Oncology & Cancer

Membrane around tumors may be key to preventing metastasis

For cancer cells to metastasize, they must first break free of a tumor's own defenses. Most tumors are sheathed in a protective "basement" membrane—a thin, pliable film that holds cancer cells in place as they grow and ...

Medical research

Muscle health depends on sugar superstructure

For many inherited diseases, such as cystic fibrosis or Huntington disease, the disease-causing genetic mutation damages or removes a protein that has an essential role in the body. This protein defect is the root cause of ...

Immunology

Exosomal transmission of viral resistance in Hepatitis B

(Medical Xpress)—To move material in bulk, the standard shipping container used by cells, is the vesicle. These approximately 40-micron sized spheres are essentially recyclable grocery bags that can be loaded and adorned ...

Neuroscience

Researchers solve membrane protein mystery

A University of Wisconsin-Madison research team has solved a 25-year mystery that may lead to better treatments for people with learning deficits and mental retardation.

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Cell membrane

The cell membrane (also called the plasma membrane or plasmalemma) is the biological membrane separating the interior of a cell from the outside environment.

It is a semipermeable lipid bilayer found in all cells. It contains a wide variety of biological molecules, primarily proteins and lipids, which are involved in a vast array of cellular processes such as cell adhesion, ion channel conductance and cell signaling. The plasma membrane also serves as the attachment point for both the intracellular cytoskeleton and, if present, the extracellular cell wall.

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