Lipid bilayerThe lipid bilayer (or phospholipid bilayer) is a thin polar membrane made of two layers of lipidmolecules. These membranes form a continuous barrier around all cells. The cell membranes of almost all organisms and many viruses are made of a lipid bilayer, as are the nuclear membrane surrounding the cell nucleus, and membranes of the membrane-bound organelles in the cell.
Biological membraneA biological membrane or biomembrane is a selectively permeablemembrane that separates the interior of a cell from the external environment or creates intracellular compartments by serving as a boundary between one part of the cell and another. Biological membranes, in the form of eukaryoticcell membranes, consist of a phospholipid bilayer with embedded, integral and peripheral proteins used in communication and transportation of chemicals and ions.
PhospholipidPhospholipids are a class of lipids whose molecule has a hydrophilic "head" containing a phosphate group and two hydrophobic "tails" derived from fatty acids, joined by an alcohol residue (usually a glycerol molecule). Marine phospholipids typically have omega-3 fatty acidsEPA and DHA integrated as part of the phospholipid molecule. The phosphate group can be modified with simple organic molecules such as choline, ethanolamine or serine.
GlycolipidGlycolipids () are lipids with a carbohydrate attached by a glycosidic (covalent) bond. Their role is to maintain the stability of the cell membrane and to facilitate cellular recognition, which is crucial to the immune response and in the connections that allow cells to connect to one another to form tissues. Glycolipids are found on the surface of all eukaryotic cell membranes, where they extend from the phospholipid bilayer into the extracellular environment.
CholesterolSterol biosynthesized by all animal cellsChemical compoundCholesterol is the principal sterol of all animals, distributed in body tissues, especially the brain and spinal cord, and in animal fats and oils. Cholesterol is biosynthesized by all animal cells and is an essential structural and signaling component of animal cell membranes. In vertebrates, hepatic cells typically produce the greatest amounts of it.
Semipermeable membraneSemipermeable membrane is a type of synthetic or biologic, polymeric membrane that allows certain molecules or ions to pass through it by osmosis. The rate of passage depends on the pressure, concentration, and temperature of the molecules or solutes on either side, as well as the permeability of the membrane to each solute. Depending on the membrane and the solute, permeability may depend on solute size, solubility, properties, or chemistry.Extracellular spaceExtracellular space refers to the part of a multicellular organism outside the cells, usually taken to be outside the plasma membranes, and occupied by fluid. This is distinguished from intracellular space, which is inside the cells. The composition of the extracellular space includes metabolites, ions, proteins, and many other substances that might affect cellular function.
SterolA sterol is any organic compound with a skeleton closely related to cholestan-3-ol and having a hydroxyl group at carbon 3. The simplest sterol is gonan-3-ol, which has a formula of C17H28O, and is derived from that of gonane by replacement of a hydrogen atom on C3 position by a hydroxyl group. It is therefore an alcohol of gonane.
Cell (biology)Basic unit of life formsThe cell is the basic structural and functional unit of all forms of life or organisms. The term comes from the Latin word cellula meaning 'small room'. A biological cell basically consists of a semipermeablecell membrane enclosing cytoplasm that contains genetic material. Most cells are only visible under a microscope.
ArchaeaDomain of organismsExcluded(but cladistically included)EukaryotaSynonyms"Archaebacteria" Woese & Fox 1977"Archaeobacteria" Murray 1988"Mendocutes" Gibbons & Murray 1978"Mendosicutes" Murray 1984"Metabacteria" Hori and Osawa 1979"Neomura" Cavalier-Smith 2002"Archaebiota" Luketa 2012"Arkarya" Forterre 2015Archaea ( ) is a domain of organisms.
EukaryoteDomain of life whose cells have nucleiThe eukaryotes () are cellularorganisms of the domainEukaryota or Eukarya, which have a distinct cell nucleus (formed by a nuclear membrane), membrane-bound organelles and organization supported by a cytoskeleton. Extant eukaryotes are traditionally grouped into four kingdoms: animals, plants, fungi and protists.
CytoplasmThe cytoplasm is all the material within a eukaryotic or prokaryoticcell, enclosed by the cell membrane, including the organelles and excluding the nucleus in eukaryotic cells. The material inside the nucleus of a eukaryotic cell and contained within the nuclear membrane is termed the nucleoplasm. The main components of the cytoplasm are the cytosol (a gel-like substance), the cell's internal sub-structures, and various cytoplasmic inclusions.
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