#cell membrane

[oh-dear-so-queer]

Absorption of light allows 11-cis-retinal to relax from a bent shape (arising from the cis double bond) to a lower energy, all-trans arrangement. The straighter all-trans-retinal can no longer fit in the receptor designed for 11-cis-retinal and is ejected. This change leads to differences in cell membrane potential and, as ions are pumped into the cell, this response turns into a nerve impulse that travels to the brain. That is not the end of the matter; the all-trans-retinal generated by this process is reconverted to 11-cis-retinal by specific enzymes, which can re-bind into the receptor, ready to interact with another photon of light.

FIGURE 16.21 The chemistry of colour detection in the eye following absorption of a particular wavelength of light by rhodopsin.

"Chemistry" 2e - Blackman, A., Bottle, S., Schmid, S., Mocerino, M., Wille, U.

[bpod-bpod]

Across the Membrane

Understanding how the crosstalk between changes in cell adhesion proteins at the cell's membrane with proteins of the cell interior ensure accurate cell division

Read the published research article here

Video from work by Manal M. Hosawi and colleagues

School of Biological Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK

Video originally published with a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Published in Journal of Cell Science, November 2023

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[deesi-academia]

Cell membrane has a BI-layer of lipids?

YOU KNOW WHAT. THIS LITERALLY EXPLAINS MY VERY BEING.

[wikipediagrams]

[miss-biophys]

So there’s this bug in the software of the atomic force microscope (AFM) that I use.

You image your sample - cellular membrane here - and than you can indent it with a tiny tip to measure its stiffness and elasticity. Sometimes, the image dissapears the moment you switch to the indentations so you are blind on where to push and indent. This is the best solution I thought of today to mark where the membrane was. 😆

[mokshalifestyleinternational]

PURE ROSEHIP SEED OIL

It includes a lot of vital fatty acids, such as linoleic and linolenic acid. These fatty acids serve to strengthen cell membranes and prevent water loss. Organic Rosehip Seed Oil includes Vitamins A and C, which help to balance out skin tone and promote cell renewal for a more radiant, bright appearance. The oil's astringent qualities constrict pores while also brightening the complexion. Vitamins A and C increase collagen formation and have anti-aging properties. They aid in minimizing wrinkles and fine lines. It also includes lycopene, which has skin-rejuvenating effects and can assist with dark spots. Stretch marks arise when your skin's collagen and elastic rip, resulting in scars.

[tenth-sentence]

The answer lies in the equilibrium between the ionic and neutral forms of the drug.

"Chemistry" 2e - Blackman, A., Bottle, S., Schmid, S., Mocerino, M., Wille, U.

[goober-sci]

THINGS IN A CELL MEMBRANE

There’s certainly several things

Killing myself with hammers 300x

Phospholipid bilayer: makes up the bulk of the membrane. Made of lipids with a polar head and a nonpolar tail. The nonpolar side goes on the inside, the polar side goes on the outside

Cholesterol: is a spacer between phospholipids, keeps them from being too compact in cold temperatures and from drifting apart in hot temperatures.

Prehiphral proteins: on exterior of membrane. Can be enzymes or attach to cytoskeleton for maintaining cell shape.

Integral proteins: go through the membrane. Usually transport molecules like a channel when they can’t go through the phospholipid bilayer

Both proteins can have carbohydrates balance them, making them a glycoprotein. If the carbs attach to a lipid it’s called a glycolipid. These identify the cell as “self” and “non-self” which is important for fighting pathogens.

Source: amoeba sisters “inside the cell membrane”

[wayti-blog]

Cells' electric fields keep nanoparticles at bay, scientists confirm

"The humble membranes that enclose our cells have a surprising superpower: They can push away nano-sized molecules that happen to approach them."

"The team's findings, which appear in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, confirm that the powerful electrical fields that cell membranes generate are largely responsible for repelling nanoscale particles from the surface of the cell.

This repulsion notably affects neutral, uncharged nanoparticles, in part because the smaller, charged molecules the electric field attracts crowd the membrane and push away the larger particles."

"The findings provide the first direct evidence that the electric fields are responsible for the repulsion. According to NIST's David Hoogerheide, the effect deserves greater attention from the scientific community."

continue reading article

[whats-in-a-sentence]

Chloroplast membranes, which account for 70% of the membrane lipids in photosynthetic tissues, are dominated by glyceroglycolipids; other membranes of the cell contain glycerophospholipids (Table 12.4). (...) Each membrane system of the cell has a characteristic and distinct complement of lipid types, and within a single membrane, each class of lipids has a distinct fatty acid composition (see Table 12.4).

"Plant Physiology and Development" int'l 6e - Taiz, L., Zeiger, E., Møller, I.M., Murphy, A.

[bpod-bpod]

Front Runner

Techniques including single-molecule measurement and live-cell imaging reveal a mechanism the authors dub 'dynamic partitioning' that explains compartmentalisation of proteins at the cell membrane during processes of normal cell function

Read the published research article here

Video adapted from work by Tatsat Banerjee and colleagues

Department of Cell Biology and Center for Cell Dynamics, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA

Video originally published with a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)

Published in Nature Communications, November 2023

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[medicomunicare]

Malattia di Huntington: le comprensioni molecolari e la cura selettiva sono sempre più vicine

Malattia di Huntington: le comprensioni molecolari e la cura selettiva sono sempre più vicine

La malattia di Huntington è una malattia neurodegenerativa a trasmissione dominante ed è causata da una mutazione in una proteina chiamata “huntingtina”, che aggiunge alla proteina una caratteristica distintiva di un tratto espanso di aminoacidi glutammina chiamato poliglutammina (poli-Q). Si stima che ci siano almeno 30.000 casi di malattia di Huntington negli Stati Uniti ed almeno 50.000 in…

[anas-zoology]

New blogpost on Fluid Mosaic Model of Plasma Membrane

[wikipediagrams]

[don-lichterman]

GPR183 gene a novel drug target for severe COVID-19

GPR183 gene a novel drug target for severe COVID-19

In a recent study posted to the bioRxiv* pre-print server, researchers provide the first preclinical evidence of the usefulness of antagonists of G-protein coupled receptor 183 (GPR183), also known as Epstein-Barr virus-induced gene 2 (EBI2), in reducing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) severity. Study: Oxysterols drive inflammation via GPR183 during influenza virus and SARS-CoV-2 infection.…

[mokshalifestyleinternational]

ORGANIC RICE BRAN OIL

It provides the benefits of both an emollient and a moisturizer. It is high in linoleic and oleic fatty acids, which might imitate the skin's natural oil, sebum. They may penetrate deep into the skin's layers and trap moisture inside those small tissues. It also contains Vitamin E, which produces a protective layer on the epidermis (the first and outermost layer of skin). Pure Rice Bran Oil is high in antioxidants and vitamins, which can promote healthy aging. Free radicals are molecules that circulate throughout our bodies, causing cell membrane damage, premature aging, and skin dulling. They are exacerbated by excessive stress, sun exposure, and other reasons.