intracellular

Not to be confused with intercellular, meaning "between cells".

In cell biology, molecular biology and related fields, the word intracellular means "inside the cell".^[1]

It is used in contrast to extracellular (outside the cell). The cell membrane (and, in plants, the cell wall) is the barrier between the two, and chemical composition of intra- and extracellular milieu can be radically different. In most organisms, for example, a Na+/K+ ATPase maintains a high potassium level inside cells while keeping sodium low, leading to chemical excitability.^[2][3] This terms also means existing within the cells.

See also

• Cell (biology)
• Cytosol
• Extracellular
• Microparasite
• Intracellular parasite

References

External links

• MeSH Intracellular