Cell Communication Notes

Cell Communication Notes
- Cell Communication= External signals are converted into responses within the cell
o All cells (prokaryotes and eukaryotes) communicate Examples:
- Cells (in multicellular organisms) communicate by a variety of chemical signals. Some

examples are:
1. Hormones, such as insulin- Produced in one tissue, travel through bloodstream,
interact with certain cells to change cell activity.
2. Neurotransmitters, such as dopamine- Released by one nerve cell (neuron), travels
very short distance to adjacent neuron, stimulates nerve cell activity
Signal Transduction Pathways

- Convert signals on a cell’s surface into cellular responses
How do different organisms use cell communication?

Single cells- Yeast cells (Single Cells) identify their mates by cell signaling; bacteria respond to
population density
Multicellular Organisms-
o Examples:
1. Epinephrine stimulation of glycogen breakdown in mammals
2. Temperature determination of sex in some vertebrate organisms, such as some turtles,
American alligator, etc.
3. DNA repair mechanisms
- Cell Junctions- Multicellular Organisms- Plant and animal cells have cell junctions that
directly connect the cytoplasm of adjacent cells
- Direct contact- Animal cells; examples: Immune cells such as antigen-presenting cells
helper T-cells and killer T- cells.
- Local Regulators- Short distances. Animal cells; examples: Paracrine and Synaptic
- Long distance signaling- Both plants and animals use hormones; examples:
neurotransmitters, plant immune response, embryonic development, quorum (population
control) sensing in bacteria
Sutherland suggested that cells receiving signals went through three processes:
1. Reception
2. Transduction
3. Response
Reception- A signal molecule binds to a receptor protein, causing it to change shape

• The binding between signal molecule (ligand) and receptor is highly specific
• A conformational change in a receptor is often the initial transduction of the signal
• Intracellular receptors are cytoplasmic or nuclear proteins
• Signal molecules that are small or hydrophobic and can readily cross the plasma
membrane use these receptors
There are three main types of membrane receptors:

1. G-protein-linked receptors
2. Tyrosine kinases receptors
3. Ion channel receptors
G- Protein linked receptors

3 components- all allosteric proteins that that can change shape in response to signal:
1. Receptor proteins- spans plasma membrane, has receptor site on outside, binding site for
G-protein on inside
2. G- protein- loosely attached to inner membrane
a. Acts like on-off switch
b. Inactive form when bound to GDP
c. Active form when bound to GTP
d. G-protein soon breaks GTP down to GDP, so “on” stat switches back to “off”
3. Target- usually a membrane bound enzyme
a. Enzyme is inactive until activated by active G-protein
Examples that use G-proteins:

- Many hormone receptors
- Many neurotransmitters
- Vision and smell in humans
- Bacterial infections (botulism, cholera, etc.) produce toxins that interfere with G-
proteins, leading to disease symptons
- As many as 60% of all medicines sold today act by influencing G- protein pathways
Transduction- Cascades of molecular interactions relay signals from receptors to target

molecules in the cell
1. Protein Phosphorylation
- Multistep pathways- can amplify a signal and provide more opportunities for
coordination and regulation
- At each step in a pathway
– The signal is transduced into a different form, commonly a conformational change
in a protein
– Include phosphorylation cascades
- A series of protein kinases (enzymes) add a phosphate to the next one in line, activating it
– Phosphatase enzymes then remove the phosphates
– Kinases are often linked: Kinase 1 activates kinase 2, which activates kinase 3, etc
to final target.
2. Second Messengers
- Second messengers- are small, non-protein, water-soluble molecules or ions
- Example= cyclic AMP (cAMP)
- cAMP is made from ATP by enzyme adenyl cyclase (often activated by G-protein)
- cAMP acts like an intracellular hormone, stimulating variety of effects thatdiffers from
tissue to tissue
- Many G-proteins trigger the formation of cAMP, which then acts as a second messenger
in cellular pathways
- Ca++ is an important second messenger because cells are able to regulate its concentration
in the cytosol
- Other second messengers such as inositol triphosphate and diacylglycerol
• Can trigger an increase in calcium in the cytosol
Response: Cell signaling leads to regulation of cytoplasmic activities or transcription

• Cells use multi step pathways for amplification
• Each activated component can turn “on”, or activate multiple copies of many different
target molecules
• The more steps involved, the bigger the final number of activated products = activation
cascade.
• The different combinations of proteins in a cell give the cell great specificity in both the
signals it detects and the responses it carries out
• Other pathways regulate genes by activating transcription factors that turn genes on or off
• Signal response is terminated quickly by the reversal of ligand binding
Changes in Signal Transduction pathways can alter cellular response

- Conditions where signal transduction is blocked/defective
- Examples:
o Diabetes, heart disease, neurological disease, autoimmune disease, cancer, cholera
o Effects of neurotoxins, poisons, and pesticides
o Drugs
So why do we care?
• Allows humans to modify and manipulate biological systems and physiology.
• Human example: Knowing about the endocrine system allowed for the creation of birth
control pills and medicines to control blood pressure, depression, and metabolism
• Other examples: Agricultural production and modifying ripening in fruit

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Cell Communication Notes

- Cells (in multicellular organisms) communicate by a variety of chemical signals. Some

Signal Transduction Pathways

How do different organisms use cell communication?

Reception- A signal molecule binds to a receptor protein, causing it to change shape

There are three main types of membrane receptors:

G- Protein linked receptors

Examples that use G-proteins:

Transduction- Cascades of molecular interactions relay signals from receptors to target

Response: Cell signaling leads to regulation of cytoplasmic activities or transcription

Changes in Signal Transduction pathways can alter cellular response

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