Biophysical Aspects of Transmembrane Signaling

Biophysical Aspects of Transmembrane Signaling

Author: Sandor Damjanovich

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2005-05-20

Total Pages: 346

ISBN-13: 9783540250647

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Transmembrane signaling is one of the most significant cell biological events in the life and death of cells in general and lymphocytes in particular. Until recently biochemists and biophysicists were not accustomed to thinking of these processes from the side of a high number of complex biochemical events and an equally high number of physical changes at molecular and cellular levels at the same time. Both types of researchers were convinced that their findings are the most decisive, having higher importance than the findings of the other scientist population. Both casts were wrong. Life, even at cellular level, has a number of interacting physical and biochemical mechanisms, which finally build up the creation of an "excited" cell that will respond to particular signals from the outer or inner world. This book handles both aspects of the signalling events, and in some cases tries to unify our concepts and help understand the signals that govern the life and death of our cells. Not only the understanding, but also the interference (e.g. medication) may depend on the full knowledge of both sides. These above statements are supported by the application of highly diverse physical and biochemical technologies demonstrated and explained by experts who are pioneers of their particular scientific field.


Physical Principles of Biomembranes and Cells

Physical Principles of Biomembranes and Cells

Author: Kazuo Ohki

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2018-10-10

Total Pages: 179

ISBN-13: 4431568417

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This book describes how biologically available free energy sources (ATP, chemical potential, and membrane potentials, among others) can be used to drive synthetic reactions, signaling in cells, and various types of motion such as membrane traffic, active transport, and cell locomotion. As such, it approaches the concept of the energy cycle of life on Earth from a physical point of view, covering topics ranging from an introduction to chemical evolution, to an examination of the catalytic activity of enzymes associated with the genome in Darwinian evolution. The author introduces the relationship between functions and physical properties in biomembranes, explaining the methods and equipment used in biophysics research to help researchers unravel the still-unsolved mysteries of life. The physical principles needed to understand the cellular functions are provided; these functions are associated with biomembranes and regulated by physical properties of the lipid bilayer such as membrane fluidity, phase transition, and phase separation, as shown in lipid rafts. Other key dynamic aspects of life (cell locomotion, cytoskeletal dynamics, and sensitivities of the cell to physical stimuli such as external forces and temperature) are also discussed. Lastly, readers will learn how life on Earth and its ecological system are maintained by solar energy, and be provided further information on the problems accompanying global warming.


Membrane Biophysics

Membrane Biophysics

Author: Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2012-08-28

Total Pages: 190

ISBN-13: 3642161057

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Physics, mathematics and chemistry all play a vital role in understanding the true nature and functioning of biological membranes, key elements of living processes. Besides simple spectroscopic observations and electrical measurements of membranes we address in this book the phenomena of coexistence and independent existence of different membrane components using various theoretical approaches. This treatment will be helpful for readers who want to understand biological processes by applying both simple observations and fundamental scientific analysis. It provides a deep understanding of the causes and effects of processes inside membranes, and will thus eventually open new doors for high-level pharmaceutical approaches towards fighting membrane- and cell-related diseases.


Biomembranes, Signal Transduction Across Membranes

Biomembranes, Signal Transduction Across Membranes

Author: Meir Shinitzky

Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Published: 1993

Total Pages: 340

ISBN-13:

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Biomembranes Signal Transduction Across Membranes Edited by Meir Shinitzky An up-to-date review of basic research on biomembranes. In this volume, foremost experts in the field consider the most important aspects of signal transduction across biological membranes: General Mechanistic Patterns of Signal Transduction Receptors for Neurotransmitters and Peptide Hormones G Proteins in Signal Transduction Membrane-associated Protein Kinases and Phosphatases Phospholipases in Signal Transduction The volume is an excellent supplement to "Biomembranes -- Physical Aspects" and "Biomembranes -- Structural and Functional Aspects," also edited by Meir Shinitzky. These three books together provide a comprehensive ground for understanding complex physiological processes. Meir Shinitzky, Ph.D., is Professor of Biophysics in the Department of Membrane Research and Biophysics. The Weizman Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel. Since 1971, his research has focused on various aspects of membrane structure and dynamics.


The Biophysics of Cell Membranes

The Biophysics of Cell Membranes

Author: Richard M. Epand

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2017-09-25

Total Pages: 224

ISBN-13: 9811062447

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This volume focuses on the modulation of biological membranes by specific biophysical properties. The readers are introduced to emerging biophysical approaches that mimick specific states (like membrane lipid asymmetry, membrane curvature, lipid flip-flop, lipid phase separation) that are relevant to the functioning of biological membranes. The first chapter describes innovative methods to mimic the prevailing asymmetry in biological membranes by forming asymmetrical membranes made of monolayers with different compositions. One of the chapters illustrates how physical parameters, like curvature and elasticity, can affect and modulate the interactions between lipids and proteins. This volume also describes the sensitivity of certain ion channels to mechanical forces and it presents an analysis of how cell shape is determined by both the cytoskeleton and the lipid domains in the membrane. The last chapter provides evidence that liposomes can be used as a minimal cellular model to reconstitute processes related to the origin of life. Each topic covered in this volume is presented by leading experts in the field who are able to present clear, authoritative and up-to-date reviews. The novelty of the methods proposed and their potential for a deeper molecular description of membrane functioning are particularly relevant experts in the areas of biochemistry, biophysics and cell biology, while also presenting clear and thorough introductions, making the material suitable for students in these fields as well.


Phase Transitions in Cell Biology

Phase Transitions in Cell Biology

Author: Gerald H. Pollack

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2008-08-15

Total Pages: 187

ISBN-13: 1402086512

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Phase transitions occur throughout nature. The most familiar example is the one that occurs in water – the abrupt, discontinuous transition from a liquid to a gas or a solid, induced by a subtle environmental change. Practically magical, the ever-so-slight shift of temperature or pressure can induce an astonishing transition from one entity to another entity that bears little resemblance to the first. So "convenient" a feature is seen throughout the domains of physics and chemistry, and one is therefore led to wonder whether it might also be common to biology. Indeed, many of the most fundamental cellular processes are arguably attributable to radical structural shifts triggered by subtle changes that cross a critical threshold. These processes include transport, motion, signaling, division, and other fundamental aspects of cellular function. Largely on the basis of this radical concept, a symposium was organized in Poitiers, France, to bring together people who have additional evidence for the role of phase transitions in biology, and this book is a compendium of some of the more far-reaching of those presentations, as well as several others that seemed to the editors to be compelling. The book should be suitable for anyone interested in the nature of biological function, particularly those who tire of lumbering along well trodden pathways of pursuit, and are eager to hear something fresh. The book is replete with fresh interpretations of familiar phenomena, and should serve as an excellent gateway to deeper understanding.


Structure and Dynamics of Membranes

Structure and Dynamics of Membranes

Author: R. Lipowsky

Publisher: Elsevier

Published: 1995-06-15

Total Pages: 537

ISBN-13: 0080541917

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The first volume of the Handbook deals with the amazing world of biomembranes and lipid bilayers. Part A describes all aspects related to the morphology of these membranes, beginning with the complex architecture of biomembranes, continues with a description of the bizarre morphology of lipid bilayers and concludes with technological applications of these membranes. The first two chapters deal with biomembranes, providing an introduction to the membranes of eucaryotes and a description of the evolution of membranes. The following chapters are concerned with different aspects of lipids including the physical properties of model membranes composed of lipid-protein mixtures, lateralphase separation of lipids and proteins and measurement of lipid-protein bilayer diffusion. Other chapters deal with the flexibility of fluid bilayers, the closure of bilayers into vesicles which attain a large variety of different shapes, and applications of lipid vesicles and liposomes. Part B covers membrane adhesion, membrane fusion and the interaction of biomembranes withpolymer networks such as the cytoskeleton. The first two chapters of this part discuss the generic interactions of membranes from the conceptual point of view. The following two chapters summarize the experimental work on two different bilayer systems. The next chapter deals with the process ofcontact formation, focal bounding and macroscopic contacts between cells. The cytoskeleton within eucaryotic cells consists of a network of relatively stiff filaments of which three different types of filaments have been identified. As explained in the next chapter much has been recently learned aboutthe interaction of these filaments with the cell membrane. The final two chapters deal with membrane fusion.


Experiments in the Purification and Characterization of Enzymes

Experiments in the Purification and Characterization of Enzymes

Author: Thomas E. Crowley

Publisher: Academic Press

Published: 2014-01-11

Total Pages: 267

ISBN-13: 0124095933

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Experiments in the Purification and Characterization of Enzymes: A Laboratory Manual provides students with a working knowledge of the fundamental and advanced techniques of experimental biochemistry. Included are instructions and experiments that involve purification and characterization of enzymes from various source materials, giving students excellent experience in kinetics analysis and data analysis. Additionally, this lab manual covers how to evaluate and effectively use scientific data. By focusing on the relationship between structure and function in enzymes, Experiments in the Purification and Characterization of Enzymes: A Laboratory Manual provides a strong research foundation for students enrolled in a biochemistry lab course by outlining how to evaluate and effectively use scientific data in addition to offering students a more hands-on approach with exercises that encourage them to think deeply about the content and to design their own experiments. Instructors will find this book useful because the modular nature of the lab exercises allows them to apply the exercises to any set of proteins and incorporate the exercises into their courses as they see fit, allowing for greater flexibility in the use of the material. Written in a logical, easy-to-understand manner, Experiments in the Purification and Characterization of Enzymes: A Laboratory Manual is an indispensable resource for both students and instructors in the fields of biochemistry, molecular biology, chemistry, pharmaceutical chemistry, and related molecular life sciences such as cell biology, neurosciences, and genetics. Offers project lab formats for students that closely simulate original research projects Provides instructional guidance for students to design their own experiments Includes advanced analytical techniques Contains adaptable modular exercises that allow for the study proteins other than FNR, LuxG and LDH Includes access to a website with additional resources for instructors