Lipid Membrane and Solute Transport Flashcards
What are lipid bilayers used for? (2)
- Membrane organelles
- Cytoplasmic membrane
What provides the unique features of the different plasma membranes in various organisms?
The plasma membrane can differ based on the organism, the cell type, and the organelles involved
How are the levels of cholesterol in the plasma membrane? What about the rough ER?
Plasma membrane: high cholesterol
Rough ER: low cholesterol
What do we mean by “asymmetry” of the lipid bilayers?
- The distribution of membrane phospholipids can either be more present in the inner or outer monolayer
- The difference is very important
Where is phosphotidylinositol located in the cell membrane?
Inside of the membrane since they are involved in signal transduction
Where is phosphotidylserine located in the cell membrane?
Located on the inside of the membrane, but sometimes is shifted to the ouside
How can integral membrane proteins be separated?
- Using detergents
- Makes the hydrophobic portion of IMP soluble
What do peripheral membrane proteins interact with?
- Linked to the lipid bilayer
- Linked with transmembrane proteins
- Linked through a carbohydrate (ex: Glycosylphosphatidylinositol)
Differentiate the ordered and disordered states of the lipid bilayer.
Ordered state; membrane is crystalline; gel-like
Disordered state: membrane is very fluid
Are cell membranes usually ordered or disordered?
- Neither, cells are always in between these two states
- Different cells will have different ideal fluidity ranges
How does heat affect the cell membrane?
- Produces thermal motion of the side chains
- Gel to fluid transition
How does temperature affect membrane flexibility?
If the temperature increases over 40oC, the lipid bilayer goes into the disordered state (increases thermal motion)
What is the regular temperature range for membranes?
20-40oC
How does saturation of the fatty acid chains affect membrane flexibility?
- They increase order
- The more fatty acids, the more likely you will be in a crystalline state
- Unsaturated fatty acids have a kind
- Saturated fatty acids pack better
How does uniform length of the fatty acid chains affect membrane flexibility?
Increases order
How does sterol content affect membrane flexibility?
- Affects both ways depending on the situation their in
- Can decrease order if the bilayer has all saturated FA since sterols induce gaps in the bilayer, which increases disorder
- Can increase order if the bilayer has all unsaturated fatty acids since sterols will fill in the gaps
At higher temperatures, will the cells increase saturated FA or unsaturated FA in the membrane?
- Increase saturated FA
- Because they have to maintain homeostasis of fluidity
- High temp: disorder
- Saturated FA: order
Differentiate lateral diffusion and transbilayer diffusion.
Lateral: within each leaflet; lipid molecules can flow freely
Transbilayer (Flip-Flop): one leaflet to another; difficult and extremely slow (if uncatalyzed)
What is uncatalyzed lateral diffusion necessary for?
In order to change the shape of the cell, to move cells, for lipid signaling
What are the three transmembrane transporters that allow transbilayer translocations?
- Flippase
- Floppase
- Scramblase
What are flippases? Does it require ATP? If not, what does it use? Does it have directionality?
- Bring a lipid form the OUTER leaflet to the INNER leaflet
- Requires ATP
- Directionality
What triggers apoptosis/phagocytosis? What can prevent this from happening? What is it necessary for?
- PE and PS on the outer leaflet will cause apoptosis and phagocytosis (necessary for clot formation)
- Flippases move PE and PS from outer leaflet to inner leaflet
- Apoptosis/Phagocytosis is prevented
What are floppases? Does it require ATP? If not, what does it use? Does it have directionality?
- Bring a lipid from the INNER leaflet to the OUTER leaflet
- Requires ATP
- Directionality
What are scramblases? Does it require ATP? If not, what does it use? Does it have directionality?
- Moves lipids in either direction, towards equilibrium
- Does not require ATP
- Uses calcium instead
- No directionality
Can proteins move freely across the leaflet in the lipid bilayer?
Yes, if they are not anchored
What are proteins often anchored to in the bilayer? What are they?
- Ankyrin and Spectrin
- Cytoskeletal filaments in the cell
What happens if proteins in the bilayer are not anchored?
They will move
What happens if the composition on the outer leaflet has increased levels of sphingolipids and cholesterol?
- Increased rigidity
- Everything in the rigid region moves together; they are called rafts since they drift together
What are caveolae?
Caveolae are a type of “raft” that form when caveola is concentrated in a region
How does a caveolae form? How does it change the plasma membrane?
- A caveolin will interact with 3 fatty acyl moieties
- Two caveolin will dimerize (6 fatty acyl moieties total)
- When they concentrate, they will form a curvature in the plasma membrane, forming a caveolae
How do caveolae affect integral proteins?
When caveolae are formed, integral proteins in the area are stuck
- Because of this, they also become a sort of raft
What are caveolae important for?
Signal localization and signal integration
What does the fusion of two membranes require?
- Triggering signal
- Membrane recognition of each other
- Close apposition
- Local disruption of the bilayer on both membranes
- Hemi-Fusion (one of the leaflets from each side fuses)
- Fusion Proteins