Dr.

Sadaf Ahmed
Dr. Sadaf Ahmed and Alvira Ali 1
Alvira Ali
How cell structures are studied?

1.Microscopy
2.Genetics
3.Biochemistry
4.Molecular
Biology

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The Cell Membrane
The cell membrane is
a dynamic and
intricate structure that
regulates material
transported across the
membrane. The
membrane is
selectively permeable
(or semi-permeable)
meaning that certain
molecules can cross
**Note: Cell wall structure and the membrane and
function is different than that of
others cannot. 3
the cell membrane
Dr. Sadaf Ahmed and Alvira Ali
 Cell membrane also provides protection and
shape to the cell.
Some of the organelles also have membranes
that provide them with the structure and
suitable environment.
Cell membrane is an asymmetrical structure.

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 Bio-membranes function as selective
chemical barriers

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 Intracellular membranes serve as physical barriers that
allow compartmentalization:

Dr. Sadaf Ahmed and Alvira Ali

Other Functions of Bio-membranes:
Organization: Some receptors on the external surface of the
cell membrane participate in the grouping of cells to form
tissues (cellular adhesion).
Information Processing: Membrane proteins may act as
receptors for the various chemical messages that pass
between cells.
Enzyme Assembly: Binding the enzymes to the membrane in
sequential order enables the series of chemical reactions in
the pathway to be carried out efficiently.
Biological Communication: Some membranes generate
chemical or electrical signals. Cell membranes of nerve cells,
muscle cells, and some eggs are excitable electrically. In
nerve cells, for example, the plasma membrane conducts the
nerve impulse from one end of the cell to the other.
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 Biological Functions
Plasma membrane encloses animal cells: maintains essential
differences between the cytosol and the extracellular space.
Due to the semipermeability of the lipid bilayer and the presence
of specialized transport proteins, selective, regulated bidirectional
traffic of ions and molecules is ensured.
In nerve and muscle cells: production and transmission of electric
signals.
Membrane proteins serve to anchor cytoskeletal elements,
providing stability to the cell.
Adjacent cells can be bound together by cell adhesion molecules
of their plasma membranes
Plasma membrane receptors allow the cell to alter its behavior in
response to environmental cues.

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Chemical composition of cell membrane
include:
Lipids
Proteins
Carbohydrates
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 LIPID BILAYER
All membranes are made from
a bilayer of phospholipids.
It consists of a charged
phosphate head and a
hydrocarbon tail.

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Dr. Sadaf Ahmed and Alvira Ali
The Lipid Bilayer (Molecular Level)

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Lipid bilayers as semipermeable
barriers
Semi-permeability:
Pure lipid bilayers allow free
diffusion of water, gases and
small uncharged molecules,
whereas it is not permeable to
numerous molecules of
biological importance.
This property is the basis of the
generation of membrane
potential: difference in the
electric charge on the two sides
of a membrane.

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 CELL COMPARTMENTS
Cell compartmentalization is
achieved by the use of
membranes, which are composed
of phospholipid bilayers.
Compartments are aqueous
spaces separated by intracellular
membranes from each other,
devoted to a particular set of
functions.
The compartments are unique in
their chemical components, pH
value and electrical potential.
They impose barriers to diffusion
and intracellular transport.
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The hydrophilic heads are facing an
aqueous environment and the
hydrophobic tails are facing one
another.

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 MOVEMENTS OF PHOSPHOLIPIDS:
Phospholipids have the ability to move laterally but
only upon a rare occasion are able to make a 180
degrees turn.
Lateral Movement: occurs 10^7 times per second.
Flip-flop Movement: Occurs once a month.

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 TYPES OF PHOSPHOLIPIDS FOUND IN
CELL MEMBRANES

Phosphatidylcholine (Lecithin)
Phosphatidylethanolamine
Phosphatidylserine
Cardiolipin
Phophatidylinositol
Sphingomyelin (prominent in myelin sheaths)
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Phosphatidylcholine

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Chemical Structures of different
Phospholipids

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 Sphingolipids have a backbone formed from sphingosine, an
amino alcohol with a long hydrocarbon chain.
It is a less abundant class of membrane lipids.
Ceramide is a simple sphingolipid which has a hydrophobic
fatty acid tail linked to the amino group of the sphingosine.
The esterification of additional groups to the terminal
hydroxyl group of the sphingosine backbone gives rise to
other types of sphingolipids.
For instance, sphingomyelin
has a polar phosphoryl
choline head group and
glycolipids have a
carbohydrate group. The
carbohydrate group of glycolipids can be a simple sugar or
an oligosaccharidespectively.
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A word about cholesterol:
It is found in the cell membranes of animals but not plants. It
affects the fluidity of the membrane.
CHOLESTEROL
1. It can weakly bind to hydrocarbon tails making it more
difficult for smaller molecules to
cross membrane.
1. If the phospholipids are saturated,
it prevents them from being packed
too closely, making the membrane
more fluid.
1. However - if the phospholipids are
unsaturated there are kinks in the
tails where the cholesterol molecules
can fill in and anchor them making
the membrane less fluid.
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 It is present on the outer surface.
It consists of a single sugar or branched
oligosaccharides attached to sphingosine
backbone of lipids.

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MOVEMENTS CARRIED OUT BY MEMBRANE
LIPIDS:
1. Lateral Diffusion: Molecules of the bio-membrane simply
transpose with neighboring molecules.
2. Rotation: It is when an individual lipid molecule rotates very
quickly around its axis (up to 30000 rotations per minute).
3. Swing: From side-to-side.
4. Flexion: contraction movement.
5. Transverse Diffusion: Also known as flip flop, is a movement of
molecules from one half of a mono-layer to the other. The reason
why flip flop happens less often is because the hydrophilic head
of the lipid must go cross the internal hydrophobic sheet to go to
the other mono-layer and faces a lot of friction.
Flip flop is usually facilitated
with the help of enzymes
called flip-passes.
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SELF ORGANIZATION OF LIPIDS:

Lipids spontaneously aggregate in the

aqueous solutions.
Fatty acyl chains aggregate by hydrophobic
interactions and exclude water molecules.
The type of structure formed depends on the:
o Chemical Nature
o Concentration of the Lipid(s)
o Temperature
o Ionic composition of the aqueous solution.

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The lipids in the aqueous solution form
three kinds of structures:
1. Micelle
2. Liposome
3. Bilayer Sheet
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 1. Micelle: It is an aggregate of
molecules in a colloidal solution,
such as those formed by
detergents.

2. Liposome: It is a minute
spherical sac of phospholipid
molecules enclosing a water
droplet, especially as formed
artificially to carry drugs or
other substances into the
tissues.
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3. Bilayer: It is a film two molecules thick (formed e.g. by
lipids), in which each molecule is arranged with its
hydrophobic end directed inwards towards the opposite side
of the film and its hydrophilic end directed outwards.

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MEMBRANE FLUIDITY
Membrane fluidity maintains cells normal function, allows small
molecules to diffuse rapidly and aids cell movement, growth,
division etc.
Membrane fluidity depends upon:
I. Temperature.
II. Length of the hydrocarbon tail of the phospholipid. The longer
the chain length of the tail, the more likely the hydrocarbon tails
will interact with one another forming a secure and rigid
structure.
III. Unsaturation of the hydrocarbon tail of the phospholipid.
Membranes are more fluid when they contain more
unsaturated fatty acids within
their phospholipids.
More unsaturated fatty acids
result in increased distance
between the lipids making the
layer more fluid. 29
Dr. Sadaf Ahmed and Alvira Ali
 In the fluid mosaic model of the cell membrane, the membrane
is visualized as a fluid structure of a phospholipid bilayer
embedded or attached with a mosaic of various proteins.
Proteins can be on just the surface (peripheral) or embedded in
the membrane (intrinsic).
Proteins that span the entire membrane are called trans-
membrane
It is the different proteins that are responsible for the
uniqueness of different membranes (plasma, eukaryotic,
prokaryotic, organelle etc.)

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 Evidence for the Fluid Mosaic Model

Evidence for the fluid mosaic model can be seen when the
plasma membrane is split in half - the proteins can be
observed as little bumps in the membrane.

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What is their role?

All biological functions of bio-membranes

(except the barrier- function) are
determined by the proteins found in these
membranes.
Membrane proteins are controlling the
flow of materials, energy and information
of the cells.
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 Types Of Membrane Proteins
1. Extrinsic or peripheral proteins simply adhere to the
membrane and are bound by polar interactions. They aid the
cytoskeleton and run second messenger system.
2. Intrinsic proteins or integral membrane proteins may be
said to reside within the membrane or to span it. They interact
extensively with the fatty acid chains of membrane lipids and
can be released only by agents that compete for these non-
polar interactions. The form a pore complex that controls traffic
flow in and out of the cell as a transporter, channel and
receptor.

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Membrane proteins according to their
functions in the bio-membrane:

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The glycocalyx is a carbohydrate-rich zone on
the cell surface, made up of proteins and
oligosaccharides
bound to the outer
surface of the
plasma membrane.
The composition
and arrangement
of the glycocalyx is
cell-specific.
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Main Biological Functions:
Protection against chemical and mechanical
damage.
Cell recognition during embryonic
development (tissue formation).
In the adult: immune recognition.
Others: cell-cell adhesion during blood
clotting.

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 END
OF
BIOMEMBRANE
COMPOSITION

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