Function
- The plasma membrane encloses the cell and helps the cell keep its structure and normal internal conditions.
- Structural integrity means the membrane helps the cell keep a stable physical boundary.
- Functional integrity means the membrane helps the cell carry out controlled transport, signaling, recognition, and interaction.
- A semipermeable membrane lets some substances cross more easily than others.
- Semipermeability allows the cell to control what enters and leaves instead of allowing the cytoplasm to mix freely with the extracellular environment.
- Macromolecules are large biological molecules, such as proteins or complex carbohydrates, that may be recognized at the cell surface.
- Cell recognition means cells can identify other cells or surface molecules through membrane molecules.
- Macromolecule recognition helps a cell respond to large molecules at its surface without needing those molecules to enter the cell.
- Signal transduction means changing an outside signal into an inside cell response.
- The plasma membrane participates in signal transduction because many signals first bind to receptors at the cell surface.
- Cell interactions include contact, attachment, recognition, and communication between neighboring cells.
- The plasma membrane helps control cell interactions by displaying proteins, carbohydrates, and receptors on the cell surface.
- An electrical potential difference means one side of the membrane has a different electrical charge than the other side.
- The plasma membrane helps maintain an electrical potential difference between the cytoplasmic side and the extracellular side.
- Electrical differences across the plasma membrane are especially important for cells that signal electrically, such as nerve and muscle cells.
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