Which amino acids would you expect to find embedded in the lipid bilayer of a membrane?

A. ribose, uracil, and a phosphate group
B. deoxyribose, uracil, and a phosphate group
C. deoxyribose, thymine, and a phosphate group
D. ribose, thymine, and a phosphate group

C. deoxyribose, thymine, and a phosphate group

my answer: A change in gene sequence can lead to a different amino acid being added to a polypeptide chain instead of the normal one. This change the protein structure and function. For example, sickle cell anemia, the hemoglobin beta chain has a single amino acid substitution the amino acid glutamic acid in position six is substituted by valine. Due to change, hemoglobin molecules form aggregates, and the disc-shaped red blood cells assume a crescent moon shape, leading to health problems.

Book: A change in gene sequence can lead to a different amino acid being added to a polypeptide chain instead of the normal one. This causes a change in protein structure and function. For example, in sickle cell anemia, the hemoglobin β chain has a single amino acid substitution—the amino acid glutamic acid in position six is substituted by valine. Because of this change, hemoglobin molecules form aggregates, and the disc-shaped red blood cells assume a crescent shape, which results in serious health problems.

my answer:DNA is double stranded whereas RNA is single stranded. DNA nucleotides contains deoxyribose , one of the four nitrogenous bases (A, T, G, & C) & a phosphate group. RNA ribonucleotides contains ribose, one of the four nitrogenous bases (A, U, G, & C) & a phosphate group.

Book: DNA has a double-helix structure. The sugar and the phosphate are on the outside of the helix and the nitrogenous bases are in the interior. The monomers of DNA are nucleotides containing deoxyribose, one of the four nitrogenous bases (A, T, G and C), and a phosphate group. RNA is usually single-stranded and is made of ribonucleotides that are linked by phosphodiester linkages. A ribonucleotide contains ribose (the pentose sugar), one of the four nitrogenous bases (A,U, G, and C), and the phosphate group.

Which amino acids would you expect to find embedded in the lipid bilayer of a membrane?

Understanding:

•  Membrane proteins are diverse in terms of structure, position in the membrane and function

    
Phospholipid bilayers are embedded with proteins, which may be either permanently or temporarily attached to the membrane

  • Integral proteins are permanently attached to the membrane and are typically transmembrane (they span across the bilayer)
  • Peripheral proteins are temporarily attached by non-covalent interactions and associate with one surface of the membrane  

Which amino acids would you expect to find embedded in the lipid bilayer of a membrane?

Structure of Membrane Proteins

The amino acids of a membrane protein are localised according to polarity:

  • Non-polar (hydrophobic) amino acids associate directly with the lipid bilayer 
  • Polar (hydrophilic) amino acids are located internally and face aqueous solutions

Transmembrane proteins typically adopt one of two tertiary structures: 

  • Single helices / helical bundles 
  • Beta barrels (common in channel proteins)

Membrane Protein Structures

Which amino acids would you expect to find embedded in the lipid bilayer of a membrane?

Which amino acids would you expect to find embedded in the lipid bilayer of a membrane?

Functions of Membrane Proteins

Membrane proteins can serve a variety of key functions:

  • Junctions – Serve to connect and join two cells together 
  • Enzymes – Fixing to membranes localises metabolic pathways 
  • Transport – Responsible for facilitated diffusion and active transport 
  • Recognition – May function as markers for cellular identification 
  • Anchorage – Attachment points for cytoskeleton and extracellular matrix 
  • Transduction – Function as receptors for peptide hormones 


Mnemonic:  Jet Rat


Membrane Protein Functions

Which amino acids would you expect to find embedded in the lipid bilayer of a membrane?

What amino acids are in the phospholipid bilayer?

This is essential to allow the protein to be targetted to the membrane during protein synthesis and retain the protein in the hydrophobic core of the lipid bilayer. Amino acids like phenylalanine (phe), isoleucine (ile), leucine (leu) and alanine (ala) are commonly found in transmembrane domains.

Which type of amino acids are found in the component of proteins embedded in lipid membranes?

Biological membranes consist of proteins inserted into a lipid bilayer. Integral membrane proteins are embedded in the membrane, usually via α-helical regions of 20 to 25 hydrophobic amino acids.

Which proteins are embedded in the bilayer?

Integral proteins are embedded in the phospholipid bilayer, and also called transmembrane proteins. Often times these integral proteins serve as channels through which molecules move across the cell membrane.

What types of amino acids would you expect to find in a protein segment embedded in a lipid bilayer?

The hydrophobic tails are trapped in the bilayer's center. So, nonpolar( hydrophobic amino acids) will be found on the protein's surface embedded in a lipid bilayer, whereas polar (Hydrophilic amino acids) will be found inside the protein.