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Related Concept Videos

Assembly of the Lipid Bilayer in the ER01:28

Assembly of the Lipid Bilayer in the ER

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Biological membranes are more than just a barrier separating cell cytoplasm from the outside environment. They are highly dynamic and help maintain the integrity and physiological stability of the cells as well as membrane-bound organelles. Membranes also play vital roles in cell-to-cell and intracellular communication.
A large chunk of any biological membrane is composed of phospholipids. These lipids have a heterogeneous distribution across different subcellular organelles and even between...
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Asymmetric Lipid Bilayer01:35

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Biological membranes show uneven distribution of different types of lipids in the inner and outer layers, resulting in transverse asymmetric membranes. The treatment of the erythrocyte membrane with the enzyme phospholipase confirmed the asymmetric nature of the lipid bilayer. The enzyme hydrolyzes lipids into fatty acids and hydrophilic groups. The phospholipase acts only on the outer layer of the membrane, while the inner layer remains intact. The phospholipase treatment resulted in 80%...
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The Endoplasmic Reticulum01:43

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The endoplasmic reticulum or ER makes up for more than half of the membranes in a cell and accounts for 10% of total cell volume. It is also the primary protein and lipid synthesis factory for most cell organelles, such as the Golgi apparatus, lysosomes, secretory vesicles, and the plasma membrane. Despite being the most extensive and functionally complex subcellular organelle, ER was the last to be discovered. After years of deliberation, Keith Porter and George Palade in the year 1954,...
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Insertion of Multi-pass Transmembrane Proteins in the RER01:29

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The rough ER membrane synthesizes, assembles, and embeds transmembrane proteins in diverse topologies. These proteins function as transporters or channels and can remain in the ER membrane or are sent to the Golgi complex, lysosome, and cell membrane.
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Membrane Domains01:18

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The membrane domains concentrate specific lipids and proteins at one place within the membrane, which helps in cell signaling, adhesion, and other critical cellular processes. These domains can differ in size, composition, function, and lifespan.
Protein Domains
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Insertion of Single-pass Transmembrane Proteins in the RER01:26

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Integral membrane proteins are proteins adhered to the lipid bilayer of a cell organelle or membrane. They can be of two types: transmembrane integral proteins that span the lipid bilayer and monotopic proteins that are attached to either side of the membrane but do not pass through it.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Nov 30, 2025

Reconstitution of a Kv Channel into Lipid Membranes for Structural and Functional Studies
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Reconstitution of a Kv Channel into Lipid Membranes for Structural and Functional Studies

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Mapping bilayer thickness in the ER membrane.

Rupali Prasad1, Andrzej Sliwa-Gonzalez1, Yves Barral2

  • 1Institute of Biochemistry, Department of Biology, ETH Zürich, Otto-Stern-Weg 3, 8093 Zürich, Switzerland.

Science Advances
|November 12, 2020
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Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Long-chained ceramides organize the yeast endoplasmic reticulum (ER) membrane by forming thicker lipid domains. These domains create barriers that control protein movement between cell compartments.

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Area of Science:

  • Cell Biology
  • Biophysics
  • Membrane Biology

Background:

  • Lipids in cell membranes can form distinct domains with unique properties.
  • The role of lipids in organizing intracellular membranes, like the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate whether lipids drive the lateral organization of intracellular membranes.
  • To identify the specific lipids and mechanisms involved in ER membrane organization.

Main Methods:

  • Development of genetically encoded fluorescent reporters to visualize membrane bilayer thickness.
  • Utilizing these reporters in yeast to observe lipid-driven domain formation in the ER.

Main Results:

  • Long-chained ceramides induce the formation of discrete ER membrane domains with increased bilayer thickness.
  • These ceramide-enriched domains are particularly prevalent at the cell cleavage plane and ER-trans-Golgi contact sites.
  • The thickened ER membrane at the cleavage plane acts as a diffusion barrier, impeding short transmembrane proteins but not long ones between mother and bud compartments.

Conclusions:

  • The endoplasmic reticulum membrane is laterally organized, with ceramides being key drivers of this organization.
  • Ceramide-driven lipid domains establish physical barriers that contribute to the compartmentalization of the ER.