Themes of Cell

Communication

Protein Conformational Change due to protein

interactions

Pathways- if you mess up one part, all

downstream players are affected

All pathways need a way to be turned on and

turned off

Application to body systems- Endocrine

System

Figure 11.4

Local Signaling

Long Distance Signaling

Long-distance signaling

Target cell

Secreting
cell

Local regulator
diffuses through
extracellular fluid.

Secretory
vesicle

Electrical signal
along nerve cell
triggers release of
neurotransmitter.
Neurotransmitter
diffuses across
synapse.

Target cell
is stimulated.

(a) Paracrine signaling(b) Synaptic signaling

Endocrine cell

Blood
vessel

Hormone travels
in bloodstream.

Target cell
specifically
binds
hormone.

(c) Endocrine (hormonal) signaling

Figure 11.3

Plasma membranes

Local

Gap junctions
between animal cells
(a) Cell junctions

(b) Cell-cell recognition

Plasmodesmata
between plant cells

Figure 11.5
Earl W. Sutherland discovered how the hormone epinephrine acts on cells
Sutherland suggested that cells receiving signals went through three
processes
EXTRACELLULAR
FLUID
1 Reception

CYTOPLASM
Plasma membrane
2 Transduction

3 Response

Receptor
Activation
of cellular
response
Relay molecules in a signal transduction
pathway
Signaling
molecule

Concept 11.2: Reception: A signaling molecule binds to

a receptor protein, causing it to change shape
Water Soluble ligands

Most water-soluble ligands bind to specific sites on

receptor proteins that span the plasma membrane
The binding between a signal molecule (ligand)
and receptor is highly specific
3 main types of membrane receptors
1. G protein-coupled receptors
2. Receptor tyrosine kinases
3. Ion channel receptors
2011 Pearson Education, Inc.

Rs) are the largest family of cell-surface receptors- interact with many enzymes and
G protein-coupled
receptor

CYTOPLASM
1

Plasma
membrane

Activated
receptor

Signaling
molecule

Inactive
enzyme

GTP
GDP

GDP

Enzyme

G protein
(inactive)

GDP

GTP

Activated
enzyme

GTP

GDP
P

Cellular response

2) Receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs)

Signaling
molecule (ligand)

Ligand-binding site
Signaling
molecule

helix in the
membrane

Tyrosines

CYTOPLASM

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Receptor tyrosine
kinase proteins
(inactive monomers)

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

Dimer
2
Activated relay
proteins

P Tyr

Tyr P

Tyr P

P Tyr

Tyr P

Tyr P

P Tyr

Tyr P

Tyr

Tyr

P Tyr

Tyr P

Tyr

Tyr

P Tyr

Tyr

Tyr

P Tyr

ATP

Activated tyrosine
kinase regions
(unphosphorylated
dimer)

6 ADP

Fully activated
receptor tyrosine
kinase
(phosphorylated
dimer)

Inactive
relay proteins

Cellular
response 1
Cellular
response 2

Figure 11.7d

gated ion channel receptor acts as a gate when the receptor changes shape (diffu
that diffuse through then usually interact with intracellular proteins to initiate a cellu
1

Signaling
molecule
(ligand)

2
Gate
closed

Ligand-gated
ion channel receptor

Ions

Plasma
membrane

Gate closed

Gate
open

Cellular
response

Intracellular Receptors
Lipid Soluble ligands

Intracellular receptor proteins are found in the

cytoplasm or nucleus of target cells (not plasma
membrane)
Small or hydrophobic ligands can readily cross
the membrane and activate receptors
Examples: steroid and thyroid hormones of
animals
An activated hormone-receptor complex can act
as a transcription factor, turning on specific genes

2011 Pearson Education, Inc.

Figure 11.9-5

Hormone
(testosterone)

EXTRACELLULAR
FLUID

Plasma
membrane

Receptor
protein

Hormonereceptor
complex

DNA
mRNA

NUCLEUS

CYTOPLASM

New protein