Differences Between Transmembrane & Intracellular Receptors
Transmembrane receptor proteins
- Receptors that are located in the cell membrane have an external binding site and an internal region which extends into the cytoplasm
- These are transmembrane proteins as they extend across the width of the membrane
- Transmembrane receptors are characterised by:
- Hydrophilic amino acid regions at either end of the protein that are contact with the aqueous solution inside and outside the cell
- A hydrophobic amino acid region within the membrane that is in contact with the hydrophobic tails of the phospholipids inside the cell membrane
- Some ligands bind to these receptors instead of entering the cell cytoplasm
Transmembrane receptor diagram
The cell surface membrane has many different components, including transmembrane proteins, e.g. glycoproteins, that function as receptors
Intracellular receptors
- Non polar, hydrophobic, ligands, e.g. steroid hormones, can diffuse through the phospholipid bilayer
- These ligands bind to receptors in the cytoplasm or on the DNA in the nucleus of the cell
- Steroid hormones such as oestradiol will bind to the receptor molecule and activate it so that protein synthesis is initiated
Intracellular receptor diagram
Oestradiol is a steroid hormone that diffuses across the cell membrane and binds to an intracellular receptor in the cytoplasm of target cells