Transport Across Cell

Membranes
CELL MEMBRANES
I. Cell membranes
A. Function – barrier that separates inside of cell from the
external environment
B. Cell membranes made mainly of:
1. Phospholipids – form bilayer
a. Hydrophilic heads
b. Hydrophobic fatty acid tails
2. Proteins
a. Some have sugar groups bound to them – glycoproteins
3. Cholesterol (animal cells only)
C. Consistency similar to olive oil
MEMBRANE STRUCTURE
Membrane Permeability
D. Permeability - what is allowed to
cross a barrier
1. Impermeable – nothing gets through
2. Permeable – anything gets through
3. Cell membranes are semipermeable -

a. Some molecules cross freely

b. Some must be transported across
Membrane Permeability
Membrane Permeability
a. Molecules that pass freely:
1. Small uncharged molecules like glycerol, ethanol
2. Small hydrophobic molecules like oxygen, carbon dioxide
b. Molecules that must be transported:
1. Water
2. Macromolecules (proteins, sugars, etc..) too large
3. Ions like H+, Na+, Cl-, Ca++
MEMBRANES
• For cells to survive they must be able transport
materials (water, oxygen, food, waste products, ions)
into and out of the cells.

II. Transport mechanisms used by cells include

(handout):
A. Passive mechanisms (require no energy expenditure)
1. Diffusion
2. Osmosis
3. Facilitated diffusion
B. Active transport (requires energy output)
1. Active transport
2. Endocytosis and exocytosis
Diffusion
A. Passive mechanisms – fueled by concentration gradient
- Difference in concentration across a given space
Diffusion
1. Diffusion - movement of a substance from a place of higher
concentration to a place of lower concentration
a. Remember, all molecules in constant, random motion unless at absolute
zero
b. If concentration gradient exists, there will be net movement of substance
in greater concentration until equilibrium (equal concentration ) is
reached.
Diffusion
f. Diffusion is one way materials are moved in and out of cells.
- Cytoplasm is mostly water containing dissolved solutes (salts)
Diffusion

Gas exchange in the

lungs:
1) Oxygen follows its
concentration gradient
into the capillary
2) Carbon dioxide (waste)
follows its
concentration gradient
into the lung, is exhaled
Diffusion
g. Diffusion works very well over short distances
1) As size of cell increases, volume increases faster than surface area
2) Cells remain relatively small because center of large cells would not get adequate gas
exchange, would die.
3) Multicellular organisms made up of many small cells because they can be efficiently supplied
by circulatory system, even if deep inside organism.
Osmosis
2. Osmosis - diffusion (movement) of water (only) across a
semipermeable membrane
a. Water moves along its concentration gradient from an area of high
water concentration (less solute) to an area of lower water
concentration (more solute)
Osmosis
c. 3 possibilities for direction of water movement in living cells:
1) Hypotonic environment: greater concentration of water outside the cell
than inside. Water enters, cell swells.
a) Animal cell bursts (lysis, rupture)
b) Plant cell – water pushes against cell wall, creating turgor pressure.
- Helps plants stand up against gravity
- Cell wall protects from bursting
Osmosis
2) Hypertonic environment: greater concentration of water inside cell. Water moves out, cell
shrinks
a) Animal cell – shrivels up (crenation)
b) Plant cell – plasmolysis (low turgor pressure). Cell membrane draws away from cell wall,
plant wilts.
Osmosis
3) Isotonic: solute and water concentration is the same inside and outside cell
a) At equilibrium, molecules continue to move across membranes evenly (but there is no
net movement)
b) Cell size and volume do not change
Group activity on Osmosis

With the same group answer and present to the class

How do organisms that live in water deal with

osmosis?
a) Freshwater animals…?
b) Marine (saltwater) organisms…?
c) Plants…?
FACILITATED DIFFUSION
3. Facilitated diffusion - passive
transport of specific substances
down their concentration gradient
by a carrier protein
a. Examples: water, glucose
ACTIVE TRANSPORT
B. Active transport - uses energy
(ATP) and a membrane protein to
move materials against their
concentration gradient from an
area of lower to higher
concentration
1. Used to move ions (Na+, Ca++, Cl-,
K+), amino acids, nucleotides across
the cell membrane
Active Transport
• Animation -
http://www.mhhe.com/biosci/esp/2001_gbio/folder_structure/ce/m
3/s5/index.htm
Membrane-Assisted Transport
C. Membrane-assisted transport uses energy to
move large, complex molecules across the cell
membrane
1. Large molecules like proteins, food, or fluid
droplets are packaged in vesicles, then sent
into or out of the cell
2. Exocytosis – large products removed from cell
a) Vesicle from inside cell fuses with cell
membrane to secrete its contents
b) Examples: insulin, mucus
Membrane-Assisted Transport
3. Endocytosis moves large particles into a cell
a) Phagocytosis – particles
1) Cell membrane extends out, surrounds the material &
pinches off inside the cell making a vesicle
2) Used by amoeba to feed & white blood cells to kill bacteria
b) Pinocytosis - Cell membrane surrounds fluid droplets
Membrane-Assisted Transport
Animation
-http://www.mhhe.com/biosci/esp/2001_gbio/folder_structure/ce/m
3/s6/index.htm
Transport review
Membrane Transport
III. Real world examples:
A. Fresh produce
B. Wrinkled fingers and toes when swimming
C. Lungs
D. Destruction of bacteria, viruses by immune system
Membrane Transport
Membrane Transport
E. Cystic fibrosis – remember symptoms? Cause?
a. Genetic mutation changes membrane protein controlling Cl- ion
exchange
b. Cl- ions retained in cell, along with water
Membrane Transport
c. Mucus too thick, clogs lungs (infections), pancreas (trouble with digestion, poor growth),
usually fatal by 20-40 years old
d. Treatment – antibiotics, physical therapy (vest), diet, enzymes, transplants
• Membrane-assisted transport activity