Membrane Structure

Membrane components may:
*be protective
*regulate transport in and out of cell or subcellular
*domain allow selective receptivity and signal transduction by providing transmembrane receptors that bind signaling molecules
*allow cell recognition
*provide anchoring sites for cytoskeletal filaments or components of the extracellular matrix. This allows the cell to maintain its shape and perhaps move to distant sites.
*help compartmentalize subcellular domains or microdomains
*provide a stable site for the binding and catalysis of enzymes.
*regulate the fusion of the membrane with other membranes in the cell via specialized junctions )
*provide a passageway across the membrane for certain molecules, such as in gap junctions.
*allow directed cell or organelle motility

(information taken from the web page: http://cellbio.utmb.edu/cellbio/membrane.htm)