CELL BIOLOGY

Dr/ Mohamed Salah Basiouny.

Fall Semester
Mail: Mohamed-salah@buc.edu.eg 2022- 2023
Tel. : 01006170787 Office No. : 234 Lecture 4
 THE PLASMA MEMBRANE (PLASMALEMMA)
I- Structure: It is approximately 7.5 nm thick.
A. The lipid bilayer (two layers) is freely permeable to
small, lipid-soluble, nonpolar molecules.

1. Molecular structure. The lipid bilayer is composed of

phospholipids (mainly), glycolipids, and cholesterol,
of which, in most cells, phospholipids constitute the
highest percentage.
Outside cell Plasma membrane

Inside cell
Fluid mosaic model of plasma membrane
A. Phospholipids are amphipathic molecules,
consisting of one polar (hydrophilic) head and two
nonpolar (hydrophobic) fatty acid tails (mostly 16-18
carbon chain fatty acids), one of which is usually
unsaturated.
a. Glycolipids are restricted to the extracellular aspect
of the outer layer.
b. Cholesterol, constituting 2% of plasmalemma lipids,
is present in both layers, and helps maintain the
structural integrity of the membrane.

A phospholipid
particle
- Fluidity of the lipid bilayer is crucial to exocytosis,

endocytosis, membrane trafficking, and

membrane biogenesis.

a. Fluidity increases with increased temperature and

decreased with saturation of the fatty acyl tails.

b. Fluidity decreases with an increase in the

membrane's cholesterol content.

B- Membrane proteins:
include integral and peripheral proteins in most
cells, constitute about 50% of the plasma membrane.
1. Integral or transmembrane:
Proteins inside the lipid bilayer…
- It span the entire thickness of the plasma membrane
and may function as membrane receptors, enzymes, cell
adhesion molecules, cell recognition proteins, molecules
that function in message transduction, and transport
proteins.
2. Peripheral proteins located on the cytoplasmic
and the extracellular side of the cell membrane.
C. Glycocalyx (cell coat): It is located on the outer
surface of plasmalemma.
1. Composition: It consists of polar oligosaccharide
linked covalently to most proteins (glycoproteins) and
some lipids (glycolipids) of the plasmalemma.
2. Function
a. The glycocalyx aids in attachment of some
cells to extracellular matrix.
b. It binds antigens and enzymes to the cell
surface.
c. It facilitates cell–cell recognition and
interaction.
d. It protects cells from injury.
e. It assists in activation of immune cells.
 Some functions of membrane proteins
1- Transport. 2- Enzymatic activity.
3- Signal transduction. 4- Cell-cell recognition.
5- Intercellular joining: 6- Attachment to the
cytoskeleton &
extracellular matrix (ECM).
 TEM of An amoeba TEM of Pinocytotic
engulfing a green algal cell vesicles
via phagocytosis.
Top: A coated pit. Bottom: A coated vesicle forming during
receptor-mediated endocytosis (TEMs).
- Exocytosis is the release of material from the cell by
fusion of a secretory granule membrane and the
plasma membrane. Types:
a. Regulated (signal-directed) secretion is the release,
in response to an extracellular signal, of enzymes,
neuro secretions, and other materials stored in the cell.
b. Constitutive secretion:
(default pathway) is continuous release of
material (e.g., collagen and plasma proteins) without
any intermediate storage or signal step.
A1. A person is bitten by a poisonous snake and is taken
to the emergency department with progressive muscle
paralysis.
The venom is probably incapacitating his:
(A) Na+ channels.
(B) Ca2+ channels.
(C) phospholipids.
(D) acetylcholine receptors.
(E) spectrin.