Chapter 15 Flashcards
What is the most common way to transmit messages between cells
Extracellular messenger molecules
What is autocrine signaling?
Cell signaling - cell uses receptors on its surface to respond to messages (from itself)
What is paracrine signaling?
Messenger molecules travel short distance through intracellular space (ex. hunger is triggered)
What is endocrine signaling. The molecules involved in this are otherwise known as?
Messenger molecules reach target cells through blood stream (ex. smell food, become hungry). Molecules known as hormones.
______ refers to any process by which a cell converts one kind of signal/stimulus into another
Signal transduction
Signal transduction involves _______ of biochemical reactions inside the cell, which are carried out by ____, activated by ______
ordered sequences,
enzymes,
second messengers
How are many enzymes switched on or off?
Phosphoryation/dephosphorylation
_____ add a phosphate group whereas _____ remove a phosphate group
Kinases, phosphatases
What are the two types of signalling kinases?
Tyrosine kinases and serine threonine kinase
What are the two types of tyrosine kinases?
Receptor (on membrane) tyrosine kinase and non-receptor tyrosine kinase
Protein kinases (such as signalling kinases) phosphorylate _____, _____, or _____ residue protein
Serine, Thrionine, Tyrosine
What is a “second messenger”?
Intracellular substance that can activate (or inactivate) certain proteins - produced by receptor through an effector (enzyme)
If a surface receptor receives a signal but does not utilize a second messenger, what does it do?
Recruit proteins to their intracellular domains at the plasma membrane, so that proteins interact with one another by means of specific interaction domains.
What occurs in a signalling pathway?
Each protein in the pathway alters the conformation of the next (usually by phosphorylation). Target proteins receive the message to alter cell activity.
_____ add phosphate groups whereas ____ remove them
Kinases, phosphatases
What is another term for a signalling pathway?
Signal transduction
What does protein phosphorylation result in?
Can activate/inactivate enzymes.
Can increase/decrease protein-protein interactions.
It can change the subcellular location of the protein.
Can trigger protein degradation.
How do receptors differ on different breast cancer cells
In breast cancer cells, different receptors are present: estrogen, progesterone, and her2. If none are present, it is triple negative breast cancer (deadliest kind). Figuring this out allows for proper treatment (ex. ERPR positive patients are given a drug that inhibits estrogen and progesterone receptors).
What is a cell line?
A cultured group of cells coming from a single cell (usually cancerous tumour cells)
Describe how phosphorylation patterns can differ between cell types using an example?
It is possible to construct a figure of phosphorylation of specific proteins in varying cell lines, comparing them to each other. For example, triple negative breast cancer cells have completely different receptor tyrosine kinase rates
List varying types of extracellular messengers
Small molecules such as amino acids and their derivatives (ex. acetylcholine)
Gases such as NO and CO
Steroids (for sex differentiation, pregnancy, etc.)
Eicosanoids (lipids derived from fatty acids)
Peptides + proteins
What are different types of receptors?
G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) Receptor protein-tyrosine kinases (RTKs) Ligand gated channels Steroid hormone receptors Specific receptors such as B and T cell receptors
Describe the structure of function of GPCRs
Largest superfamily of proteins. Have seven alpha-helical transmembrane domains and interact with G proteins. Their amino-terminus is on the outside of the cell and the carboxyl terminus is on the inside of the cell. Three loops outside the cell form the ligand binding site, and three sites inside the cytoplasm provide binding sites for intracellular signalling.
G proteins have three parts, referred to as…..
How are they arranged
G-alpha, G-beta-, G-gamma.
When G-alpha is in bound form with GDP it will form a stable complex with the G-beta and G-gamma segment. When GDP becomes GTP (caused by change in conformation of GPCRs), the G-alpha is activated and will bind to and activate effector molecule.
What are some examples of stimuli that attach to GPCRs?
Epinephrine, serotonin, IgE-antigen complexes, neurotransmitters such as acetylcholine
Describe the sequence of events, step by step, that occurs when a ligand binds to a GPCR
- GPCR changes conformation, resulting in a greater affinity for G protein.
- G-alpha of a G protein binds to the GPCR receptor.
- This triggers GDP on the G protein to be replaced by GTP.
- The activated G-alpha binds to the effector molecule and ATP is converted into cAMP (second messenger).
- The GTPase of G-alpha kicks in and converts GTP to GDP
- G-alpha joins G-beta and G-gamma once more
- The original GPCR is phosphoryated and arrestin binds the receptor, preventing further activation of G proteins
Once G-alpha is bound to an effector molecule, it will keep converting ATP to cAMP until what is triggered?
G-alpha has slow-acting GTP phosphatase activity, and over time the GTP is eventually broken down into GDP. The inactivated G-alpha goes back to G-beta and G-gamma to once again form the heterotrimatic G-protein complex
What molecule exchanges GDP for GTP
GEF (guanine nucleotide exchange factor)
_____ bind to A GPCR to block G-alpha from attaching to it again in a process called _____. What else occurs during this process?
Arrestins, called desensitization. During desensitization, GPCR is also phosphorylated by GRK (g-coupled receptor kinase)
What are well known organisms that produce toxins that target G proteins?
Cholera toxin, pertussis virulence factors
Describe the function of secondary messengers such as cAMP
Released into the cytoplasm after binding of a ligand, amplifying the response of a single extracellular ligand (basically bring message from membrane to cytoplasm)
Some phospholipids of cell membranes are converted into second messengers by activated _______
Phospholipases
Phosphoinositides are derivatives of _______, which produces the most well-studied lipid second messengers
Phosphatidylinositol
If a phospholipid is cleaved by phospholipase C right in the middle, what happens?
Head and neck groups (inositol tri-phosphate) enter the cytoplasm and body and tail (including diacylglycerol) stay in the plasma membrane
Cleaving phosphatidylinositol is related to muscle contraction how?
Opens calcium ion channels - creating a second messenger that results in a muscle contraction.
DAG extracted by cleaving phospholipids serves what purpose?
DAG activates protein kinase C, which phosphorylates serine and theronine residues on target proteins.
Phosphorylated phosphoinositides form lipid-binding domains called _____
PH domains
When Lowell and Mabel Hokin discovered phosphorylation of phosphatidylinositol, what were they trying to accomplish and why were the results a surprise?
They tagged [32P]orthophosphate to stdy the effect of acetylcholine on RNA synthesis in pancreatic cells. They noticed that the tagged orthophosphate was incorporated into PI and rapidly converted to phosphoinositides.
What are the four “flavours” of G-alpha?
G-alpha s, G-alpha q (phospholipase C), G-alpha I (inhibitory), G-alpha 12/13 (important role in carcinogenesis)
Glucagon and epinephrine both stimulate glycogen breakdown into _____, inhibiting the enzyme _____, which stimulates further glycogen production
glucose-1-phosphate, inhibiting glycogen synthase
What is glycogen?
Polymer of glucose (long chain of glucose) created to store excess glucose
cAMP is synthesized by _____. Where does it go once formed?
Adenylyl cyclase. Go into cytoplasm and bind with a cAMP-dependent protein kinase (PKA) to initiate a signalling cascade that leads to glucose mobilization
Briefly lay out the steps of intracellular signalling cascades
- Transfer the signal
- Transform the signal
- Amplify the signal
- Distribute the signal
- Can be modulated to vary the response
If Glycogen synthase is phosphorylated, it is _____.
What about Glycogen synthase kinase is phosphorylated, what happens?
inactive.
GSK also becomes inactive
What is the purpose of phosphorylating glycogen synthase in a liver cell
To inactivate it, so glycogen can be broken down into glucose without immediately being reassembled
What does cAMP cause in liver cells, fat cells, and smooth muscle cells?
Liver cells - glycogen breakdown
Fat cells - triacylglycerol breakdown
Muscle cells - Causes muscle relaxation
Why is it that cAMP causes so many different effects in different cells?
It is thought that cAMP activates PKAs, which display varying AKAPs (PKA-anchoring proteins) which act as signalling hubs with different functions in different cells
What purpose do AKAPs serve?
Couple PKA with potential substrates and other ptoeins in signalling pathway. They localize signalling proteins and can do so in the cytoplasm or in organelles. Basically they cause an accumulation of PKA
Which GPCRs are involved in sensory perception
Rhodopsin - photosensitive protein for black and white vision
Several colour receptors in the retina
Distal tips of neurons located in the nasal epithelium contain odorant receptors, GPCRs that bind various chemicals.
Many taste receptors include GPCRs (perception of bitterness, sweetness, or savory is dependent on the compound interacting with GPCRs on the tongue)
GPCRs are also known as _____
G protein-coupled receptors