The Plant Plasma Membrane: Structure, Function and Molecular Biology

The plasma membrane forms the living barrier between the cell and its surroundings. For this reason it has a wide range of important functions related to the regulation of the composition of the cell interior and to com­ munication with the cell exterior. The plasma membrane has therefore attracted a lot of research interest. Until the early 1970's it was only possible to study the plasma membrane in situ, its structure e. g. by electron microscopy and its function e. g. by uptake of radioa...