1. What is a membrane?

A membrane is any delicate sheet that separates one

region from another, blocking or permitting
(selec11tively or completely) the passage of
substances.

2. How are membranes classified according to

their permeability?
Membranes can be classified as impermeable,
permeable, semipermeable or selectively permeable.
An impermeable membrane is one through which no
substance can pass. Semipermeable membranes are
those which only let solvents, such as water, pass
through them. Permeable membranes are those which
let solvents and solutes, such as ions and molecules,
to pass through them. There are also selectively
permeable membranes, which are membranes that, in
addition to allowing the passage of solvents, let
specific solutes pass through while blocking others.

3. What is diffusion?
Diffusion is the spreading of molecules of a
substance from a region where the substance is more
concentrated to another region where it is less
concentrated.

4. What does concentration gradient mean?

The concentration gradient is the difference in the
concentration of a substance between two regions.

5. What is the difference between osmosis and diffusion?

Osmosis is the phenomenon of the movement of
solvent particles (in general, water) from a region of
lower solute concentration to a region of higher
solute concentration.
Diffusion, on the other hand, is the movement of
solutes from a region of higher solute concentration
to a region of lower solute concentration.
Osmosis can be considered the movement of water
(solvent) whereas diffusion can be considered the
movement of solutes, caused by a concentration
gradient.

6. What is osmotic pressure?

In a aqueous solution, osmotic pressure is the
pressure that a region of lower solute concentration
puts on a region of higher solute concentration,
forcing the passage of water from the area of lower
solute concentration to the more concentrated region.

7. How are solutions classified according to their

comparative tonicity?
When compared to another solution, a solution can be
hypotonic (or hyposmotic), isotonic (or isosmotic) or
hypertonic (or hyperosmotic).
When a solution is less concentrated than another, it
is considered hypotonic compared to that other
solution. When it is more concentrated, it is
considered hypertonic. When two solutions have the
same concentration, both are designated isotonic.

9. What type of membrane is the cell membrane in terms of

permeability?
The cell membrane is a selectively permeable
membrane, meaning that it allows the passage of
water and some select solutes.

The Phospholipid Bilayer

10. What are the basic components of the cell membrane?

The cell membrane is formed of lipids, proteins and
carbohydrates.
The lipids contained in the membrane are
phospholipids, a special type of lipid, they can
organize themselves into two layers of attached
molecules: the hydrophilic portion (polar) of each
layer faces outwards and is in contact with the water
(also a polar molecule) located in the extracellular
and intracellular space whereas the hydrophobic
chains (non-polar) face inwards and are isolated from
the water. Because this type of membrane is made of
two phospholipid layers, it is also called a bilipid
membrane.
Membrane proteins are embedded and dispersed in
the compact bilipid structure. Carbohydrates appear
in the outer surface of the membrane, attached to
some of those proteins in the form of glycoproteins or
bound to phospholipids, forming glycolipids. This
description of the structure of cell membranes is
known as the fluid mosaic model.
11. What are the respective functions of phospholipids,
proteins and carbohydrates in the cell membrane?
Phospholipids have a structural function in cell
membranes. They form the bilipid membrane that the
cell membrane is composed of.
Proteins have several specialized functions in cell
membranes. Some of them are channels for
substances to pass through the membrane; others are
receptors and signalers of information; others are
enzymes; others are cell identifiers (cellular markers);
and they also participate in the adhesion complexes
between cells or between the internal surface of the
membrane and the cytoskeleton.
Membrane carbohydrates, attached to proteins or to
lipids, are found in the outer surface of the cell
membrane. In general, they are used to mark cells so
that these cells and their functions are recognized by
other cells and substances (for example, they
differentiate red blood cells in the ABO blood group
system). They also carry out immune modulation
functions, pathogen sensitization functions, etc.

12. What is differentiation of a cell membrane?

Active and Passive Transport, Simple and Facilitated
Diffusion

13. What is the relationship between the concentration

gradient and active and passive transport?
Passive transport is the movement of substances
across membranes in favor of their concentration
gradient, rather, from a more concentrated region to a
less concentrated region. Active transport, on the
other hand, is the transport of substances across
membranes against their concentration gradient, from
a less concentrated to a more concentrated region. No
energy is used in passive transport because it is
spontaneous. Active transport, on the other hand,
requires energy (work) to occur.
Active transport works to maintain or increase the
concentration gradient of a substance between two
regions while passive transport works to reduce the
concentration gradient.

14. What are the three main types of passive transport?

The three main types of passive transport are simple
diffusion, osmosis and facilitated diffusion.

15. What energy source is used in active transport through

biological membranes?
The energy necessary for active transport (against the
concentration gradient of the transported substance)
to occur comes from ATP molecules. Active
transport uses chemical energy from ATP.

16. What is the difference between simple and facilitated

diffusion? What does the term “facilitated” refer to?
Simple diffusion is the direct passage of substances
across the membrane in favor of their concentration
gradient. In facilitated diffusion, the movement of
substances is also in favor of their concentration
gradient but the substances move bound to specific
molecules that act as “permeabilizers”, that is,
facilitators of their passage through the membrane.

17. What does facilitated diffusion have in common with

enzymatic chemical reactions?
One of the main examples of facilitated transport is
the entrance of glucose from blood into cells.
Glucose from blood binds to specific permeases
(hexose-transporting permeases) present in the cell
membrane and, via diffusion facilitated by these
proteins, it enters the cell to carry out its metabolic
functions.
Facilitated diffusion resembles chemical catalysis
because the transported substances bind to permeases
like substrates bind to enzymes and, after one
transport job is finished, the permease is not
consumed and can transport other molecules.

18. What are some examples of biological activities in

which osmosis plays an important role?
Hemolysis (the destruction of red blood cells) by the
entrance of water, hydric regulation in plants and the
entrance of water into the xylem of vascular plants
are all examples of biological phenomena caused by
osmosis.
Excessive dilution of blood plasma causes, via
osmosis, the entrance of too much water into red
blood cells and the subsequent destruction of these
cells (hemolysis). Osmosis is also the main process in
the maintenance of the flaccid, turgid or plasmolytic
states of plant cells. Osmosis is one of the forces
responsible for the entrance of water into the roots of
plants, since root cells are hypertonic in comparison
to the soil.

19. What do facilitated diffusion and active transport have

in common? What are the differences between them?
Facilitated diffusion can be confused with active
transport because membrane proteins participate in
both processes.
However, in active transport the transported
substance moves against its concentration gradient,
consuming energy. Facilitated diffusion is passive
transport in favor of the concentration gradient and
does not require energy.

20. Which molecules make active transport through

membranes possible?
Active transport is made possible by specific
membrane proteins. These proteins are called
“pumps” because they “pump” the moving substance
through the membrane by using energy from ATP
molecules.
The Sodium-Potassium Pump

24. How is the sodium-potassium pump involved in the

functions of cell membranes? What is the importance of
this protein for cells?
The sodium-potassium pump is the transport protein
that maintains the concentration gradient of these
ions between the intra and the extracellular spaces.
This protein is phosphorylated in each pumping cycle
and then pumps three sodium ions outside the cell
and two potassium ions inwards. The
phosphorylation is caused by the binding of a
phosphate donated by one ATP molecule that is
then converted into ADP (adenosine diphosphate).
The job of the sodium-potassium pump, also known
as sodium-potassium ATPase, is fundamental in the
maintaining of the characteristic negative electrical
charge on the intracellular side of the membrane of
the resting cell and in creating adequate conditions of
sodium and potassium concentrations inside and
outside the cell to maintain cellular metabolism.
Endocytosis.

25. What is mass transport across the cell membrane?

Mass transport is the entrance or exit of substances
through the process of being engulfed by portions of
membrane. The fusion of internal substance-
containing membranous vesicles with the cell
membrane is called exocytosis. The entrance of
substances into the cell after they have been engulfed
by projections of the membrane is called endocytosis.

26. What are the two main types of endocytosis?

Endocytosis is the entrance of material into the cell
through being engulfed by portions of the cell
membrane.
Endocytosis can be classified as pinocytosis or
phagocytosis. In pinocytosis, small particles on the
external surface of the membrane stimulate the
invagination of the membrane inwards and vesicles
full of those particles then detach from the membrane
and enter the cytoplasm. In phagocytosis, bigger
particles on the external surface of the membrane
induce the projection of pseudopods outwards to
enclose the particles. The vesicle then detaches from
the membrane and enters the cytoplasm, receiving the
name phagosome.
Plant Cell Wall.

27. How do plant cell walls react when placed in a

hypotonic medium?
Plant cell walls (the cover of the cell external to the
cell membrane) are made of cellulose, a polymer of
glucose.
When a plant cell is placed in a hypotonic medium, it
absorbs too much water through osmosis. In that
situation, the cell wall pressure acts to counteract the
osmotic pressure, thus preventing excessive increases
in cellular volume and cell lysis.

28. What is meant by the suction force of a plant cell? Does

suction force facilitate or hinder the entrance of water into
the cell?
Suction force (SF) is the osmotic pressure of the plant
cell vacuole, or rather, the cell sap found inside the
vacuole.
Since cell sap is hypertonic in comparison to cytosol,
it attracts water, thus increasing the cytosol
concentration. Through the osmotic action of the
vacuole, the cytosol becomes hypertonic in relation
to the exterior and more water enters the cell.

29. What is the turgor pressure of plant cells? Does it make

it easier or harder for water to enter plant cells?
Turgor pressure (TP) is the pressure caused by the
distension of the plant cell wall against the increase
of the cell volume. Turgor pressure works against the
entrance of water into the cell, as it forces the exit of
water and counteracts the entrance of the solvent via
osmosis.
33. What is the deplasmolysis of plant cells?
When placed in a hypertonic medium, plant cells lose
a large amount of water and their cell membranes
detach from their cell walls. In that situation, the cell
is called a plasmolysed cell. When a plasmolysed cell
is placed in a hypertonic medium it absorbs water and
becomes a turgid cell. This phenomenon is called
deplasmolysis.
Dehydration
34. Why are salt and sugar used in the production of dried
meats and dried fruits?
Substances that maintain a highly hypertonic
environment, such as sugar and salt, are used in the
production of dried meats, fruits or fish (for example,
cod) because the material to be conserved is
dehydrated and the resulting dryness prevents the
growth of populations of decomposer organisms
(since these organisms also lose water and die).