Membranes practice Flashcards
say the approximate % proteins and % lipids in the following membrane types:
Also say how this affects functional complexity (increases or reduces)
- Thylakoid
- Inner mitochondrial membrane
- Inner membrane of chloroplasts
- Outer membrane of mitochondria
- Outer membrane of chloroplasts
- Plasma membrane of bacteria
- Outer membrane of bacteria
Reduced protein/lipid ratio –> reduced functional complexity
- Label the numbered structures (5P)
- 1 – Bi-molecular lipid layer
- 2 – polar heads of lipid molecules
- 3 – non-polar tails of phospholipid molecules
- 4 – Carbohydrate of glycocalyx
- 5 – Peripheral protein
- 6 – glycoprotein
- 7 – Integral protein
- 8 – glycolipid
- 9 – Cholesterol
- 10 – Outward facing layer of phospholipids
Name the 3 major classes of membrane lipids
- Phospholipids
- Glycolipids
- Sterols
How do sterols affect the physical and chemical properties of phospholipid bilayers?
- Reducing lateral mobility
- Influencing fluidity and permeability
- Alter the length of the hydrophobic core
Why haydocarbon chains with kinks lower Tm?
- Kinks in hydrocarbon chains will weaken van-der-waals forces between lipid molecules.
Which Glycerophospholipid dominates in bacteria and is 45% of lipid content in brain and nerves?
- Phosphatidylethanolamine (PE)
Which Glycerophospholipid is:
- enriched in the brain and retina,
- low in mitochondiral inner membrane
- highly enriched in inner leaflet of plasma membrane
- Serves as a signal for apoptosis
- Phosphatidylserine (PS)
Which glycerophospholipid:
- is 20% of bacterial membrane
- is Only major phospholipid in thylakoids of chloroplast
- is Synthesized in mitochondria and functions as precursor for cardiolipin (in inner mitochondrial membrane).
- Phosphatidylglycerol (PG)
Which glycerophospholipid is:
- Mostly found in inner mitochondrial membrane of animals and plants – constitutes 20% of total lipid content (also in thylakoids of plants)
- Also found in cell membrane of most bacteria; archaea contain analog of cardiolipin.
- Only eukaryotic lipid synthesized in mitochondria (supports endosymbiosis theory)
- Essential component of several complexes of the respiratory chain
- Additional roles in apoptosis
- Based on two DAGs
- Cardiolipin (based on two diacylglycerols (DAGs)
Which Glycerophospholipid is:
- Major component of Lecithin, isolated from egg yolk
- 17-40% in plasma membrane of eukaryotes (enriched in ER and tonoplast)
- Levels decrease in cell as we age
- Phosphatidylcholine (PC)
Which glycerophospholipid is:
- Minor component on the cytosolic side of eukaryotic cell membranes
- Can be phosphorylated by various kinases (PIP1, PIP2,PIP3)
- Important in lipid signaling, cell signaling and membrane trafficking
- Increases affinity of membranes for peripheral membrane proteins
- Sorting protein cargo
- Docking and fusion of transport vesicles
- –> controls direction of membrane trafficking
- Increases affinity of membranes for peripheral membrane proteins
- Phosphatidylinositol (PI)
Which sphingolipid is:
- Found especially in myelin sheath around nerve cell axons
- Head group is either choline** or **ethanolamine
- Has a role in apoptosis
- Sphingomyelin
Which sphingolipid is:
- Important in animal muscle and nerve cell membranes
*
- Cerebroside
what is Gaucher Disease and which lipid is important with it?
- Cerebroside sphingolipid
- autosomal recessive inherited disorder:
- mutation in glucocerebroside (degradation of cerebrosides) lipid builds up in the liver, spleen, bone marrow, and nervous system.
Which sphingolipid is:
- Found mainly in nervous system
- Oligosaccharides located on the extracellular surface
- Negatively charged –> alteration of electrical effects over membrane
- Participate in cell-cell recognition, adhesion, and signal transduction.
- Ganglioside
which two glyceroglycoplipids are:
- Most prominent in thylakoid membranes of photosynthetic organisms
- Conserved from cyanobacteria to plants
- Ratio is crucial for the stabilization of the membrane bilayer
- Monogalactosyldiaglycerol (MGDG) & Digalactosyldiaglycerol (DGDG)
- MGDG: Monosaccharide = galactose
- DGDG: Disaccharide = Diagalactose
- Most prominent in thylakoid membranes of photosynthetic organisms
- Conserved from cyanobacteria to plants
- Ratio of MGDG to DGDG is crucial for the stabilization of the membrane bilayer
*
How is phosphate released under phosphate limiting conditions?
- Phospholipids are partially replaced by galactolipids under phosphate-limiting conditions.
- This releases phosphate, allowing it to be used for other essential cellular processes.
Which glyceroglycolipid is:
- Anionic lipid present in thylakoid membranes (least prevalent)
- Dispensable under normal growth conditions but important in certain environments, particularly phosphate depleted conditions.
- Sulfonic acid linkage on the galactose moiety (sulfonic acid is linked to the galactose molecule).
- Sulfoquinovosyl diacylglycerides (SQDG)
Which sterols (or similar molecules) are found in which organisms
- Cholesterol (animals)
- Ergosterol (yeast)
- Hopanoid (bacteria)
- Stigmasterol (plants)
- Sistosterol (plants)
- Sterols not found in archaea
Why is Acetyl-CoA suitable to build fatty acids? (reason that this molecule is good for this)
- Fatty acids built by linking C2 moieties.
- This is the reason that most naturally occurring fatty acids have an even number of carbons.
Synthesis of fatty acid based lipids in animals, yeast and plants
which organelles are different things are synthesized in
-
Animals:
- Mitochondria: Synthesis of cardiolipin
- Cytosol: Fatty acid biosynthesis (eukaryotes)
- ER: Fatty acid elongation and lipid synthesis
-
Plants:
- Mitochondria: Synthesis of cardiolipin
- Plastid: Malonyl-CoA synthesis and fatty acid synthesis (prkaryotes)
- Cytosol: Malonyl-CoA synthesis for fatty acid elongation (Eukaryotes)
- ER: Fatty acid elongation and lipid synthesis
Where in the cell is acetyl-CoA synthesized?
Name 3 Organelles, and draw basic pathway for each
- Mitochondrion
- Plastid
- Peroxisome
- Cytosol
Name 4 functions of Acetyl-CoA
- Syntehsis of amino acids, other metabolites
- Acetylation of cytoplasmic proteins
- Histone Acetylation
- Long-Chain fatty acid biosynthesis
How is acetyl-CoA transported to the cytosol from the mitochondria and back?
- Out of mitochondrion:
- Is converted to citrate in mitochondria
- transported to cytoplasm
- Back to mitochondrion:
- Pyruvate is transported into mitochondria
- Pyruvate converted to Acetyl-CoA
- Malonyl-CoA formation - stoichiometric equation and significance of the step
- Acetyl-CoA + HCO3- + ATP –> Malonoyl-CoA + H+ + Pi + ADP
- This is the first committed step in fatty acid synthesis and it is irreversible.
Acetyl-CoA Carboxylase (ACCase): role and place in system
- Made up of three parts:
- 1 – Biotin carboxyl carrier protein (co-factor)
- 2 – Biotin carboxylase
- 3 – Carboxyltransferase
Process:
- Transfer of CO2 to biotin
- Catalyzed by the biotin carboxylase
- Transfer of carboxyl group (HCO3-) to acetyl-CoA
- Catalyzed by the carboxyltransferase
- Formation of malonyl-CoA upon transfer of carboxyl group to acetyl-CoA
Biotin (what it is, structure, significance)
- Vitamin B7 (vitamin H)
- Is a universal motif for the transfer of carbon dioxide – such as in malonyl-CoA formation, where the CO2 is transferred to biotin before being transferred to acetyl-CoA.
- Also serves as a prosthetic group for many enzymes (carboxylases).
- Is covalently bound to the ε-amine group of lysine.
- Two step reaction:
- ATP-dependent linkage of carbon dioxide onto biotin to form Carboxy-biotin
- Transfer of activated carboxy group onto the final substrate.
Where do Malonyl-CoA and Fatty acid synthesis take place in Prokaryotes vs. Eukaryotes?
What is the difference between ACCase between them?
- Prokaryotic: Malonyl-CoA synthesis and Fatty acid synthesis take place in Plastid. ACCase location is here.
- Hetero-ACCase: Smaller ACCase with more subunits (4) – CT is split into α and β subunits
- Eukaryotic: these processes take place in cytosol. ACCase location is here.
- Homo-ACCase: Larger ACCase with less subunits (3)
2 ways in which fatty acid synthesis may be regulated
- rate limiting step = formation of malonyl-CoA
- regulation of plastidal ACCase (in prokaryotes)
- ACCase inhibition
How may plastidal ACCase be regulated in prokaryotes?
- phosphorylation, feedback-inhibition, Thioredoxin (redox regulation)
- plants can have different types of ACCases in cytosol and chloroplasts:
- most monocots and dicots have Homo in cytosol and Hetero in chloroplasts
- most grasses (Poaceae) have homo in both
How may ACCase be inhibited?
- Aryloxyphenoxypropionates, “fops”, and cyclohexanediones, “dims”
- Specifically target homo-ACCase (because most grasses only have Homo in chloroplasts)
- ACCase inhibitors used to control growth of grass weeds in agricultural crop fields
Fatty acid synthesis cycle
- Condensation (3 possible reactions)
- Acetyl-CoA –> Malonyl-CoA
- Acetyl-CoA –> Ketobutyryl-ACP
- Malonyl-CoA –> Ketobutyryl-ACP
- Reduction (2 possible reactions)
- Ketobutyryl-ACP –> Hydroxybutyryl-ACP
- Butenoyl-ACP –> Butyryl-ACP
- Dehydration
- Hydroxybutyryl-ACP –> Butenoyl-ACP
what is the key enzyme involved in Fatty acid synthesis cycle?
How is it different between Animals, Yeast, Bacteria, Plants?
Fatty Acid Synthase: FAS (purpose and role in Animals, Yeast, Bacteria, and plants)
- Does all enzymatic activities other than ACCase
- Animals and yeast: Type I complex – 2 identical subunits, with one peptide chain that catalyzes all consecutive reactions.
- Bacteria and Plants: Type II complex – several individual subunits (~12 different enzymes). Strict coupling of enzymatic activity.
How is fatty acid synthesis terminated?
What 2 enzymes are involved?
-
Thioesterase (hydrolase): hydrolysis of acyl-ACP to free fatty acid
- Plants have different thioesterases: FatA, FatB, FatC.
- FatC- specific for short fatty acids
- Plants have different thioesterases: FatA, FatB, FatC.
- Glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase: Direct transfer of fatty acid from ACP to glycerol –> lipid
Elongation of fatty acids which enzymes used?
elongases
Derivatization of fatty acids
how different in animals and plants
- Mammals: Desaturases
- Main desaturated fatty acids are 16:1, 18:1, 18:2, and 18:3. It is only possible to desaturate up to position Δ9 in mammals. Some desaturated fatty acids in positions >9 are built by elongation.
- Localized on cytosolic site of ER-membrane. Desaturases in mammals are phylogenetically related enzymes.
- Plants: desaturases
- Contain chloroplast localized, soluble desaturase in addition to ER membrane bound desaturase. Is phylogenetically not related to other desaturases. Contains two irons and is reduced by ferrodoxin. Specifically important for glycerolipids.
How are the lipid backbones of glycerophospholipids synthesized?
- On lipid bilayer of ER, Fatty acids attached to CoA.
- Glycerol 3-phosphate comes and attaches two fatty acids together with help of an acyl transferase, removing the 2 CoA.
- Forming glycerophospholipids.
How are the backbones of sphingolipids synthesized?
- Sphingosine = Serine + fatty acid
- Sphingosine synthesized by condensation of palmitoyl-CoA and serine.
- The transfer of a second fatty acid to serine creates the sphingolipid/ceramide.
How are phospholipid head groups added in the CDP diacylglyceride pathway?
- CDP Diacylglycerol pathway: Backbone is activated
- Activation of phosphatidate:
- Phosphatic acid + CTP à CDP-Diacylglycerol + PPi
- Transfer of head group
- CDP-Diacylglycerol + headgroup à Phospholipid + CMP
- Activation of phosphatidate:
How are headgroups added in the Diacylglycerol pathway?
- Diacylglycerol pathway: Headgroup is activated
- Activation of head group
- Headgroup + CTP à activated headgroup + CMP
- Transfer of head group
- Activated headgroup + phosphatidic acid à phospholipid + CMP
- Activation of head group