How do Steroid and protein hormones differ in how they stimulate a cell?

Steroid hormones, being lipid-soluble, can easily pass through a cell's membrane and bind to intracellular receptors, leading to direct changes in gene expression and protein synthesis. In contrast, protein hormones are water-soluble and cannot cross the cell membrane; instead, they bind to receptors on the cell surface, triggering a cascade of intracellular signaling pathways through secondary messengers. This key difference leads to distinct mechanisms of action and time frames for cellular responses.