Silicate tetrahedron. A siliconâoxygen tetrahedron is the Si O 4 anionic group, or a silicon atom with four surrounding oxygen atoms arranged to define the corners of a tetrahedron. This is a fundamental component of most silicates in the Earth's crust. siliconâoxygen tetrahedron is the Si O 4 anionic group, or a silicon atom with four surrounding oxygen atoms arranged to define the corners of a tetrahedron.
Best Answer: G proteins are special proteins that help plasma membrane receptors work. Many different signal molecules use G-protein linked receptors, including epinephrine and other hormones. It is part of a second messenger system. How it works is that some chemical messenger binds to the receptor at the membrane.
When the receptor is actively transmitting a signal to the inside of the cell, it is bound to a G protein. To determine a structure corresponding to that state, it might work to crystallize the receptor in the presence of many copies of the G protein. (In fact, the researchers planned to try this approach next.