BIOLOGY CHAPTER 8

CELL COMMUNICATION

An Overview of Cell Communication

Chapter 8 / Lesson 1 Transcript
Cellular communication is an important process that allows cells to pass signals to one another. In this video lesson
you will be introduced to the process of cellular communication, identifying the three steps of cellular signaling in
organisms.

Cellular Communication
Remember playing the game 'telephone' as a kid? One person started with a message that got passed down the line
through whispers. As the message made its way from person to person, it changed into something different and by
the end may have had nothing to do with the original statement. This happens because there is a communication
problem along the line. It shows you just how important good communication is, even with something as simple as a
child's game.
Your cells also rely on good communication, but unlike a game of telephone, if there is a miscommunication, the
consequences can be quite severe!
Cell-to-cell signaling is a critical component of coordinating cellular activities. Through this communication, messages
are carried from signaling cells to receiving cells, also known as target cells. This signaling occurs with proteins and
other types of signaling molecules. What kinds of processes and activities depend on cell communication? Just about
everything you can imagine that happens in your body - growth and development, cellular reproduction, tissue repair,
sensing pain, and much more.

How Cells Communicate

The pathway along which cellular communication occurs is called the signal transduction pathway. It's a series of
cellular and molecular changes that help a target cell receive a message and respond accordingly. These pathways
are crucial to cellular function because they're the main mode of communication between cells.
Here's how it works. First, a signaling cell secretes a signaling molecule, which then travels with its message to the
target cell. Once it reaches the target cell, it binds with a receptor protein in the target cell's membrane. This is the
first step of cell signaling, called reception.
This receptor protein is like the security guard at an entrance gate - it's the designated 'check-in' point for the signaling
molecule. When the receptor protein security guard accepts the signaling molecule and binds to it, a relay begins,
which is the second step of cell signaling, called transduction. Just like a baton is passed from person to person in
a relay race, so is the signal in the target cell through the process of transduction as it passes from relay molecule to
relay molecule.
The final relay molecule activates a protein that triggers the final stage of cell signaling, called response. Each
response is different because it depends on the message that was carried through the cell.

Cell Communication Is Universal

Just how important is cell communication? It seems that this process is a fairly ancient one, and one that most
organisms have in common. For example, cell communication is necessary for reproduction not just of individual cells
but also for entire organisms.
Let's look at yeast as an example. Some yeast cells not only make delicious bread and beer, but they also help us
understand how chemical signals can be used to communicate complex information between cells. Even without the

ability to make flirty eye contact, these organisms can tell which cells will help them reproduce and create new
offspring, and they do this by identifying their 'mates' through chemical signals.
There are two mating types, a and alpha;. Chemical signals are secreted from type a that bind to type alpha;cells,
and type alpha; cells secrete a signal that binds to type a cells. Once the signals are received on their cellular
counterparts, the two different types of cells, a and alpha;, grow together and fuse into one a/alpha;cell. The result is
a combination of genes from both 'parents' in this new cell.
The most amazing part? This signaling pathway found in the yeast cells is incredibly similar to the signaling pathways
found in other organisms, like mammals. Yeast and mammals aren't closely related at all. In fact, yeast, which are
single-celled organisms, were around a long time before multicellular organisms (like mammals), so the similarity
between the pathways tells us that this is both an ancient and important mechanism for sustaining life on Earth
because it has endured through many different evolutionary steps.

Lesson Summary
Cellular activity and function relies on good communication between cells. Through signaling molecules and pathways,
cells can 'talk' to each other. These communications help cells develop, repair tissues, reproduce, and much more.
The signals are transmitted from a signaling cell, which sends out a signaling molecule. During this first stage of cell
signaling, called reception, the signaling molecule binds to the receptor protein. The second step,
calledtransduction, occurs when the signal from the signaling molecule travels along the transduction pathway, like
a baton through a relay race. It's during the final stage, called response, that the signal finally gets converted into a
message the target cell can understand.
You should be glad that your cells are better at communicating than a group of people playing telephone. It would be
pretty detrimental to your body if the messages inside got as distorted as they do when we whisper them in someone
else's ear!

Signal Reception in Cells

Chapter 8 / Lesson 2 Transcript
Our cells 'talk' to each other all the time through chemical signals. The first step of this process, reception, is a critical
component. In this video lesson you will learn about this step in cell communication as well as understand its overall
importance.

What Is Signal Reception?

Just like communication between people is important, effective cellular communication is also critical. Cell
communication is similar to how we talk to each other: there is a sender that delivers the message or signal and a
receiver that receives that signal. Problems can arise if the sender doesn't deliver the message correctly or if the
receiver doesn't even get the message in the first place. Fortunately, miscommunications between cells are very rare
because this can severely compromise cell functionality.
There are three stages involved in cell communication. The first stage is the receiving of the signal, calledreception.
Just like you and your friend talk to each other, cells also 'talk' to one another. But instead of using words, a signaling
cell sends its message to its target (called a target cell) in the form of a signaling molecule. The signal itself is received
at a receptor protein.
Once the molecule has been received by the target cell, it triggers a series of steps that help decode the message
called the signal transduction pathway. Transduction, which is the second step in cell signaling, is the overall
process of a converting a signal to a form that the target cell can understand. This is like your friend hearing you talk
and then their brain translating and understanding your words.

The final stage of cell signaling is response, which is when the target cell responds to the signal received. This is like
your friend's response or action to your words hopefully they understood you correctly!
In this lesson we'll focus on signal reception. We'll cover transduction and response in detail in other lessons.

Receiving the Signal

Cell signaling is a very specific function. When you talk to your friend, someone else can easily overhear you and
intercept your message. But this is not the case with cells. Target cells have their receptor proteins, and these proteins
have the very important job of receiving signaling molecules. Likewise, signaling molecules are shaped so that they
fit into only certain receptor proteins, like a lock and key. You could say these two really are made for each other!
Because the signaling molecule specifically binds to another molecule, we call it a ligand. When the ligand binds to
the receptor protein, it causes the protein to change shape. What this does is allow the protein to interact with other
cellular molecules, starting that chain reaction down the signal transduction pathway. It's like flicking the light switch
in the receptor protein from the 'off' position to 'on.'

Receptor Proteins
We find receptor proteins in two places within the cell. Most often they're found in the plasma membrane, which is like
the skin of the cell. Because they are found in the cell's membrane, we call these membrane receptors. Receptor
proteins are also found inside the cell, and we call these intracellular receptors.
Ligands can easily reach membrane receptors because they're on the surface of the cell. The types of chemical
signals that reach membrane receptors are quite varied. Some allow ions like sodium and calcium to pass through to
the inside of the cell. Others play roles in things like embryonic development, vision, hearing, and fighting disease.
Ligands that bind to intracellular receptors have to find their way into the cell, going past that outer plasma membrane.
These types of ligands meet up with their matching receptors in the cytoplasm or the nucleus of the target cell. The
ligands are able to reach the receptors inside the cell because they are either hydrophobic or are small enough to
pass through the plasma membrane. Steroid and thyroid hormones are examples of ligands that bind to intracellular
receptors.

Lesson Summary
Effective cellular communication is essential to cellular functionality. Reception of a signal is the first step in a threestep cellular communication process that allows cells to 'talk' to each other. If the signal isn't received correctly, the
target cell certainly can't decode the message and respond to it.
Signaling cells act as the communicator in a conversation, sending out a signaling molecule called a ligand. These
are molecules that specifically bind to another molecule. In this case, the molecule that it binds to is areceptor
protein located in the plasma membrane or inside the cell itself. When the ligand 'key' is turned in the receptor protein
'lock,' the rest of the communication process can move forward. It's like the protein has been turned 'on,' which triggers
a pathway that decodes the message and allows the target cell to respond accordingly.

Transduction in Cells
Chapter 8 / Lesson 3 Transcript
Once a cellular signal is received, a chain of events begins that helps the receiving cell decode the signal. In this video
lesson you will learn about this second step of cellular communication and its importance to the overall process.

What Is Transduction?
Effective communication has two major components: the sender and the receiver. The sender of a message must be
clear about what they are saying, and the receiver must not only be able to receive that message but also clearly
understand it.
Communication between cells works the same way. Cells 'talk' to each other through signaling molecules
calledligands. These are molecules that bind to other specific molecules, similar to how a key only fits into a specific
lock. The molecules that ligands bind to are called receptor proteins because they receive the signal sent to them.
This first step in cellular communication is called reception because this is the stage where the target cell receives
the signaling molecule.
But what happens after the message is received? Just like your friend's brain has to 'decode' your words in a
conversation, the ligand's signal must be 'decoded' so it can be understood by the cell. In cellular communication, this
step is called transduction. It's a series of events that converts the signal so the target cell can respond.
The final step of cellular communication is response, which is when the target cell responds to the signal it received.
This is just like your communication partner responding to your words by smiling, crying, or getting angry, depending
on what you said to him or her.
In other lessons, we go into detail about reception and response. So in this lesson, we'll focus on transduction, the
second step in the cellular communication process.

A Multi-Step Process
Transduction often occurs in multiple steps, called the signal transduction pathway. The message itself gets relayed
down the line, like a baton in a relay race being passed from one person to the next.
This multi-step approach can be beneficial to the cell for a few reasons. One way this may help the cell is that the
signal itself can be amplified to numerous molecules at each individual step. This works similarly to how a chain letter
spreads. You start by sending the letter to five people, who each send it on to five more people. In just two steps, your
letter has now reached 30 people, whereas if it was only sent to one person at a time, you would have reached only
two. By amplifying the signal like this, there will be more activated molecules at the end of the pathway in the cell.
The multi-step process of transduction also serves to fine-tune the signal as it moves along. This is like the chain of
command in an office. One person may write an office memo, but before it goes out to all employees, it's reviewed by
a supervisor. It may then be further reviewed by that person's supervisor, and so on up the line. This controls the final
message that is sent out, refining it as it moves along the pathway.

The Components of Transduction

Proteins are often activated when a phosphate group is added to it, a process known as phosphorylation. This
occurs through protein kinases, which are enzymes that transfer phosphate groups to a protein. These helpers are
often found along the signal transduction pathway and may act on other protein kinases, triggering a phosphorylation
cascade. Just like falling dominoes, each phosphorylation triggers another as each protein along the pathway
becomes activated.
Protein phosphatases are also important players along the phosphorylation cascade. These are enzymes that
quickly remove phosphate groups from proteins. If this sounds like the reverse of phosphorylation, you're right! This
process of removing phosphate groups is called dephosphorylation. After the protein sends the signal on to the next
protein in line, its services are no longer needed so it's important to turn it 'off' again. For example, cells that go
unchecked may grow abnormally, which is one way that cancers develop in the body.

While kinases are indeed very important, other non-protein molecules serve important roles in transduction as
well. Second messengers are small, water-soluble molecules that relay signals. Why second? Because the ligand
is considered the 'first messenger' as it is the first molecule to deliver the signal to the cell, which occurs earlier during
reception.

Lesson Summary
Once a signal has been received at the receptor protein during reception, the signal must now be relayed like a baton
through the cell. This second stage of cell signaling, called transduction, actually consists of multiple steps along
the signal transduction pathway.
Signals don't just magically travel down the pathway, though. One of the most important components of transduction
is an enzyme called protein kinase, which adds a phosphate group to a protein, a process known
as phosphorylation. When a protein kinase triggers the phosphorylation of other protein kinases, we get
aphosphorylation cascade. Similar to a row of falling dominoes, each protein kinase is acted on by the one before
it, relaying the signal along the pathway.
Conversely, protein phosphatases are enzymes that remove phosphate groups from proteins, a process known
as dephosphorylation. This is what turns the protein kinase off, making it available for use at a later time.

Cellular Responses to Signals

Chapter 8 / Lesson 4 Transcript

After reception of a signaling molecule and movement of that signal through transduction, the cell can now respond.
There are different types of cellular response as well as different mechanisms the cell uses to make this process more
efficient.

The Signal Transduction Pathway

During a war, orders within an army follow a certain chain of command. A general may send out orders for a mission,
but it is likely that this mission is written in secret code to prevent spies from understanding the message. Once that
message is received by the correct person, it is then decoded so that all of the troops can understand the mission and
carry out the actions specified.
Communication among your cells follows a similar pattern, called a signal transduction pathway. There are three main
steps in this pathway: signal reception, which is when the target cell receives a signaling molecule;transduction,
which is a series of events that converts the signal to something the target cell can respond to; and cellular response,
which is when the target cell responds to the signal. Within your body, the message or signal is sent out by a signaling
cell and received by a target cell, decoded within the target cell, and then a response occurs within that cell based on
the signal it received.
We learned about signal reception and transduction in detail in other lessons, so this lesson will focus specifically on
the final step of cell signaling - cellular response.

The End of the Line

Cellular response is the end of the line for a signal brought to the target cell by a signaling molecule. Once the signal
has gone through transduction in the target cell, it is is now ready to be put into action as a cellular response. There
are so many different types of responses that we just can't list them all here. But some of the major ones include
regulation of protein synthesis and activity as well as cell division, shape, and growth.

Protein synthesis is just a fancy way of saying 'making proteins.' Proteins do all sorts of things, like receive signaling
molecules, assist with DNA replication, or help break down food into smaller particles so that you can utilize its
nutritious goodies.
In addition to making proteins, regulating when they are 'on' or 'off' is also important. Some proteins regulate ion
channels in a cell's plasma membrane. You don't want this on or off all the time because your cells need to maintain
a certain ionic balance. Turning this protein 'on' at only the appropriate times helps maintain that balance.
Regulating cell division and growth is an important response because uncontrolled cell reproduction and growth are
major contributors to the development of cancer.
Cellular response may occur in either the cell's nucleus or in the cytoplasm, but regardless of where it occurs, the
response needs a bit of tweaking before it's ready for action.

Amplifying the Signal

One way that a cell can make the most of a signal it receives is to amplify that signal along the transduction pathway.
This is similar to sending out a chain letter that requires each person to forward it to multiple people. Instead of passing
along through individual receivers in a linear fashion, the letter gets 'amplified' as it is sent to more and more people
each time it's passed along.
Cells can do something similar with signals. This benefits the cell because it means that the cell can increase the
number of responses for that signal in fewer steps, making the process more efficient.
For example, say our army general sent his orders to one person, but that person then sent it on to five people, and
each of those five people passed the orders on to five more people, and so on. Soon, you get a pyramid of
communication, where more and more people receive the order but in less time than communicating with each
individual. So more troops get the orders and can respond more quickly.

Coordinating the Response

Different kinds of cells may have different responses to the same signal. The response of a certain type of cell depends
on the proteins that receive the cell, decode it, and respond to it. This is a very good thing because you certainly
wouldn't want your liver responding the same way to signals as your heart or your brain. Each of these cells is specific,
and this is an important differentiation.
But we can also have different responses to a signal within the same cell. For example, a cell may have two different
transduction pathways so that depending on which pathway is triggered, the cell responds differently. Some cells also
respond the same way to different signals so that the same pathway is triggered for a certain response but from many
different types of signaling molecules.
Why is this beneficial to the cell? Let's look at our army communication again. The general may send out his order
and expect it to reach several different sets of troops. But if the order is for troops to attack a central area, and each
set of troops is attacking from a slightly different location, following the exact same orders would not be very
productive. Instead, the main order is passed along the line of communication, but as it branches out to different
locations, the orders are adjusted so that they are appropriate to each unique set of troops.

Scaffold Proteins
Yet another way that cellular response is made more efficient is with scaffold proteins. These are large proteins that
are attached to other proteins involved in transduction. Proteins that are involved in transduction are not all connected
in a line, just waiting for a signal to turn them on. They are floating around in the cytoplasm of a cell, but because they
are fairly large, they don't move around very quickly.
What a scaffold protein does is move many proteins at once, much like large ship carries many soldiers to shore at
the same time. If each of the people on the ship were to travel by canoe to reach that same destination, it would be a
much less efficient process because each of those people would be taking up space on the water and along the shore
with their canoes. Additionally, each canoe would require a lot of paddling effort, taking more time to travel than the
ship would to move the same number of people the same distance. Can you see how moving many proteins at once
would be more efficient for cellular response?

Terminating the Signal

Finally, turning the response off is just as important as turning it on. A signaling molecule binds to a receptor protein
during signal reception, but this is a reversible process. Once a signaling molecule leaves the receptor protein, that
protein is inactivated or turned 'off.' This triggers the line of molecules that are involved in signal transduction to turn
'off' as well, ending the entire signal transduction pathway process and freeing the cell to respond to a new signal that
may come its way.

Lesson Summary
Cellular response, or a cell's response to a signal, is the final step in the signal transduction pathway. Cellular
response may be amplified during the transduction process, which increases the efficiency of the response because
more responses can be triggered in a shorter amount of time. Signals can also be coordinated so that they respond
appropriately. Different types of cells may respond differently to the same signal, but a single cell may also have
different ways it can respond to a signal.
Cellular response may also be made more efficient with the use of scaffold proteins, which move multiple proteins
through the cytoplasm at once. Once cellular response is complete, it's important for the cell to turn off the signal
transduction pathway. The signaling molecule leaves the receptor protein, switching all of the proteins down the line
to the 'off' position. This then frees the cell to receive and respond to a new signal, which starts the process all over
again.

Heterotrophs: Definition & Examples

Chapter 4 / Lesson 9 Transcript
In this lesson, you will learn about organisms that are not able to provide their own food and must eat other organisms
to survive. Heterotrophs must consume other living material, which provides the energy they need to live.

What's a Heterotroph?
Think about all of the food you ate today. It must come from somewhere, right? All of that food came from other
organisms that used to be alive. We need to eat these other organisms because they provide energy for us to live.
Because you need to eat other organisms to get energy, this makes you a heterotroph. Heterotrophs are also called
'other feeders' and because they need to consume energy to sustain themselves, they are also known as 'consumers.'
Some organisms are actually able to survive by making their own food. These organisms are calledautotrophs.
Autotrophs are also called 'self-feeders' and they are able to produce energy from sunlight and carbon dioxide and
are therefore known as 'producers.' The only autotrophs that we know of are plants and some types of algae. This
makes all other organisms heterotrophs.

Examples of Heterotrophs
Not all plants are autotrophic; a few are actually heterotrophic. The European mistletoe is a parasitic plant, surviving
off of a host plant. Other plants, such as pitcher plants, are carnivorous and feed on other organisms like insects.

You are a heterotroph. Your dog, cat, bird, fish, etc. are all heterotrophs too because you all depend on other
organisms as an energy source. Other animal heterotrophs you are likely familiar with include deer, squirrels, rabbits,
mice, and other animals you may see around your yard or a nearby park or forest.
Bacteria are also heterotrophs, as well as fungi. Fungi break down dead and decaying organisms, which makes
them detritivores. Detritivores serve an important role in helping to recycle plant and animal material that is no longer
living and return those nutrients to the ecosystem.
It is important to note that not all heterotrophs rely on the same food sources for energy. Some heterotrophs eat only
producers, like a gazelle eating grass. Some eat both producers and other consumers, like a bear eating game and
berries. And some eat only other consumers, like a cougar eating a deer. Consumers that eat only producers are
called herbivores, those that eat only other consumers are called carnivores, and those that eat both producers and
consumers are called omnivores.

Lesson Summary
Any organism that can't make its own food is a heterotroph. Heterotrophs may eat food sources that are different
from other heterotrophs, but as long as they are not able to produce their own food, they are 'other feeders.'
In contrast, autotrophs are able to produce their own food and because of this, autotrophs often provide food to many
heterotrophs. Most organisms on Earth are heterotrophs, even some plants, which are parasitic orcarnivorous.