AP Biology Chapter 11 Notes 

Cell Communication 
 
1. What mechanisms do cells use in order to communicate locally and over long 
distances? 
a. Direct Contact 
i. Over gap junctions or plasmodesmata (animal and plant cells) 
ii. Communicate between molecules on surface of 2 cells 
b. Local Regulators 
i. Paracrine - cell releases molecules of a regulator -- Other cells pick 
this up 
ii. Synaptic - Neuron releases neurotransmitter to another neuron over 
synapse (a gap) 
c. Long-distance Signaling 
i. Endocrine cell releases hormones into bloodstream and cells get it 
2. What happens during ​reception​ in the signal transduction pathway? 
a. What is the general idea? 
i. Signaling molecule is a ​ligand  
ii. Attaches to receptor inside or on cell membrane 
b. What are the types of receptors? ​(pg 211-213) (overview - more in book) 
i. G Protein-Coupled Receptors: Most common receptor 
1. Ex. Respond to Epinephrine 
ii. Receptor Tyrosine Kinases: Malfunction is associated with cancer 
1. Ex. Respond to Insulin 
iii. Ion Channel Receptors: Gate Opens and Closes 
1. Ex. Na​+​ or Ca​2+​ channels 
iv. Intracellular Receptors: Small hormones that can pass membrane 
1. Ex. Respond to Testosterone 
3. What happens during ​transduction ​in the signal transduction pathway? 
a. What are ​phosphorylation cascades​? 
i. Uses ATP and phosphorylation to pass signal along 
ii. Protein kinases ​pass phosphate group, ​protein phosphatases 
remove phosphate group and reset 
b. What are ​secondary messengers​? 
i. Small, non-protein, water soluble molecules or ions 
ii. Are able to spread throughout the cell by diffusion quickly 
iii. Ex. Cyclic AMP (cAMP) 
1. G protein attaches to Adenylyl Cyclase 
2. Adenylyl Cyclase ​converts ATP to cAMP 
 3. cAMP can diffuse and cause a response 
iv. Ex. Calcium Ions (Ca​2+​) 
1. Low Ca​2+​ in cytosol and high outside cell and in ER and 
Mitochondria 
2. Inositol triphosphate (IP​3​) and diacylglycerol (DAG) act as 
second messengers and go to a gated calcium channel 
3. Open the channel on ER membrane and let Ca​2+​ into cytosol, 
creating a response 
4. What happens during ​response ​in the signal transduction pathway? 
a. What kind of responses are there? 
i. Specific genes are toggled by proteins called ​transcription factors  
ii. Cytoplasmic regulation and cytoskeletal regulation (change in shape) 
iii. Changes in enzyme activity 
b. How do cells fine-tune the response? 
i. Signal Amplification 
1. Enzyme cascades increase the size of the response after each 
step 
ii. Specificity of Cell Signaling 
1. Same signaling molecule, different response for every type of 
cell 
2. Caused by different collection of proteins 
iii. Signaling Efficiency 
1. Transduction pathways are smooshed together to make it fast 
2. Scaffolding proteins​ are large relay proteins that attach to 
other proteins in order to speed up the transportation speed 
iv. Termination of the Signal 
1. Each change in signaling pathways must only last a short time 
2. If the concentration of bound receptors is above a threshold, 
then the response will occur 
 
This concludes Chapter 11! 
Up next (when taking notes): Chapter 12