Biological Sciences
Cell Communication
Cell communication refers to the process by which cells send and receive signals to coordinate their activities. This communication is essential for various biological processes, including growth, development, and immune responses. Cells communicate through chemical signals, such as hormones and neurotransmitters, as well as through direct contact and electrical signals.
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11 Key excerpts on "Cell Communication"
No longer available |Learn more- Wendell A. Lim, Wendell Lim, Bruce Mayer, Tony Pawson(Authors)
- 2014(Publication Date)
- Garland Science(Publisher)
It is this interface between the unique proper-ties of living systems and the more universal properties of any system that processes information that makes the study of cellular signaling mechanisms so compelling. Introduction to Cell Signaling 1 2 Chapter 1 Introduction to Cell Signaling All cells have the ability to respond to their environment While biologists and philosophers may not all agree on the precise defini-tion of life, most definitions include a number of common properties, such as autonomy, the ability to generate energy, and the ability to reproduce. One of these common properties is adaptability—the ability to respond to changes in the environment. We all understand that one way to test whether a thing is animate or inanimate, or living or dead, is to poke it and see if it responds. Single-celled organisms display the ability to detect diverse molecular species and stresses in their environment, and are able to change aspects of their gene expression, growth, structure, and metabolism in response, usually to improve their ability to survive under changing conditions. With the emergence of multicellular organisms, individual cells within the organism evolved the highly specialized ability to sense specific sig-nals transmitted from other cells in the organism, allowing for extraor-dinary levels of communication within the organism. The coordinated regulation of growth, death, morphology, and metabolism is absolutely essential for many individual cells to function in concert as an integrated organism. Moreover, cells have the ability to monitor aspects of their own internal state, and to respond in a self-correcting way—the foundation of cellular homeostasis and repair. Thus, cell signaling, which encompasses the study of this wide range of stimulus–response behaviors observed in cells, is central to all of biology.
eBook - PDF- Mary Ann Clark, Jung Choi, Matthew Douglas(Authors)
- 2018(Publication Date)
- Openstax(Publisher)
The ability to send messages quickly and efficiently enables cells to coordinate and fine-tune their functions. Chapter 9 | Cell Communication 251 While the necessity for cellular communication in larger organisms seems obvious, even single-celled organisms communicate with each other. Yeast cells signal each other to aid in finding other yeast cells for reproduction. Some forms of bacteria coordinate their actions in order to form large complexes called biofilms or to organize the production of toxins to remove competing organisms. The ability of cells to communicate through chemical signals originated in single cells and was essential for the evolution of multicellular organisms. The efficient and relatively error-free function of communication systems is vital for all life as we know it. 9.1 | Signaling Molecules and Cellular Receptors By the end of this section, you will be able to do the following: • Describe four types of signaling mechanisms found in multicellular organisms • Compare internal receptors with cell-surface receptors • Recognize the relationship between a ligand’s structure and its mechanism of action There are two kinds of communication in the world of living cells. Communication between cells is called intercellular signaling, and communication within a cell is called intracellular signaling. An easy way to remember the distinction is by understanding the Latin origin of the prefixes: inter- means "between" (for example, intersecting lines are those that cross each other) and intra- means "inside" (as in intravenous). Chemical signals are released by signaling cells in the form of small, usually volatile or soluble molecules called ligands. A ligand is a molecule that binds another specific molecule, in some cases, delivering a signal in the process. Ligands can thus be thought of as signaling molecules.
eBook - ePubLecture Notes
Human Physiology
- Ole H. Petersen(Author)
- 2019(Publication Date)
- Wiley-Blackwell(Publisher)
Chapter 2 Cellular CommunicationCells communicate with one another by chemical and electrical signals. There are also specialized sensory cells that respond to chemical, electrical, light, mechanical or heat stimuli that may come from external or internal sources. The cellular response to these signals may be simple and short-lived, such as depolarization, or it may be complex and long-lasting, such as the acquisition of memory. Nevertheless, the cellular mechanisms underlying these responses have much in common. Each of these signals is transduced into electrical or biochemical changes within the cell, which lead to a characteristic response. For example, the stimuli that give rise to the sensations of taste, smell, hearing and vision, and also certain neurotransmitters and hormones, can all control the opening and closing of ion channels and depolarize or hyperpolarize cells.In this chapter we discuss how information is transmitted between cells, and how signals from the external and internal environment are received and transduced into electrical and biochemical changes within the cell.2.1 How signals are transmitted between cells
Cells communicate with one another by chemical signals that either diffuse between cells (neurotransmitters, and paracrine and autocrine agents), or are disseminated in the blood (hormones). These signals include small organic molecules (e.g. acetylcholine and adrenaline), and larger molecules such as proteins and steroids. Cells may also communicate with their immediate neighbours through gap junctions, which transmit both electrical and chemical signals.
eBook - PDF- Danton O'Day(Author)
- 2012(Publication Date)
- Academic Press(Publisher)
Rather than pro-vide an exhaustive review, the aim of this chapter is to set the stage for the chapters that follow by giving an overview of what w e understand about intercellular communication. One should keep in mind that a cell may, at a point in time or throughout its life, utilize several and possibly all methods of communication. The use of one communication system does not exclude another. Fig. 1. A diagrammatic representation of the modes of communication used by eukaryotic cells. (A) Communication via diffusible molecules. One cell or a group of cells synthesizes and secretes a message molecule which travels in the extracellular environ-ment. The message is received by a target cell which has surface receptors (upper cell) and/or intracellular receptors (below) that are specific for the molecule. (B) Communica-tion via cellular continuities. In this system direct cytoplasmic coupling exists between cells. These vary in size and may be large enough to permit penetration of entire organ-elles or small enough to restrict the flow of all but specific ions. They may or may not reveal special structural differentiations. Gap junctions are special structures which allow cells to be metabolically and/or ionically coupled. (C) Cell contact-mediated com-munication. Cell contact regulates many biological phenomena. The example shown represents the most widely accepted concept of cell-cell contact which involves complemen-tary molecules bound to the surface of the adjacent cells. Generally, the molecular inter-action is believed to be a molecule-receptor or an enzyme-substrate (glycosyltransferase) interaction. Other types of contact-mediated communication may also exist. (D) Extra-cellular matrix-mediated communication. This is similar in some ways to the situation discussed in (C) except that extracellular components are interposed between and essen-tial for the communication between adjacent cells.
eBook - PDF- Bryan H. Derrickson(Author)
- 2019(Publication Date)
- Wiley(Publisher)
Specific examples of cell-to-cell binding are presented in the discussion of immunity in Chapter 17. the tack. Consider another example: If the oxygen level in your tissues decreases below normal, kidney cells communicate with cells in red bone marrow to produce more eryth- rocytes, which results in an increase in oxygen delivery to your tissues. As you can see from these two examples, communication between cells is vital to achieving and main- taining homeostasis. The communication that exists between the cells of the body is referred to as cell signaling, which is the subject of this chapter. Question What is the most common method of cell-to-Cell Communication? Cells can communicate with one another through gap junctions, cell-to-cell binding, or extracellular chemical messengers. FIGURE 6.1 Methods of cell-to-Cell Communication. Connexon Ions and small molecules Gap junction Cell 2 Cell 1 (a) Communication through gap junctions Surface molecules Cell 2 Cell 1 (b) Communication through cell-to-cell binding Extracellular chemical messenger Target cell Secreting cell (c) Communication through extracellular chemical messengers 6.2 Extracellular Chemical Messengers 161 Communication Through Extracellular Chemical Messengers Permits a Wide Variety of Responses Although cells can communicate with one another through gap junctions or cell-to-cell binding, in most cases, communication between cells occurs through the use of an extracellular chemi- cal messenger (Figure 6.1c). This process begins when a cell secretes a chemical messenger into extracellular fluid (ECF). The chemical messenger then diffuses through the ECF and may randomly come in contact with many different types of cells. However, the extracellular messenger has an effect only on spe- cific target cells. Hence, a target cell is a cell that can respond to the extracellular messenger.
eBook - ePubEssential Physiological Biochemistry
An Organ-Based Approach
- Stephen Reed, Stephen Reed(Authors)
- 2013(Publication Date)
- Wiley(Publisher)
It would not be conducive to learning if a biochemistry lecture were to be held in the same lecture theatre at the same time as a presentation on, say, French literature of the seventeenth century. Multicellularity allows efficiency through metabolic and physiological specialization, but the disadvantage is ensuring coordinated activity; team work is vital for physiological success. Coordination of metabolic activity is achieved by an intricate system of communication where signalling molecules such as hormones (derived from the Greek for ‘ arouse to activity ’ and sometimes called the ‘first messengers’), growth factors, cytokines, and neurotransmitters are released by one cell and target (i) a distant cell (classic hormones), (ii) a neighbouring cell (local hormones and neurotransmitters) or (iii) the same cell (autocrine hormones), and initiate an appropriate metabolic and physiological response in that target. The word ligand describes a small molecule which binds to a larger molecule and in the context of cellular communication means the primary signal (hormone, neurotransmitter, growth factor, etc.). Cell signalling and signal transduction are topics of great research interest, partly because defects of these processes are associated with diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cancer and obesity. In recognition of this is the fact that a number of Nobel Prizes for Medicine or Chemistry have been awarded to researchers of Cell Communication. This chapter describes the nature of the disparate signalling molecules and how they regulate the activity of their targets. 4.2 Physiological aspects 4.2.1 The classical endocrine system The classical endocrine system is composed of a series of glands that secrete hormones directly into the blood where they are carried to act on cells in the body often quite distant from the place of secretion. Insulin, for example, secreted from β pancreatic islet cells has actions on fuel metabolism in most tissues of the body
eBook - PDF- Tadashi Nakano, Andrew W. Eckford, Tokuko Haraguchi(Authors)
- 2013(Publication Date)
- Cambridge University Press(Publisher)
3 Molecular communication in biological systems Molecular communication occurs ubiquitously at all levels of biological systems including molecule, cell, tissue, and organ levels. In this chapter, we examine how bio- nanomachines or a system of bio-nanomachines communicate using molecules. First, we introduce two dimensions to characterize molecular communication systems: scale and mode. The scale refers to the range of distances over which bio-nanomachines communicate by propagating molecules, and it is roughly divided into intracellular, intercellular, and inter-organ levels. The mode of molecular communication systems refers to how molecules propagate between bio-nanomachines; it is either passively or actively. We then go over, from a communication engineering perspective, a number of examples of molecular communication systems found in nature. Following the previous chapter, basic biology terms are in bold in this chapter. 3.1 Scales of molecular communication Molecular communication in a human body can be studied at three structurally different levels: intracellular, intercellular, and inter-organ levels, which are respectively, molecu- lar communication within a cell (up to the size of a cell about 100 μm), between nearby cells (up to a population of cells, from a few μm to 10 mm or longer), and between distant cells (up to a few meters). At the intracellular level, a number of sub-cellular bio-nanomachines within a cell communicate to sustain the life of the cell. At this level, physically separated bio-nanomachines interact directly through diffusion and collision or indirectly by prop- agating diffusive molecules. For example, proteins, DNA, RNA, and other molecules diffuse and interact directly through physical contact to regulate gene transcription and translation processes.
- Anamaria Berea(Author)
- 2019(Publication Date)
- IntechOpen(Publisher)
Many different models of communication and communication systems have been proposed. In healthcare, communication may involve various people, their messages, communication channels, as well as regulatory protocols and policies, all of which facilitates several types of communication services using different communication devices [2]. Others describe the concepts of flow and interactivity. Information flows interactively as it is created, released, transferred, received and processed repeatedly, as applicable for example to computer systems [1]. Biological communication involves the reciprocally adaptive relationship between a signal and response; a signaler and a receiver who have each evolved to interact with each other [3]. Implicit in these descriptions is the transfer of meaningful information. To be effective, communication requires that the received message is processed and elicits an appropriate response on the part of the recipient [3]. Such activities are easily identified among higher animals, including humans. However, even among the latter, it is understood that much of this communication is non-verbal [4, 5]. Biological communication obviously falls into this latter category. There is a vast amount of interaction that occurs at the cellular and sub-cellular levels. This chapter will discuss one such communication system; extracellular vesicles. But before these are explored, it is important to come to some understanding of what is being com-municated. What do ECVs transport? 2.1 The ‘alphabets’ of life Our genes are comprised of only four different nucleotides, namely guanine, cytosine, adenine, and thymine ( Figure 1 ). As reported by Watson and Crick [6], these are arranged sequentially along two antiparallel strands. Traditionally they have been represented by the letters G, C, A, and T, respectively, giving the impres-sion they are part of some kind of alphabet.
eBook - PDFIntroduction to Biomaterials
Basic Theory with Engineering Applications
- C. Mauli Agrawal, Joo L. Ong, Mark R. Appleford, Gopinath Mani(Authors)
- 2013(Publication Date)
- Cambridge University Press(Publisher)
Cells touching each other can communicate directly through gap junctions, which are small pores in the membrane, or by presenting a ligand on their plasma membrane and making it available for a neighbor cell to bind with using a receptor. With added distance, cells can signal by releasing molecules into the extracellular space. These molecules can be chemically or electrically transmitted. An overview of signaling forms is shown in Table 3.1 . A diffusible signal released by a cell to affect itself is termed autocrine signaling, whereas a diffusible signal released by a cell and affecting a second cell is known as paracrine signaling. Both mechanisms share similar characteristics in that: they are highly localized signals since they are quickly degraded or captured at a cell membrane, and they rely on simple diffusion transport mechanisms. Why would a cell seek to communicate with itself? An example of autocrine pathways is best observed in feedback systems. At many stages of development, cells need to reinforce their expression of proteins. Autocrine feedback provides a continual message to stay on task in activities such as differentiation into more specialized phenotypes. An example of paracrine signaling has recently been observed in mesenchymal stem cell transplants to prevent scar tissue formation in regions such as the heart following myocardial infarction.
eBook - PDF- Julianne Zedalis, John Eggebrecht(Authors)
- 2018(Publication Date)
- Openstax(Publisher)
382 Chapter 9 | Cell Communication This OpenStax book is available for free at http://cnx.org/content/col12078/1.6 Science Practice 6.1 The student can justify claims with evidence. Learning Objective 3.37 The student is able to justify claims based on scientific evidence that changes in signal transduction pathways can alter cellular response. Essential Knowledge 3.D.4 Changes in signal transduction pathways can alter cellular response. Science Practice 6.2 The student can construct explanations of phenomena based on evidence produced through scientific practices. Learning Objective 3.39 The student is able to construct an explanation of how certain drugs affect signal reception and, consequently, signal transduction pathways. Big Idea 2 Biological systems utilize free energy and molecular building blocks to grow, to reproduce, and to maintain dynamic homeostasis. Enduring Understanding 2.E Many biological processes involved in growth, reproduction and dynamic homeostasis include temporal regulation and coordination. Essential Knowledge 2.E.1 Timing and coordination of specific events are necessary for the normal development of an organism, and these events are regulated by a variety of mechanisms. Science Practice 7.1 The student can connect phenomena and models across spatial and temporal scales. Learning Objective 2.34 The student is able to describe the role of programmed cell death in development and differentiation, the reuse of molecules, and the maintenance of dynamic homeostasis. The Science Practice Challenge Questions contain additional test questions for this section that will help you prepare for the AP exam. These questions address the following standards: [APLO 3.33][APLO 3.35] Inside the cell, ligands bind to their internal receptors, allowing them to directly affect the cell’s DNA and protein-producing machinery. Using signal transduction pathways, receptors in the plasma membrane produce a variety of effects on the cell.
eBook - PDF- Shiv Sanjeevi(Author)
- 2019(Publication Date)
- Delve Publishing(Publisher)
The biochemical model of signal transmission clearly needs a biophysical complement. Such a complement has been proposed for the surface receptor-cytoplasm communication across the membrane. According to Adey, the glycoproteins on the cell surface which mediate the cell-cell recognition also can act as antennae for e.m. signals [27]. After the transmission across the membrane, the signal is propagated to the cytoplasm by cytoskeleton-mediated events, in which again e.m. processes may be involved [28, 29]. The same doubts apply to the coupling of molecules in biochemical reactions. The task of studying the individual biochemical reactions in vitro has been so enormous and absorbing that little work has been devoted to the question of how the reactions are organized and how the reactants are moved in vivo. As Rowlands remarks, it is inconceivable that the cell has to wait for the chaotic Brownian motion (and diffusion, for this matter) to accomplish these things by chance [30]. Therefore we must come to the same conclusion as Szent-Gyorgyi [31] who stated that biologists might not be able to formally distinguish between “animate” and “inanimate” things because they concentrate on studying substances to the neglect of two matrices without which these substances cannot perform any functions— water and electromagnetic fields. Communication and the Emergence of Collective Behavior in Living... 97 Intermolecular and Intercellular Recognition Already Weiss has pointed to the fact that cells can recognize each other and their surroundings and can find their proper destinations in the organism even when customary routes are blocked [32, 33]. Additionally, cells of the same type tend to aggregate and actively preserve this aggregation not only in the body but also in vitro. Mutual recognition between cells of the same type later has been shown for dissociated liver and kidney cells from a vertebrate embryo [34].
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