Functions of the cell membrane

The cell membranes act as selectively permeable barriers.

Movement into and out of the cell happens in many different ways
which are:
1- Passive transport:
* Passive transport does not require energy where it takes place by
the kinetic energy of the molecules
* It takes place according to the concentration gradient.
* It continues until the concentration of the molecules is the same on
both sides of a membrane i.e. equilibrium.
The passive transport comprises:
 a) Simple diffusion:
Simple diffusion will only happen for non-polar solutes such as O2,
CO2, cholesterol, small hydrophobic molecules and peptides.
The rate of diffusion depends on temperature and size of diffusing
molecules.
Molecules diffuse faster at higher temperatures than at lower
temperatures.
Also, smaller molecules diffuse faster than larger molecules.
On the other hand, simple diffusion can also be takes place by the
passage of solutes through tunnel-like transmembrane proteins
which called channel proteins.
.
 b) Facilitated diffusion:
Transport of solutes
A transport protein in the membrane enhances the transport of the substance
across the membrane.
It can take place through pores and gated channels.
Glucose is commonly transported into cells by facilitated diffusion.
Outside cell Outside cell
Low
concentration
A transport protein of solutes

High
concentration
of solutes
Inside Inside
cell cell
 Two models for facilitated diffusion

(A) (B)
Pores Gated channels
c) Osmosis:
It is the diffusion of water
(solvent) from an area of high
water concentration
(hypotonic solution) (less
solute) to an area of lower
water concentration
(hypertonic solution) (more
solute) .
So, it is in agreement with
passive transport in the
following aspects:
• The transport is achieved
according to the concentration
gradient i.e. from higher water
concentration to lower
concentration (of water).
• No energy is involved.
• The transport is achieved till
equilibrium is reached.
Osmotic relationships in cells:
When the cell is placed in:
1) A hypertonic solution
Water diffuses out of the cell till equilibrium is reached.
It will shrink and die.
This condition is called plasmolysis.

2) A hypotonic solution
Water diffuses into the
cell till equilibrium is
reached.
It causes it to swell and
often burst.
This condition is called
cytolysis.
3) An isotonic solution
 2- Active transport:
* Materials flow against the concentration gradient.
* Also, it uses membrane proteins.
* Active transport uses energy (in the form of ATP).
An example of this type of active transport is the sodium-potassium
pump.
The sodium-potassium pump is formed from:
1) Carrier proteins; each has 3
receptor sites for Na+ (inside of the
cell) and 2 receptor sites for K+ (on
the outside).
2) Adenosine triphosphatase
(ATPase) enzyme adjacent (near) to
the Na+ binding sites.
3) ATP that pumps Na+ out of the
cell and K+ into the cell.
Mechanism of sodium-potassium pump:
So, an electrical gradient across the cell membrane was achieved
i.e. the outside of the membrane becomes positively charged and
the inside of the membrane becomes negatively charged.
This unbalanced charge is important for conduction of nerve
impulses, muscle contraction, … etc.
Note:
Depending on cell type, there are between 800,000 and 30 million
pumps on the surface of human cells.
Summary

Simple

+
H2O Osmosis
 3- Bulk transport (vesicle-mediated transport)
This process needs energy like active transport. It comprises:
a) Endocytosis:
It moves large molecules such as proteins; food or fluid droplets
across the cell membrane by packaged them in membrane-bound
sacs called vesicles.
Where large materials are transported into the cell.

It includes three different

processes which are:
i- Phagocytosis (cell eating):
When the formed vesicle encloses
solid food particles (such as
bacteria, damaged cells, large food
particles or whole cells) with little
extracellular fluid. i- Phagocytosis
ii- Pinocytosis (cell drinking):
When the formed vesicle encloses extrcellular fluid.
iii- Receptor-mediated endocytosis:
When specific molecules - such as microbes - in the extracellular
fluid bind to sites on the plasma membrane.
Note: Endocytosis removes membranes from cell surface to form
vesicles or vacuoles that contain the engulfed material.

iii- Receptor-mediated endocytosis

ii- Pinocytosis
Summary
 b) Exocytosis
It is applied when the transportation is out of the cell.
Secretory products such as mucous and enzymes or waste products
made in the cell are packaged in vesicles which expelled out of the
cell.
Exocytosis provides a way to replace portions of the plasma
membrane that have been removed by endocytosis.

Exocytosis
 2- Mitochondria
It is found of all eukaryotic nucleated cells, (absent in RBCs).
They are rod-shaped about 0.5 μm to 1 μm in diameter and variable length.
The number and size of mitochondria vary in different cells, being more numerous
and larger in size in cells that expend a great deal of energy.
:Mitochondrial structure
Mitochondrial matrix contains
 circular double-strand DNA
molecules
 some ribosomes which are smaller
than cytoplasmic ribosomes
 large number of enzymes that are
used in the process of adenosine
triphosphate (ATP) synthesis (more
than 70 enzymes and coenzymes)
 numerous factors
 vitamins and
 metals
Functions of mitochondria
1- The chief function of the mitochondria is to generate energy by converting
utrients into the energy in the form of ATP; hence they are frequently referred to
as the powerhouse of the cell.
In cytoplasm Pyruvic acids In mitochondria
glucose CO2 + 10H atoms
+ H2 O
Krebs cycle
These hydrogen atoms are transported on special carrier molecules called
coenzymes to the cristae where they are donated to the electron transport chain
As the electrons flow from one component to another, the components pump
random protons from the matrix to the outer compartment. The protons cannot
return to the matrix except by one pathway-through the enzyme ATPase, which
is embedded in the inner membrane. As the protons flow back into the matrix,
ATPase adds a phosphate group to adenosine diphosphate (ADP) to form ATP.
Mitochondria can produce hundreds of thousands of ATP molecules per minute
in a typical cell. The ATP is transported to the cytoplasm of the cell, where it is
required in different vital activities such as muscle contraction, protein synthesis,
active transport …etc.
Functions of mitochondria (continue)
2- Mitochondria are the major sites of fatty acid oxidation.
3- Mitochondria are concerned with lipid synthesis and in
particular the later stages of steroid hormone formation
4- Mitochondria are able to synthesize proteins due to the
presence of DNA molecules and ribosomes.
‫مع أرق تحياتى وأمنياتى لكم جميعا‬
‫بالتوفيق والتفوق‬

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