Cell Physiology

The specific processes that cells perform rely on communication over various distances. Communicating
with a cell begins with the selectively permeable phospholipid bilayer, known as the cell membrane.
Within the cell membrane are proteins that allow for the movement of materials into and out of the cell.
This movement of material is known as diffusion. Some types of diffusion are passive, meaning energy is
not required, while others are active, meaning energy is necessary to cause the movement of a substance
from one area to another.

The Cellular Environment

The selectively permeable cell membrane is surrounded on both sides by a solution containing water as a
solvent and many dissolved solutes. It is composed of a phospholipid bilayer with many embedded
molecules such as glycolipids, cholesterol and proteins of various types. The bilayer and its embedded
molecules maintain a delicate balance between the extracellular and intracellular fluids.
To maintain homeostasis in the cell, the levels of solutes in the ICF and ECF must remain relatively
constant. The permeability of the plasma membrane is regulated to maintain this balance of solutes.
Changes in the permeability alter the transport of substances across the plasma membrane.

Cell Transport

In cell transport, substances move across the cell membrane. Solvent molecules (water) and solute
molecules both cross the cell membrane, either towards the intracellular space or the extracellular space.

What drives the movement of substances across a cell membrane?

A concentration gradient is the difference in concentration of solutes between two adjacent regions of a
solution. In the cell, a concentration gradient is the difference in concentration of solutes between the
intracellular an extracellular spaces.

In passive transport, the movement of a substance across the cell membrane is driven by a concentration
gradient, and requires no energy input from the cell. In passive transport, a substance moves from an area
of higher concentration to an area of lower concentration; in other words moving down their
concentration gradient.

In active transport, the movement of a substance across the cell membrane is driven by energy input from
ATP. In active transport, a substance moves from an area of lower concentration to an area of higher
concentration gradient; in other words moving up their concentration gradient.

Filtration is a special type of cell transport that uses fluid pressure instead of concentration as the driving
force for the movement of substances.

Passive transport

 In passive transport, substances move from an area of higher concentration to an area of lower
concentration.

Simple diffusion

 Diffusion is the passive movement of a solute from an area of higher concentration to an area of
lower concentration. Diffusion will continue until equilibrium is reached, such that the
concentration of solutes is equal in both areas. In cells, it is mostly small, lipid-soluble solutes that
are capable of simple diffusion across the cell membrane.

Osmosis

 Osmosis is a special type of diffusion in which water (solvent molecules) move from an area of
higher concentration to an area of lower concentration through membrane proteins called
aquaporins (“water pores”).
 Osmosis occurs when the concentration of solutes is unequal across the membrane, but the
solutes themselves are not able to cross the cell membrane. Osmosis will continue until
equilibrium is reached, such that the concentration of solutes is equal on both sides of the
membrane.

Facilitated diffusion

 Facilitated diffusion is the passive movement of solutes from an area of higher concentration to
an area of lower concentration through a membrane channel protein or with the aid of a
transport protein. Facilitated diffusion does not require the use of energy by the cell, and is the
method of transport for larger molecules that cannot move across the cell membrane by simple
diffusion.

Filtration
  Filtration involves a fluid called the filtrate being forced across the cell membrane due to fluid
pressure. The filtrate contains both solute and solvent, and only large molecules and cells are not
contained in the filtrate. Filtration does not depend on the concentration of substances.

Active transport

 Active transport involves the movement of solutes from an area of lower concentration to an area
of higher concentration with the use of ATP energy. ATP energy is used by either a vesicle or
carrier protein to move substances across the cell membrane.

Vesicular Transport

 Vesicular transport is the active movement of substances across the cell membrane via a vesicle.
 In exocytosis, materials in the intracellular fluid are engulfed by a vesicle, which then secretes
(empties) the contents of the vesicle into the extracellular fluid.
 In endocytosis, materials in the extracellular fluid are engulfed by a vesicle, which then empties its
contents in the intracellular fluid.
 Phagocytosis is a special type of endocytosis in which large particles in the extracellular fluid are
engulfed by the cell. The vesicle resulting from phagocytosis is then joined by a lysosome, which
breaks down the contents of the vesicle into simpler chemical substances. The broken down
contents of the vesicle are then released to the intracellular space.
 Pinocytosis is a special type of endocytosis in which extracellular fluid is taken into the cell. The
fluid is then emptied into the intracellular space.
 In receptor-mediated endocytosis, specialized surface receptors on the cell membrane bind with a
specific chemical in the extracellular space. A vesicle then forms, taking in only the chemical
detected by the receptors.