Glossary A Closer Look at Cell Membranes

Chapter 5
ABC transporter One of a class of ATP-driven membrane pumps, each for a specific substrate
(e.g., ions, sugars, amino acids).
active transport Pumping of a specific solute across a cell membrane against its concentration
gradient, through a transport protein's interior. Requires an energy boost,
typically from ATP.
adhesion protein Plasma membrane protein that helps cells locate tissue mates and stick together.
biofilm Huge microbial populations anchored to surfaces (e.g., lung epithelia) by their
own sticky, stiff polysaccharide secretions.
bulk flow In response to a pressure gradient, movement of more than one kind of molecule
in the same direction in the same medium.
calcium pump Active transporter protein specific for calcium ions.
communication Part of a protein complex that forms an open channel between cytoplasm of
protein adjoining cells.
concentration A difference in the number per unit volume of molecules or ions of a substance
gradient between two regions. Molecules collide constantly and careen outward to a
region where they are less concentrated. All substances tend to diffuse down
such gradients.
diffusion Net movement of like molecules or ions down their concentration gradient.
electric gradient Difference in electric charge between adjoining regions.
endocytosis Cell uptake of substances via vesicle formation. Receptor-mediated endocytosis,
phagocytosis, and the bulk transport of extracellular fluid are three modes of
endocytosis.

exocytosis Release of a vesicle's contents at cell surface as it fuses with and becomes part
of the plasma membrane.
fluid mosaic A cell membrane is a mix of lipids (organized as a bilayer) and proteins.
model Structural lipids make it largely impermeable to water-soluble molecules yet
impart fluidity by packing variations and motions. Diverse proteins perform most
membrane functions (e.g., transport, signal reception).
hydrostatic Pressure exerted by a volume of fluid against a wall, membrane, or some other
pressure structure that encloses the fluid.
hypertonic
A fluid having a greater solute concentration relative to another fluid.
solution
hypotonic
A fluid that has a lower solute concentration relative to another fluid.
solution
isotonic solution A fluid having the same solute concentration as a fluid against which it is being
compared.
lipid bilayer Phospholipids, mostly, arranged in two layers; the structural basis of all cell
membranes. Hydrophobic tails are sandwiched between the hydrophilic heads;
the heads are dissolved in intracellular or extracellular fluid.
osmosis In response to a water concentration gradient, the diffusion of water between two
regions that a selectively permeable membrane separates.
osmotic Pressure that operates after hydrostatic pressure develops in an enclosed region

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pressure (e.g., a cell); it counters water's inward diffusion (stops further rises in fluid
volume).

passive Event in which a transport protein that spans a cell membrane passively permits a
transport solute to diffuse through its interior. Also called facilitated diffusion.
phagocytosis Of some cells, engulfment of an extracellular target by way of pseudopod
formation and endocytosis.
phospholipid Organic compound that has a glycerol backbone, two fatty acid tails, and a
hydrophilic head of two polar groups (one being phosphate). Phospholipids are
the main structural component of cell membranes.
pressure
A difference in pressure between two adjoining regions.
gradient
receptor protein Membrane protein (or cytoplasmic protein) that triggers a change in cell activities
after it binds signaling molecule.
recognition One of a class of plasma membrane proteins that distinguish nonself (foreign)
protein from self (belonging to a body tissue).
selective Of a cell membrane, a capacity to let some substances but not others cross at
permeability certain sites, at certain times owing to its bilayer structure and its transport
proteins.
sodium- Type of membrane transport protein that, when activated by ATP, selectively
potassium pump transports potassium ions across a membrane against its concentration gradient,
and passively allows sodium ions to cross in the opposite direction.
transport protein Membrane protein that passively or actively assists specific molecules or ions
across a membrane's lipid bilayer. The solutes pass through a channel in its
interior