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Cell Membrane

The plasma membrane defines the borders of the cell and allows the cell to interact with its environment in a controlled way by excluding, taking in, and excreting substances. It is made up of lipids like phospholipids and cholesterol that form a semi-permeable bilayer, as well as proteins and carbohydrates. The currently accepted model of its structure is the fluid mosaic model, which describes the plasma membrane as a dynamic structure where components freely move within the plane of the membrane.

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85 views3 pages

Cell Membrane

The plasma membrane defines the borders of the cell and allows the cell to interact with its environment in a controlled way by excluding, taking in, and excreting substances. It is made up of lipids like phospholipids and cholesterol that form a semi-permeable bilayer, as well as proteins and carbohydrates. The currently accepted model of its structure is the fluid mosaic model, which describes the plasma membrane as a dynamic structure where components freely move within the plane of the membrane.

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sajmir
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Each cell of your body is encased in a tiny bubble of membrane.

This
membrane has about the consistency of...salad oil^11start superscript, 1,
end superscript. The first time I read that factoid, I didn't find it very
reassuring! Salad oil seems like an awfully fragile boundary to place
between a cell and the rest of the world. Luckily, the plasma membrane
turns out to be very well-suited to its job, salad oil texture and all.

What exactly is its job? The plasma membrane not only defines the
borders of the cell, but also allows the cell to interact with its environment
in a controlled way. Cells must be able to exclude, take in, and excrete
various substances, all in specific amounts. In addition, they must able to
communicate with other cells, identifying themselves and sharing
information.

To perform these roles, the plasma membrane needs lipids, which make a
semi-permeable barrier between the cell and its environment. It also
needs proteins, which are involved in cross-membrane transport and cell
communication, and carbohydrates (sugars and sugar chains), which
decorate both the proteins and lipids and help cells recognize each other.

Here, we’ll take a closer look at the different components of the plasma
membrane, examining their roles, their diversity, and how they work
together to make a flexible, sensitive, and secure boundary around the
cell.

Fluid mosaic model


The currently accepted model for the structure of the plasma membrane,
called the fluid mosaic model, was first proposed in 1972. This model
has evolved over time, but it still provides a good basic description of the
structure and behavior of membranes in many cells.

According to the fluid mosaic model, the plasma membrane is a mosaic of


components—primarily, phospholipids, cholesterol, and proteins—that
move freely and fluidly in the plane of the membrane. In other words, a
diagram of the membrane (like the one below) is just a snapshot of a
dynamic process in which phospholipids and proteins are continually
sliding past one another.

Interestingly enough, this fluidity means that if you insert a very fine
needle into a cell, the membrane will simply part to flow around the
needle; once the needle is removed, the membrane will flow back
together seamlessly.

Image of the plasma membrane, showing the phospholipid bilayer with


peripheral and integral membrane proteins, glycoproteins (proteins with a
carbohydrate attached), glycolipids (lipids with a carbohydrate attached),
and cholesterol molecules.
Image modified from OpenStax Biology.

The principal components of the plasma membrane are lipids


(phospholipids and cholesterol), proteins, and carbohydrate groups that
are attached to some of the lipids and proteins.
 A phospholipid is a lipid made of glycerol, two fatty acid tails, and
a phosphate-linked head group. Biological membranes usually involve two
layers of phospholipids with their tails pointing inward, an arrangement
called a phospholipid bilayer.

 Cholesterol, another lipid composed of four fused carbon rings, is


found alongside phospholipids in the core of the membrane.

 Membrane proteins may extend partway into the plasma


membrane, cross the membrane entirely, or be loosely attached to its
inside or outside face.

 Carbohydrate groups are present only on the outer surface of the


plasma membrane and are attached to proteins, forming glycoproteins,
or lipids, forming glycolipids.

The proportions of proteins, lipids, and carbohydrates in the plasma


membrane vary between different types of cells. For a typical human cell,
however, proteins account for about 50 percent of the composition by
mass, lipids (of all types) account for about 40 percent, and the remaining
10 percent comes from carbohydrates.

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