Chapter 3B: Cell Structure and Function

3.4 The Cell Membrane

Using the models and information from the textbook answer the following questions. There is more information about
the plasma membrane at the beginnings of section 3.3. Chapter 2 has a short section on the molecules that make up cell
or plasma membranes (located almost at the end of the information on Lipids, just before Proteins).

What is the most predominant molecule

making up the plasma
membrane?

How many layers of

phospholipids make up the
membrane?

Why are membranes called a phospholipid bilayer? (the two previous questions may
help you answer this)

Phospholipids are drawn with a circle head end and two dangling tails. Do the heads
or the tails line the outside surfaces of a membrane?

Do the heads or the tails create a hydrophobic environment in the interior of the
Phospholipids
membrane (not inside the cell, but sandwiched in between the two layers of
phospholipids)?

Which type of molecule is embedded throughout the phospholipid bilayer? (all of the blue molecules in the diagram)

Glycoproteins and glycolipids have what type of molecule attached to them?

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True-False: If the statement is true, write a T in the blank. If the statement is false, correct it by changing the underlined
word(s) and writing the correct word(s) in the answer blank. The first two are done for you as an example.

__T___________ Cell or plasma membranes define the boundary of the cell.

__Some_______ The plasma membrane prevents all substances from crossing into or out of a cell

_____________ Plasma membranes are rigid

_____________ The plasma membrane carries markers that allow cells to isolate one another

_____________ The plasma membrane carries receptors for specific hormones or neurotransmitters

_____________ Some viruses exploit receptors to gain entry to a cell

Fluid Mosaic Model

_____ 1. Mosaic quality A. Regulates the fluidity of the membrane

_____ 2. Fluid quality B. Always found on the exterior surface of cells

_____ 3. Cholesterol C. Components of the membrane are able to flow and change positions

_____ 4. Phospholipids D. Mixed composition of phospholipids, cholesterol, proteins, and carbohydrates

_____ 5. Hydrophobic E. Make up the second major chemical component

_____ 6. Hydrophilic F. Hydrophilic ends and hydrophobic fatty acid tails

_____ 7. Proteins G. Serve as channels or pumps to move material into or out of the cell

_____ 8. Carbohydrates H. The surfaces of the membrane

_____ 9. Integral Proteins I. The interior of the membrane

Note: plasma membrane, cell membrane, phospholipid bilayer, lipid bilayer are all terms that can refer to the structure
surrounding a cell. This type of membrane is also used to make up several cellular structures such as the endoplasmic
reticulum and surround organelles like a mitochondrion.

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3.5 Passive Transport
(Use the figure, the textbook,
and information provided in
this section to answer the
questions.)

Diffusion is a passive process

of the movement of molecules
from an area of high
concentration to an area of low
concentration.

In panel 1 of the figure which side of the plasma membrane (extracellular or cytoplasm) has the highest concentration of
blue molecules?

Which side has the lowest concentration?

The different concentrations on the extracellular side compared to the cytoplasm side creates what type of gradient?
Concentrati on of blue m olecules

Concentration Gradient
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
extracellular Cytoplasm

Using a graph to represent the concentration of two regions is a good way to visualize a concentration gradient. Notice
the slope of the line. If you placed a hot wheels car in the middle of the line, which way would it go?

Going down the line is referred to as going down the concentration gradient. Molecules move in response to their
concentration gradient the same way as the hot wheels car. They are going to go down: in other words from an area of
high concentration to an area of low concentration.

By panel 3, does the cytoplasm have the highest, lowest, or equal concentration compared to the extracellular fluid?

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Over time, which general direction do the blue molecules move? Towards the extracellular fluid or toward the
cytoplasm?

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Selective Permeability

In panel 2 the blue molecules are

moving through the phospholipid
molecules from one side of the
membrane to the other.

Plasma membranes are selectively

permeable allowing some
substances to cross while
preventing others from crossing.
Size and chemical properties of
each molecule determines whether
the molecules can move through
the membrane.

Size: molecules need to be small enough to move between the phospholipids.

Chemical: the tails of the lipids create a hydrophobic region inside the membrane. Non-polar (hydrophobic) molecules
can cross, but polar molecules cannot, except for water. Anything with a charge, like ions will also be blocked from
passing through.

Based on the information in section 3.5 titled Selective Permeability and the above information, indicate for each of
the following molecules whether they can cross a plasma membrane (type yes or no)

_____ Amino acids _____ Oxygen

_____ lipid-soluble material _____ Water
_____ Polar molecules _____ Vitamin C
_____ Vitamin A _____ Sodium ions
_____ Simple sugars

For each of the following factors indicate which condition will speed up diffusion.
Extent of the concentration gradient

Mass of the molecules diffusing

Temperature

Solvent density

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Facilitated Transport (also called facilitated diffusion)

Fill in the table based on the figure and the information in the textbook.
Direction? (high to Pass directly over Energy required?
low or low to high the membrane or (presence of ATP
concentration) presence of a indicates energy
channel protein? used)
Diffusion

Facilitated
Transport

Facilitated
Diffusion Transport

What is the difference between simple diffusion and facilitated transport?

What types of molecules can use facilitated transport that could not simply diffuse over the membrane?

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Osmosis

Fill in the table based on the figure and information in the textbook. The water concentration is the amount of water per
amount of solute (small blue circles).

Beaker 1, Beaker 1, Beaker 2, Beaker 2,

left side right side left side right side
Number of solutes

Level of water

Water Comparing the two beakers, what has

concentration happened to the water from beaker 1 to
(high, low, or equal) beaker 2?

What did the water have to cross through to get to the left side of the beaker?

Do the solutes move from the left to the right side of the beaker?

What direction is the concentration gradient for water in the figure, left to right or right to left? (High water
concentration to low water concentration.)

Compare what happens to the concentration of the solute (amount of solute/amount of water)
Beaker 1 left side to beaker 2 left side

Beaker 1 right side to beaker 2 right side

Beaker 1 left side to beaker 1 left side

Beaker 2 left side to beaker 2 left side

What ultimately happens to the concentration of the solute from beaker 1 to beaker 2?

Based on the example in the figure and the information in the text, what is the definition of osmosis?

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Tonicity

Define each of the following:

Tonicity

Osmolarity

Hypotonic

Hypertonic

Isotonic

Examine figures 3.22 and 3.23. Describe for each of the following what would happen to the cells in response to
osmosis. In other words indicate whether water would be leaving or entering the cell and what would happen to the cell
(shrivel, stay the same, swell up).

1. A Paramecium (a single-celled organism) is hypertonic compared to the pond it lives in.

2. The fluid part of human blood has salts, proteins and other substances in equal concentrations to red blood
cells.

3. A diatom living in the ocean is hypotonic compared to the marine waters.

4. A plant is trying to grow in soil that is high in salts. Normally the root cells easily take up water, what will
happen in the salty soil?

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3.6 Active Transport

What three things are strikingly different in the diagram about active transport compared to diffusion and facilitated
transport?
1.

2.

3.

Concentration Gradient
35
Concentraion of solutes

30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Extracellular Intracellular
Imagine placing the hot wheels car on the concentration gradient slope in the
graph. If you wanted it to go up the gradient, what would you have to do?

An energy input like a push is required. For molecules going up or against the concentration gradient, energy is
required. What is the usual form of the energy required?

What are some of the molecules that are moved up the concentration gradient by cells?

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Matching

_____ Electrochemical gradient A. Energy used to actively pump ions or molecules against the
concentration gradient

_____ Example of primary active transport B. A targeted variation of endocytosis using binding protiens

_____ Carrier proteins C. Sodium-potassium pump

_____ ATP D. A form of active transport where particles exit the cell from a
membranous envelope (vesicle) fusing with the plasma
membrane

_____ Secondary active transport E. Arises due to the combined effects of concentration and electrical
gradients

_____ Endocytosis F. Actively pump against electrochemical gradients

_____ Phagocytosis G. A specialized form of endocytosis for bring large particles into a cell

_____ Pinocytosis H. Moves substances such as amino acids and glucose

_____ receptor-mediated endocytosis I. A form of active transport that involves the cell membrane
invaginating forming a pocket around the target particle

_____ exocytosis J. A specialized form of endocytosis taking in solutes that the cell needs

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