Basics of Cell Communication
The three stages of cell signaling are reception, transduction, and _______.
What is response?
The process by which a signal molecule binds to a receptor protein, causing it to change shape.
What is signal reception?
The process by which a signal is transmitted through a series of molecular changes, leading to a cellular response.
What is signal transduction?
The final step in cell signaling, where the cell takes action in response to the signal.
What is the cellular response?
The hormone responsible for the "fight-or-flight" response.
What is epinephrine (adrenaline)?
The type of signaling where cells communicate over short distances by releasing molecules that act on nearby cells.
What is paracrine signaling? (short distance)
The receptor protein type located on the cell surface that binds to signaling molecules.
What are membrane receptors?
The molecules that relay signals from receptors to target molecules inside the cell.
What are relay molecules?
These can be either nuclear or cytoplasmic responses, depending on where they occur in the cell.
What are cellular responses?
The cell-signaling pathway involving insulin that helps regulate blood glucose levels.
What is the insulin signaling pathway?
This type of cell signaling involves contact between neighboring cells.
What is juxtacrine signaling? (direct contact)
The largest family of cell-surface receptors, involved in many diseases.
What are G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs)?
Small, non-protein molecules that propagate a signal within the cell are known as _______.
What are second messengers?
A common type of cellular response where genes are turned on or off.
What is gene expression?
A neurotransmitter involved in muscle contraction and nerve signal transmission.
What is acetylcholine?
Signaling molecules that travel through the bloodstream to reach target cells are called _______.
What are hormones?
Intracellular receptors are typically found in this part of the cell.
What is the cytoplasm or nucleus?
A common second messenger produced from ATP.
What is cyclic AMP (cAMP)?
The process by which cells undergo programmed cell death.
What is apoptosis?
The process by which immune cells communicate to coordinate an immune response.
What is cytokine signaling?
A molecule that binds specifically to another molecule, often a larger one, is called a _______.
What is a ligand?
Receptors that act as enzymes and are activated by ligand binding.
What are receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs)?
The addition of phosphate groups to proteins, often altering their function and activity, is called _______.
What is phosphorylation?
A signaling pathway that ends with a change in cell shape or movement.
What is cytoskeletal rearrangement?
The mechanism by which bacteria communicate with each other based on population density.
What is quorum sensing?