This book examines detailed experimental and computational approaches for the analysis of many aspects vital to the understanding of membrane protein structure and function. Readers will receive guidance on the selection and use of methods for over-expression and purification, tools to characterize membrane proteins within different phospholipid bilayers, direction on functional studies, and approaches to determine the structures of membrane proteins. Detailed experimental steps for specific membrane proteins with critical notes allow the protocols to be modified to different systems. Written for the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series, chapters include the kind of practical information and implementation advice that leads to excellent, reproducible results. Authoritative and up-to-date, Structure and Function Studies of Membrane Proteins serves as an ideal guide for biologists, biochemists, and biophysicists striving to further understand these essential proteins and their many biological roles.

The central themes of Cell Boundaries concern the structural and organizational principles underlying cell membranes, and how these principles enable function. By building a biological and biophysical foundation for understanding the organization of lipids in bilayers and the folding, assembly, stability, and function of membrane proteins, the book aims to broaden the knowledge of bioscience students to include the basic physics and physical chemistry that inform us about membranes. In doing so, it is hoped that physics students will find familiar territory that will lead them to an interest in biology. Our progress toward understanding membranes and membrane proteins depends strongly upon the concerted use of both biology and physics. It is important for students to know not only what we know, but how we have come to know it, so Cell Boundaries endeavours to bring out the history behind the central discoveries, especially in the early chapters, where the foundation is laid for later chapters. Science is far more interesting if, as students, we can appreciate and share in the adventures—and misadventures—of discovering new scientific knowledge. Cell Boundaries was written with advanced undergraduates and beginning graduate students in the biological and physical sciences in mind, though this textbook will likely have appeal to researchers and other academics as well. Highlights the history of important central discoveries Early chapters lay the foundation for later chapters to build on, so knowledge is amassed High-quality line diagrams illustrate key concepts and illuminate molecular mechanisms Box features and spreads expand on topics in main text, including histories of discoveries, special techniques, and applications

In this new edition of The Membranes of Cells, all of the chapters have been updated, some have been completely rewritten, and a new chapter on receptors has been added. The book has been designed to provide both the student and researcher with a synthesis of information from a number of scientific disciplines to create a comprehensive view of the structure and function of the membranes of cells. The topics are treated in sufficient depth to provide an entry point to the more detailed literature needed by the researcher. Key Features * Introduces biologists to membrane structure and physical chemistry * Introduces biophysicists to biological membrane function * Provides a comprehensive view of cell membranes to students, either as a necessary background for other specialized disciplines or as an entry into the field of biological membrane research * Clarifies ambiguities in the field

The interface between a living cell and the surrounding world plays a critical role in numerous complex biological processes. Sperm/egg fusion, virus/cell fusion, exocytosis, endocytosis, and ion permeation are a few examples of processes involving membranes. In recent years, powerful tools such as X-ray crystal lography, electron microscopy, nuclear magnetic resonance, and infra-red and Raman spectroscopy have been developed to characterize the structure and dy namics of biomembranes. Despite this progress, many of the factors responsible for the function of biomembranes are still not well understood. The membrane is a very complicated supramolecular liquid-crystalline structure that is largely composed of lipids, forming a bilayer, to which proteins and other biomolecules are anchored. Often, the lipid bilayer environment is pictured as a hydropho bic structureless slab providing a thermodynamic driving force to partition the amino acids of a membrane protein according to their solubility. However, much of the molecular complexity of the phospholipid bilayer environment is ignored in such a simplified view. It is likely that the atomic details of the polar head group region and the transition from the bulk water to the hydrophobic core of the membrane are important. An understanding of the factors responsible for the function of biomembranes thus requires a better characterization at the molec ular level of how proteins interact with lipid molecules, of how lipids affect protein structure and of how lipid molecules might regulate protein function.