Biology / Unit 2 Bio 0327 short lesson, about 20 seconds
The Glycocalyx
Captions available
The idea
The glycocalyx is the carbohydrate coating on a cell's exterior surface, attached to membrane proteins as glycoproteins or to membrane lipids as glycolipids.
In practice
Unique glycocalyx patterns let the immune system distinguish a body's own cells from foreign ones.
Where people slip
The glycocalyx exists only on a membrane's outward-facing surface — no equivalent carbohydrate coating exists on the cytoplasmic side.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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