2006 Public Lecture Series

May 3, 2006

THE CELL SURFACE: Molecules Sink or Swim!

Cells interact with the outside world via the plasma membrane. This thin, fatty layer is often portrayed as being a simple barrier -- essentially a "bag" containing the stuff of life. Nothing could be further from the truth. Even in the icy waters of Antarctica, the plasma membrane is really a fluid decorated with tiny protein "islands" that are shuttled around the cell surface by the underlying molecular machinery. This cell surface transport system was first beautifully illustrated in protozoan cells, and has since been implicated in various processes related to human health and disease states. This talk will highlight the dynamic nature of the plasma membrane, focusing on the interactions between membrane proteins and the underlying cell architecture.