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In biochemistry and pharmacology, receptors are chemical structures, composed of protein, that receive and transduce signals that may be integrated into biological systems. [1] These signals are typically chemical messengers [nb 1] which bind to a receptor and produce physiological responses such as change in the electrical activity of a cell.
Paracrine signaling occurs between nearby cells. Endocrine interaction occurs between distant cells, with the chemical signal usually carried by the blood. [4] Receptors are complex proteins or tightly bound multimer of proteins, located in the plasma membrane or within the interior of the cell such as in the cytoplasm, organelles, and nucleus ...
Examples are the class of nuclear receptors located in the cell nucleus and cytoplasm and the IP 3 receptor located on the endoplasmic reticulum. The ligands that bind to them are usually intracellular second messengers like inositol trisphosphate (IP 3 ) and extracellular lipophilic hormones like steroid hormones .
Signal transduction is the process by which a chemical or physical signal is transmitted through a cell as a series of molecular events.Proteins responsible for detecting stimuli are generally termed receptors, although in some cases the term sensor is used. [1]
A chemical message is any compound that serves to transmit a message, and may refer to: Hormone, long range chemical messenger; Neurotransmitter, communicates to adjacent cells; Neuropeptide, a protein sequence which acts as a hormone or neurotransmitter. The blood or other body fluids transport neuropeptides to non adjacent target cells, where ...
Ion permeability of the plasma membrane is altered, and this transforms the extracellular chemical signal into an intracellular electric signal which alters the cell excitability. [12] The acetylcholine receptor is a receptor linked to a cation channel. The protein consists of four subunits: alpha (α), beta (β), gamma (γ), and delta (δ ...
Ligand-gated ion channels (LICs, LGIC), also commonly referred to as ionotropic receptors, are a group of transmembrane ion-channel proteins which open to allow ions such as Na +, K +, Ca 2+, and/or Cl − to pass through the membrane in response to the binding of a chemical messenger (i.e. a ligand), such as a neurotransmitter. [1] [2] [3]
The protein's N terminus is located on the extracellular side of the membrane and its C terminus is on the intracellular side. [ 2 ] The 7 transmembrane spanning domains, with an external amino terminus, are often claimed as being alpha helix shaped, and the polypeptide chain is said to be composed of around 450–550 amino acids.