Transporting Materials

Across Cells
Cell MeMbranes Can be…

• Permeable  allows movement across the membrane

• Impermeable  no movement across the membrane
• Selectively permeable  allows certain substances to enter or
leave, but not others
• i.e. cell membrane – composed of phospholipid bilayer dotted with protein
molecules
• Not rigid
The polar head is attracted to
• Fluid-Mosaic Membrane Model
water.

The hydrocarbon chains in the

fatty acid tail (non-polar) are not
attracted to water but are
compatible with other lipids.
Cell Membrane

• Small molecules pass easily through the cell, medium-

sized ones pass less easily, large ones cannot pass
through at all. Cells, therefore, have a selectively
permeable membrane..
selective permeability diagram
 Membrane Proteins

• Integral/Transmembrane Proteins:
• Embedded in the bilayer (span the whole
membrane)
• Roles:
• A) forms channels to allow certain polar
molecules to cross (transport protein)
• B) cell recognition (recognition
protein)
• C) cell-to-cell interactions (receptor
protein)
Membrane Proteins

• Peripheral Proteins:
• Do not span whole membrane

• Are attracted to integral proteins or

membrane lipids mostly on the
cytoplasmic side of the membrane

• Held to membrane surface by H-bonds

and ionic bonds
 Glycolipids & Glycoproteins

• Many of the phospholipids and proteins in membranes have CHO

groups linked forming glycolipids and glycoproteins respectively

• Glycoproteins:
• Proteins with CHO attached to outer surface

• Glycolipids:
• Lipids with CHO attached to outer surface

• Both play a role in cell recognition

• i.e. rejection of transplanted organs
Membrane Transport

• Internal membranes have the • Two main pathways into and

same qualities as the plasma out of the cell:
membrane
• reaction materials must both • Passive Transport
enter and leave through the • Does not require energy
various membranes • May or may not involve proteins
• Active Transport
• Requires energy
• Always involves the use of
protein pathways
 How Material is Moved In & Out of
Cells

• Recall:
• Solute – substance dissolved
• Solvent – substance that does dissolving
• Concentration gradient – a difference
in concentration between 2 areas
Passive Transport

• Depends on concentration gradients

• No energy is required
• Movement is from HIGH → LOW (until
equilibrium is reached)
• 3 Types:
• Diffusion
• Osmosis
• Facilitated Diffusion
 Diffusion

• The movement of small and/or

nonpolar molecules from an area
of high concentration to an area
of low concentration

• It is fueled by the constant

random motion of particles
 Facilitated Diffusion

• Diffusion across a membrane with help from

transport proteins
• Needed for:
• i) large polar molecules (i.e. glucose)
• ii) large ions such as Na+ and Cl-

• Examples:
• i) Channel Proteins – form hydrophilic channels in
the membrane
• ii) Carrier Proteins – assist specific molecules by
undergoing a conformational change that allows
solute to move through membrane
 Osmosis

• The net movement of water molecules

across a membrane by passive diffusion,
from a solution of lesser solute concentration
to a solution of greater solute concentration

• Water is a small enough particle that it will

move across the membrane despite its
polarity

• Control of water movement – critical to cell

survival
 Osmosis

Osmosis occurs in three different solutions:

1. Hypotonic – the solute concentration is
greater inside of the cell than outside
• Water enters the cell

2. Isotonic – the solute is equal inside and out

• Watering entering = watering exiting

3. Hypertonic – the solute concentration is

greater outside the cell than inside
• Water exits the cell
 Animal Cells

• Do NOT contain a cell wall

• E.g. RBC’s
• Blood plasma is isotonic when compared to
RBC cytoplasm
• Helps RBCs maintain their shape

• Hemolysis: if blood plasma is diluted

(hypotonic), RBCs can swell or burst

• Crenation: if blood plasma becomes Which environment do our RBCs prefer?

concentrated (hypertonic), RBCs lose water
and stick to one another; this clogs veins and
arteries and may be fatal
 Plant Cells

• DO contain a cell wall

• Turgor Pressure: in a hypotonic

solution, water pressure pushes the
cytoplasm up against the cell wall;
the rigid cell wall keeps the cell from
bursting

• Plasmolysis: in a hypertonic solution, Which environment do plant cells prefer?

the cytoplasm pulls away from the cell
wall and the cell (and plant) wilts
 Active Transport

• Cells use their own energy to transport

materials from an area of low concentration to
high concentration

• Just like facilitated diffusion, this requires a

trans-membrane carrier protein (specific)

• Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) provides the

energy needed for this process
• Energy is released when the ATP molecule
phosphorylates (adds a phosphate) to the carrier
protein
Active Transport

• Involves the use of carrier proteins

• Used to move solute molecules or large particles across the
membrane against the concentration gradient
• This is not spontaneous, but requires the input of ATP – Cellular
Energy
• Similar to the process that transports a skier to the top of a hill
(lift) so they can ski down hill
• 30% to 40% of all energy used while sleeping is for active transport
Why is this important to us?

• Nutrients must be absorbed quickly in the small intestine or

they will be lost as waste
• If our bodies relied on simple or facilitated diffusion, about half
of the nutrients would be lost
• Therefore cells pump materials against a concentration gradient
to maximize nutrient absorption
ATP

• Adenosine Tri-Phosphate
• Is used as a source of energy in the cell; as this molecule is broken
apart, energy is created
• Often used in metabolic pathways to activate molecules for entry
into specific reactions
• This process is called phosphorylation
• i.e. adding a phosphate group
 ATP

• ATP contains energy stored in the bonds connecting phosphate

molecules together

• ATP is created in several ways;

• Photo-phosphorylation happens in chloroplast
• Substrate-level phosphorylation is the transfer of high
energy phosphate groups from one molecule to another
• Oxidative phosphorylation is the transfer of high energy
phosphates through an electrochemical reaction
ATP/ADP Cycle
Protein-Mediated Active Transport

• Involves the use of carrier molecules to bind to specific

solutes
• Energy is released when the ATP molecule transfers a
phosphate group to the transport protein
• Move the solute across the membrane when ATP
phosphorylates the protein
• Tends to be very specific to a type of solute or class of
molecules
• e.g Sodium/Potassium pump
An Example of Active Transport
- the sodium Potassium pump -

For every 3 Na+

pumped out of
the cell, 2 K+
are pumped in
 Transporter Proteins

• Uniport Transport Protein:

• Transports one type of molecule

• Symport Transport Protein:

• Transports two types of molecules in
the same direction, at the same time

• Antiport Transport Protein:

• Transports two types of molecules but
in opposite directions
Passive vs active transport
Bulk Transport

• used to move materials that are

not dissolved in solution

• 2 Types of Bulk Transport:

• Endocytosis
• Exocytosis
 endocytosis

• cell membrane folds on itself to form a vesicle

that brings a substance into a cell

• the cell often extends its cytoplasm to do this

• typically involves the movement of large

quantities of materials across the membrane
at the same time

• 3 Types:
• Pinocytosis
• Phagocytosis
• Receptor Mediated Endocytosis
 Pinocytosis

• liquid droplets are engulfed

• e.g. the movement of ECF
into the cell
Receptor Mediated Endocytosis

• specific intake of particles

• e.g. cells bring cholesterol
into the cytoplasm
Phagocytosis

• solid particles are engulfed

• e.g. white blood cells
(called macrophages) use
this process to engulf
harmful bacteria
Endocytosis Overview
Exocytosis

• Movement of materials from the inside of the cell to the outside

using a vesicle
• e.g. used to export materials such as hormones or enzymes
Exocytosis

• The vesicle membrane becomes fused to the cell membrane

emptying its contents outside of the cell
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ptmlvtei8hw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPKvHrD1eS4