Cells - Cell Membrane Vocab

Cell/plasma membrane

The thin, flexible barrier surrounding all cells that protects the cell and controls what enters and leaves

Selective permeability

The plasma membrane's ability to allow some substances to pass through and keep others out

Phospholipids

Lipids with a polar, hydrophilic phosphate group head and two non-polar, hydrophobic fatty acid tails

Phospholipid bilayer

Two layers of phospholipids arranged tail-to-tail

Protein channels

Proteins that allow polar substances to pass through the plasma membrane using energy

Signal transduction

The process in which a messenger bonds to a receptor protein that relays the message into the cell that performs the message

Glycoproteins

Proteins with carbohydrate chains attached to them

Glycolipids

Lipids with proteins attached to them

Cholesterol

Prevents fatty acid tails from sticking together

Carbohydrates

Allow cells to recognize and interact with each other

Fluid mosaic model

A term that refers to how the plasma membrane is made up of many small structures and can move around