Cell Transport and Homeostasis

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Study Guides
Page 1 of 2
v1.1.10.2012
This guide was created by Rohit Ramkumar, Amy Shen, and Jin Yu. To learn
more about the student authors, visit http://www.ck12.org/about/about-us/
team/interns.
Homeostasis is one of the unifying principles of biology. The concentration of various substances, such as salts and
nutrients, needs to be within a certain range in order for a cell to function normally. To maintain this balance, a cell
needs to be able to move substances in and out.
Cell membranes are selectively permeable (semipermeable), so some molecules can go in while others cant.
Hydrophobic (water-repelling) molecules like oxygen can pass easily through the phospholipid bilayer.
Hydrophilic (easily dissolvable in water) molecules cant pass through as easily. Examples of hydrophilic molecules
include ions and polar molecules like water.
Molecules like sugars and proteins are too big to go through.
Three ways for substances to move across a cell membrane: passive transport, active transport, and vesicle
transport.
Transport proteins or vesicle transports are needed to move hydrophilic and large molecules.
The cell membrane regulates what goes in and out of the cell by only allowing certain substances to pass through.
Substances can cross the membrane by either passive or active transport. Passive transport includes diffusion and
osmosis. In passive transport, molecules move from areas of high concentration to areas of low concentration in order
to reach homeostasis. An example of active transport is the sodium-potassium pump, which plays an important role in
moving sodium and potassium ions in and out of the cell.
Key Terms
Homeostasis: Process of maintaining a stable environ-
ment inside a cell or an entire organism.
Concentration Gradient: A measurement of how
much the concentration of a substance changes
across a distance.
Passive Transport: Substances cross the cell mem-
brane without the cell providing energy.
Diffusion: A substance moves through a membrane
from an area of high concentration to an area of
low concentration.
Osmosis: The diffusion of water molecules across a
membrane.
Facilitated Diffusion: Diffusion with the help of trans-
port proteins.
Transport Protein: Special proteins in the membrane.
Active Transport: A substance moves against the
concentration gradient (uses energy from cells).
Sodium-Potassium Pump: When this pump is in
operation, sodium ions are pumped out of the
cell, and potassium ions are pumped into the cell.
Both ions move from areas of lower to higher
concentration.
Vesicle Transport: Type of transport in which very
large molecules cross the cell membrane.
Endocytosis: Type of vesicle transport that moves
a substance into the cell. The plasma membrane
completely covers the substance, a vesicle pinches
off from the membrane, and the vesicle carries the
substance into the cell.
Exocytosis: Type of vesicle transport that moves a
substance out of the cell. A vesicle containing the
substance moves through the cytoplasm to the cell
membrane. Then, the vesicle membrane fuses with
the cell membrane, and the substance is released
outside the cell.
Big Picture
Transport Across Membranes
Cell TransporT & HomeosTasis
Notes
Page 2 of 2
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Active transport refers to the movement of substances
across the membrane that requires an input of energy
from the cell. Energy for active transport comes from an
energy-carrying molecule called ATP.
Energy is required to move substances against the
concentration gradient from areas of low concentration
to areas of high concentration (contrary to the natural
process of diffusion). Energy is also needed to move very
large molecules across the membrane.
Like in passive transport, transport proteins are used to
move smaller substances.
The sodium-potassium pump is an example of
active transport where sodium ions are pumped out
and potassium ions are pumped in.
Larger molecules are transported by vesicle transport.
Endocytosis moves a substance into the cell. First,
the cell membrane surrounds the substance. The
vesicle then pinches off from the membrane and
carries the substance into the cell.
Exocytosis is the reverse process that moves a
substance out of the cell. Vesicle containing the
substance moves through the cytoplasm to the cell
membrane. The vesicle membrane then fuses with the
cell membrane, allowing the substance to be released
outside of the cell.
Passive Transport
Passive transport refers to the movement of substances
across the membrane without any input of energy from
the cell. Three main types of passive transport include:
Diffusion, where molecules move down the concen-
tration gradient from an area of high concentration to
an area of low concentration until equilibrium is reached
(the concentration of molecules on both sides of the
membrane are equal).
Substances have a tendency of moving from an area
of high concentration to an area of low concentration,
so this process does not require an input of energy
from the cell.
Osmosis, a special type of diffusion specifcally referring
to the movement of water across a membrane.
If there is a higher concentration of salt (or any other
solute) outside a cell than inside it, there is a lower
concentration of water outside the cell than inside it.
As a result, water inside the cell will diffuse out of the
cell. For animal cells, this will cause the cell to shrivel.
In plant cells, the cell wall is rigid but the plasma
membrane will shrink and pull away from the wall.
If there is a lower concentration of salt (or any other
solute) outside a cell than inside it, there is a higher
concentration of water outside the cell than inside
it. As a result, water outside the cell will diffuse into
the cell. This will cause animal cells to swell and
eventually burst. Plant cells will fll up with water until
theyre turgid (frm) before they stop taking in water.

Facilitated diffusion, a type of diffusion assisted by
transport proteins.
Examples of transport proteins:
Channel proteins allow small ions and water to go
through very quickly.
Carrier proteins change shape as they carry specifc
ions across the membrane.
Active Transport
Image Credit: Mariana Ruiz Villarreal (LadyofHats), Public Domain
Image Credit: Mariana Ruiz Villarreal (LadyofHats), Public Domain
Image Credit: CK-12 Foundation, CC-BY-NC-SA 3.0
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