SMJK Heng Ee Bayan Baru, Pulau Pinang

Folio title: Movement of substances across the plasma

membrane in everyday life (food)
Group members: Thomas Chen, Jack Heah, Yeoh Chun
Aun, Tan Yu Chiet, Ethan Choong Zhe Dong
Class: T4S5
Subject: Biology KSSM

Biology teacher: Ng Chiew Ping

Date: 3 September 2023
 Folio entirely prepared by Thomas Chen, with the minute help of Yeoh Chun Aun

Contents
1. Acknowledgement
2. Introduction and objectives of the
project
3. List of ingredients and household
appliances
4. Experimental procedures and
precautionary steps
5. Results (table/photo/finished
dish)
5. Discussion questions
6. Budget estimation
7. Conclusion and reference
Acknowledgement
I would like to express my special thanks of gratitude to
my group members and my parents as well as our
biology teacher who gave us this golden opportunity to
complete this wonderful project on the topic
“Movement of substances across the plasma
membrane in everyday life”, which also helped me in
doing a lot of research and I came to know about so
many new things,
Secondly, I would also like to thank my friends who are
willing to express their opinions and interact with me
instead of letting me complete this project all by
myself. It helped me learn more from others as the
adage goes: “You will always learn something new from
anyone you least expected”. A quick shoutout to my
parent’s support ever since I was young that never
discourage or look down at me whenever I try to cook
or prepare something in the kitchen. Without their
rejection or them being overprotective, I managed to
discover many cooking phenomena and gain many
cooking experience, including serving them my
wonderful dish I will be making them later on in this
folio.

Introduction and objectives of the project

Almost all plants and organisms are made up of the basic
units of life, cells. Cells are little building blocks for all living
things and consists of a plasma membrane and cell
organelles. Our cells require substances from the external
environment to carry out living processes. Simultaneously,
the movement of substances across plasma membrane of our
food can allow our foods to last longer, taste better and
prevent food wastage.
“Is that so?”
Well, in this project, me and my group members are going to
find out if the movement of substances across plasma
membrane in our foods actually bring benefits.
Our Food/Dish Project that involves the
movement of substances across plasma
membrane: Chinese cucumber saladList
of apparatus (kitchen appliances)
Our cucumber salad and
Original recipe from

materials (ingredients) used:

Kitchen appliances:
 Vegetable knife
 Cutting board
 A deep plate (ceramic)
 Cling wrap @msshiandmrhe (TikTok)
 Measuring spoons
 A pair of chopsticks for incorporating
Ingredients:
 One whole cucumber
 4-6 tablespoon of sugar (based on the cucumber
size)
 3-6 cloves of garlic
 1-3 Thai/birds eye chilli
 2 tablespoons of soy sauce
 2-4 tablespoons of rice vinegar
 ½-1 tablespoon of sesame oil
 Pinch of salt (roughly about ¼ teaspoon)
Note: The number of seasoning spices and condiments may
be adjusted according to one’s taste preferences but do note
that the final product will not be as delectable as the original
recipe. Eaten as a side dish, not as a main course.

Experimental procedures and

precautionary steps
Have you ever been so stressed out until you don’t feel like
eating anything? This spicy, savoury and crunchy dish will give
you a kickstart and motivate you to go on with your day. First,
we chop off the tip and the end of a cucumber, then thinly
slice a cucumber with the help of a sharp vegetable knife and
a cutting board. The cucumber slices should be around
0.3cm (3mm). This is to increase the surface area of the
cucumber, exposing more area to the sugar we’ll put later,
and more water will seep out of it.
Place all of the cucumbers slices into a deep plate or a bowl,
then toss in around 4 to 6 tablespoons of sugar according to
the cucumbers size (if it’s a larger cucumber, add around 6
tablespoons of sugar; is its small, add around 4 tablespoons
of sugar). Remember, the more the sugar there is, the more
the water is going to seep out of the cucumber. If more
water is drained out from that cucumber, it will absorb much
more flavour, resulting in a tastier cucumber salad. Of
course, you can reduce the sugar level if you don’t want it to
be so sweet but do keep in mind that it won’t absorb much
flavour later on. Stir it with a pair of chopsticks or with a
pair of clean hands, make sure all slices are evenly coated
with sugar.
Within 5 minutes of incorporating, the sugar will start to melt
as the sugar has come in contact with moisture on the
surface of each cucumber slices. By this stage, the solution
formed by the sugar and the moisture on the surface of the
cucumber slices is hypertonic and osmosis down the
concentration gradient has already begun to occur (water
has begun to draw out of the cucumber slices). This is why
we need to make sure the surface area of the cucumber
slices is big enough and sugar must be coated evenly so that
it ensures that most water will seep out of the cucumber.
From 7 to 10 minutes onwards, the sugar has completely
melted, and the cucumber has started to change in texture,
transparency and started to shrivel up. This is because the
cucumber slices are being placed in a hypertonic
environment. The water seeping out of the cucumber caused
the plasma membrane to detach from the cell wall, thus
shrivelling and becoming slightly transparent. Wrap the bowl
with a clingwrap and pop it into the refrigerator for about 6
hours.
In the meantime, we can prepare the sauce for our cucumber
slices. Slice about 3 to 6 cloves of garlic (I used 5) and 1 to 3
bird’s eye chilli (I used 3) and place them in a separate deep
plate/bowl. Definitely, you can add in more or lesser if you
want more taste or you’re not a fan of heavy spices.
Remember not to touch the sliced chillis because it will burn.
Add in about 2 tablespoons of soy sauce, 2 to 4 tablespoons
of rice vinegar or white vinegar (I used 3 tablespoons of rice
vinegar, it is strongly recommended to use rice vinegar
instead of white vinegar so it will be sweeter), ½ to 1
tablespoon of sesame oil (I used 1 tablespoon) and finally a
pinch of salt (roughly about ¼ teaspoon).
Stir the sauce mixture until the salt has dissolved. In this
process, soy sauce and salt are slightly hypertonic to the
garlic and chilli we used. This is because soy sauce has a lot
of salt content in it (around 2.75g per tablespoon). This will
cause some of the flavour of the garlic and chilli slices to
seep out of them and into the sauce mixture (net
movement of substances across the plasma membrane),
resulting in a tastier sauce. Wrap the bowl with a clingwrap
to prevent our tasty sauce from “escaping” (evaporating) and
pop it in the refrigerator next to the cucumber slices we
made just now. The longer the garlic and chilli soaks in the
sauce, the tastier our sauce becomes as more flavour diffuse
out of the plasma membrane of the garlic and chilli.
 Result 1 (table)
After 6 hours of marinating the cucumber slices and the chilli-
garlic sauce mixture, we take them out from the refrigerator.
We can clearly see that the cucumber slices had expelled a
lot of its water content and shrunken drastically. This is due to
the fact that the sugar is extremely hypertonic to the
cucumber slices. We’ve measured the amount of water that
has seeped out of the cucumber slices and how much
percent of water has been expelled out from then cucumber
into a table form. About 78.26% of water has seeped out
from the cucumber.
Substance Initial mass of Mass of Final mass Difference in Percentage of
(solute) cucumber water that of cucumber mass difference in
slices was expelled slices mass %
from
cucumber
slices
6 tablespoons 230g 180ml 50g -180g -78.26%
of sugar

Just a quick comparison of the fresh cucumber slices and the

plasmolysis cucumber slices
Result 2 (photos)
Take a look at how much water can a cucumber expel and
how much a cucumber can shrink. This is due to the fact that
cucumbers are 95% made out of water
After taking out the chilli-garlic sauce mixture and the plasmolysis cucumber
slices, we fish out the cucumber slices and place them into the chilli-garlic
sauce mixture bowl. We do not have to rinse or dry the cucumber slices as we
did not put any sugar into the chilli-garlic sauce mixture. After putting the
cucumber slices into the sauce mixture, we must ensure that all the cucumber
slices are fully submerged into the sauce mixture by pressing the cucumber
slices with a spoon or a pair of chopsticks into the sauce mixture. This is to
make sure that the plasmolysis cucumber slices can evenly absorb as much
flavour as possible from the sauce. We can also give a quick taste test of the
sauce as the cucumber salad is going to taste exactly how the sauce taste like.
If it's not sweet enough we can pour in some of the sugar water that was
expelled from the cucumber slices or adjust the condiments in the sauce if the
sauce mixture hasn’t reached your desired taste.
Then, we rewrap the cucumber salad with the used
clingwrap and replace it in the refrigerator for about two
more hours. This gives more time for the plasmolysis
cucumber slices to absorb the chilli-garlic sauce mixture to its
full potential (absorbing the sauce mixture until it is “full”). In
this process, the sauce mixture is less hypertonic compared
to pure sugar, and the sauce mixture contains more water
content (higher water potential) than the plasmolysis
cucumber slices (lower water potential), so the sauce will
still somehow manage to seep into the cucumber slices. This
is why we must add as much sugar as possible to the
cucumber slices so that more excess water can be drawn out,
allowing more space for the sauce to seep into.
 Results 3, after two hours (ready to be served)

Unwrapped before eating

The cucumber slices have slightly regained its The sesame oil has solidified slightly because I accidentally
turgidity after being soaked in the sauce mixture put the salad in the freezer instead of the refrigerator

有一点模
糊, sorry
For your info, the cucumber salad was crunchy

The cucumber slices was not as shrunken as before

I placed the cucumber salad in another bowl because I after soaking in the sauce mixture, but most parts of
wanted to bring it out to enjoy it together with my family the cucumber slices still remained plasmolysed
Q: Why must we marinate the cucumber slices with sugar
first before soaking it in the sauce mixture?
A: This is because the sugar helps to draw out the excess
water that might be hindering the cucumber slices from
absorbing the sauce mixture and flavour. The concept here is
that the fresh cucumber slices cannot absorb any more water
content (sauce mixture and flavour) because it is filled with
water. Therefore, sugar helps to enhance the taste of the

cucumber salad. Precautionary step

u
1. MaintainingCannot
sterility:
diffuse into u
u
u
cucumber slice （不够位） u
u
Ensuring that the environment and equipment used
u
for u
the experiment are sterile to prevent contaminationuand u

interference with the movement of substances.

2. Using appropriate controls:

u u
u
Including control samples or conditions that do notu
u
involve the movement of substances, which helps in
u u
comparing and validating theuobserved results.
u u

3. Ensuring proper timing:

Timing is crucial when studying the movement of

substances across the plasma membrane. It is important to
u
synchronize the start and end times
There is enough space in
of the experiment to accurately
measure the rate and efficiency
cucumber for sauceof
to transport.
seep
into （有位了，可以进了） u
 4. Monitoring temperature:

Temperature can significantly affect the movement of

substances across the plasma membrane. Therefore, it is
essential to maintain a stable and optimal
temperature throughout the experiment.

5. Validating results:

It is important to validate the observed results using

multiple techniques or assays to ensure accuracy and
reproducibility.

6. Consider the energy requirements:

Active transport processes often require energy in the form of

ATP to move substances against their concentration gradient. Ensure
that the necessary energy is available to power the movement,
especially for uphill transport.

7. Monitor concentration gradients:

Movement of substances across the plasma membrane often

relies on concentration gradients. Ensure that the concentration
gradients are appropriately maintained to facilitate the desired
movement.

Ethan Choong Zhe Dong (Precaution Step)

Discussions (Q&A)
1) “State the phenomenon that occurs during the
preparation of your food.”
Yeoh Chun Aun: Plasmolysis of the cucumber
Tan Yu Chiet: Osmosis down the concentration gradient
Thomas Chen (continuing Chun Aun’s answer): Water seeping
out of the cucumber, causing the plasma membrane to detach itself
from the cell wall, hence becoming flaccid.
2) “Describe the process in Question 1.”
Yeoh Chun Aun/ Thomas Chen: As the sugar is marinated with the
cucumber, they react with the moisture on the surface of the
cucumber slices, forming a solution that is hypertonic to the
cucumber. This helps most of the water in the cucumber to seep out
of the cucumber sap, allowing more empty space for the cucumber
to absorb the flavoured soy sauce and thus tasting better. This also
helps the cucumber last longer as the cucumber has undergone
plasmolysis.
Tan Yu Chiet: Movement of water molecules from a high solute
concentration solution to a solution with low solute concentration
through a partially permeable membrane.
3) “Usually salt and sugar are used in food preservation.
What is the function of salt and sugar in the process of
food preservation?”
Yeoh Chun Aun: The salt and sugar are used and act as a solute that
dissolves in the moisture on the surface of the cucumber slices to
form a hypertonic solution.
Tan Yu Chiet: To cause the water in the food to diffuse out of
membrane to the salt or sugar solution.
Thomas Chen (continuing team member’s answer): The
hypertonic solution formed by the salt and sugar has a very high
solute concentration (low water potential). The cucumber slices have
a low solute concentration (high water potential, due to the fact it is
95% made out of water) and water molecules move down the water
potential gradient (from an area of high-water potential to an area of
low water potential). This process is called osmosis where water
molecules diffuse from a dilute solution to a concentrated solution
with the help of salt and sugar. They work by drawing out the excess
water from the food, which creates an environment that is not
friendly to bacteria and other microorganisms they would cause the
food to spoil. Salt and sugar create an osmotic gradient that draws
water out of the food. They might potentially inhibit the activity of
some enzymes that bacteria use to break down for food energy,
preventing the bacteria from carrying out living process in food.
Sugar might act as a sugar source for bacteria and promote their
growth but at high concentration it will hinder the bacteria
metabolism by affecting membrane stability.
 4) “Apart from salt and sugar, name another ingredient
used in food preservation process and explain why the
substance is used.”
Yeoh Chun Aun/ Tan Yu Chiet/ Jack Heah: Vinegar, antioxidants,
garlic, onion, spices and oil.
Thomas Chen (continuing team member’s answer): That is
because vinegar is isotonic to the food (potentially hypotonic to
certain foods) as it has no solute in it. According to my biology
textbook, even the exchange of substance molecules across the
plasma membrane occurs even still in isotonic conditions. So, when
the vinegar seeps into the food, some of the water content in the
food will be pushed (forced) out simultaneously. When the vinegar
enters the food through the plasma membrane, it lowers the pH
value of the food and hinders the growth of bacteria. Vinegar is used
as a preservative due to its acidic nature. The acidity of vinegar
interrupts the metabolism of microorganisms that are capable of
causing spoilage, thereby slowing down or preventing the
breakdown of the food. Additionally, the acidic properties of vinegar
also help to reduce the pH of the food, which creates an environment
that is unfavourable to microbial growth. Therefore, vinegar is a very
useful preservative in food preservation. There are other substances
that are commonly used as food preservatives, including garlic,
onion, and spices. These substances are rich in antioxidants
(vitamin c), antimicrobial and anti-fungal agents, which can help to
preserve food by inhibiting the growth of organisms that can cause
spoilage. Additionally, these substances also contribute to flavours
and taste, which can be another reason why they are used in food
preservation processes. Like my team members mentioned, oil is also
used in the preservation process of food. This is because it forms a
“barrier” between the food and air, which reduces the amount of
oxygen that comes in contact with the food. It also reduces
moisture content in food.
5) “Pineapple pickles are prepared by soaking pineapple
pieces in concentrated sugar solutions. State two
advantages and two disadvantages of this method
compared to keeping fresh pineapple.”
Yeoh Chun Aun: The two advantages are that the food can be
preserved longer, and the cost is cheap compared to other food
preservation method like waxing.
The two disadvantages are that the food will lose its original
nutrition, and this food preservation method takes more time to
prepare compared to other food preservation method like waxing.
Tan Yu Chiet/ Jack Heah: The two advantages is that it prevents
mass food wastage, and the pineapples would have a much longer
shelf life.
The two disadvantages are that it would be a lot of hassle to
prepare them, and the taste/texture of the pineapple will be
altered. It will also be harmful to a person with diabetes.
Thomas Chen: The two benefits of it is that we can keep it for as
long as we want to as this process has already delayed the expiration
date of the pineapples. In some recipes they require a much sweeter
pineapple instead of a sour pineapple, so the preserved pineapples
are much preferred than fresh pineapples for sweet desserts.
The two demerits are that most of its nutrients are damaged by
oxidation during preparation, resulting in a low nutrient pineapple.
The concentrated solution might also make the pineapples overly
sweet and change the texture and the original flavour of the
pineapple.
 6) An impatient housewife used an excessive amount of
sodium nitrate and phosphate fertilizer to fertilize her
nourishing tree thinking it would help it thrive. After 3
days, she found that her tree had withered and died.
i. “Explain what had happened to the tree after the
fertilizer was added?”
Yeoh Chun Aun/ Tan Yu Chiet: The NaNO3 and phosphate
fertiliser dissolved in the water inside the soil formed a hypertonic
solution. The water of the root hair cell is then excreted out, and the
plasma membrane of the tree experienced plasmolysis thus the tree
wilted.
Thomas Chen (continuing team member’s answer): After the
water has seeped out of the root hair cell, the root hair cell cannot
absorb more water as they’re in a hypertonic environment. Thus,
the leftover water in the leaves, branches and trunk will slowly
evaporate out from themselves (guttation). The vacuoles and the
cytoplasm of the tree cells will shrink, causing the plasma membrane
to be pulled away from the cell wall. Then, the tree cells will become
flaccid (plasmolysis) and cause the leaves and stems to bend
downwards and wilt (plant cells losing their rigidity). Sodium nitrate
caused nutrient lockout by displacing essential elements such as
calcium and magnesium which resulted in nutrient deficiency in the
tree. Phosphate fertilizer caused an increase in pH in the soil and
increased the level of ammonia, which are toxic to the tree’s roots.
The tree cannot absorb the nutrient in the soil due to the presence
of ammonia. The combined effects of excessive sodium nitrate and
phosphate fertilizer can lead to nutrient imbalance, toxicity and
stunting of the tree. (Stunting means a tree’s growth being slowed or
inhibited, prevented from reaching its full potential due to poor
growth.)
ii. “What should the impatient housewife do next time
before adding fertilizer to the ground to prevent other
trees from withering? Explain your answers so that the
other housewives can learn from this impatient
housewife’s mistake.”
Yeoh Chun Aun/ Tan Yu Chiet: Make sure the humidity of the soil is
high, and make sure the concentration of the phosphate fertiliser
and NaNO3 is low.
Thomas Chen: Before adding fertilizer to a tree, it is important to
test the soil pH levels and adjust them if necessary. Additionally, it is
important to properly water the tree both before and after adding
fertilizer to dilute the fertilizer in case it is hypertonic to the tree.
This can also help in ensuring that the soil and roots are hydrated
and can take up the nutrients from the fertilizers effectively. Make
sure the tree is growing healthily and growing well before adding
fertilizers to ensure the fertilizers are actually beneficial to its growth
(ensure that the tree she is planting actually needs fertilizer or not).
Get rid of debris and weeds and make sure the soil is loose and able
to drain properly. This will ensure that the soil is aerated
(oxygenation) as there is efficient movement of water and nutrients
into the roots of the tree (poor aeration can inhibit the absorption
of fertilizers). Only use a tree-specific fertilizer that is appropriate
for the type of soil and tree being planted, as well as according to
the recommended application rates.

END OF DISCUSSION
Ingredients Base price Amount used Total Price
Cucumber RM6 per kg 230g RM1.38
Sugar RM3.50 per kg 75g RM0.26
Garlic RM6 per kg 16g RM0.10
Bird’s eye chilli RM2.80 per 60g 8g RM0.37
Soy sauce RM7.50 per 600ml 30ml RM0.38
Rice vinegar RM6.30 per 500ml 44ml RM0.55
Sesame oil RM28 per 680ml 15ml RM0.62
Salt RM1.10 per 450g 1.42g FOC
Total Price - - RM3.66
Budget estimation
Conclusion
After a long week of researching and discussing among
ourselves, we’ve come to a conclusion that the properties of
animal or plant cells having the ability to diffuse in or out
water via osmosis have become an important knowledge of
allowing our foods to last longer, taste better and prevent
food wastage. The dish we prepared had successfully proved
our point that the movement of substances across the
plasma membrane helps insipid and plain vegetables or food
to taste better. The making of our sauce mixture also proved
to us that it is possible for flavour from strong spices like
garlic and chilli to diffuse out into plain sauce via the
movement of substance across the plasma membrane
(osmosis).
Reference
 Dish recipe: TikTok, username: @msshiandmrhe
 Recipe link: https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSLKdH28E/
 Biology textbook KSSM
 My private Biology teacher (its personal, sorry)
 Google, for confirmation of information/ vocabulary
 My 3 years of experience in the kitchen
 Yeoh Chun Aun

End of folio (3 September 2023)