by preventing tight packing
Saturated vs unsaturated tails

A
B

C
Functions of membrane parts
Membrane component Function(s)

Phospholipid Affects the fluidity and permeability of membrane;

constantly spinning and moving

chlolesterol Make membrane less fluid at higher temperatures but

more fluid at lower temperatures

Glycolipids Act as recognition sites, eg: the human ABO blood

system. Helps to make membrane more stable

Proteins Provide structural support; assist the active transport

of materials across the membrane . Act as recognition
sites. Act as enzymes, energy transduces and electron
carriers.
Glycoproteins Act as recognition sites; for neurotransmitters and
hormones.
Functions of membrane proteins
• Six major functions of membrane proteins
• Transport
• Enzymatic activity
• Signal transduction
• Cell-cell recognition
• Intercellular joining
• Attachment to the cytoskeleton and extracellular matrix (ECM)
Proteins in the membrane

Passive/active enzymes Receptor sites

transport
Proteins : function

recognition Structural Cytoskeletal

support support
Facilitated transport: no energy required.
Active transport : ATP used.
Sodium / potassium pump Example: neurons.
Exocytosis and endocytosis
• Exocytosis---Cellular secretion
• Endocytosis—
• Phagocytosis— “Cell eating”
• Pinocytosis– “Cell drinking”
• Receptor-mediated endocytosis-specific
particles, recognition.
exocytosis

outside
Phagocytosis : cell eating
Phagocyte feeding:
Pinocytosis: cell drinking : inside the nephron
Receptor-mediated endocytosis

Example: hormones,
iron, cholesterol.