General Biology 1

Quarter 3 – Module 5:
Transport Mechanisms
 What I Need to Know

This module is designed for you to define and describe the process of
homeostasis and how it relates to the cell and its environment. You will relate the
structure of the cell membrane in maintaining homeostasis. You will also dwell
and study the different mechanisms that transport materials across the plasma
membrane and how these processes account for the passage of molecules or
substances in and out of the cell. In this module, you will also have to reflect on
the importance of cell transport in the freshness of food and farm products.

At the end of this module, you are expected to:

1. describe the structural component of the cell membrane (STEM_BIO11/12 –

Ig – h – 11);
2. relate the structure and composition of the cell membrane to its function
(STEM_BIO11/12 – Ig – h – 12);
3. explain transport mechanisms in cells: Diffusion, osmosis, facilitated
transport, active transport (STEM_BIO11/12 – Ig – h – 13); and
4. differentiate exocytosis and endocytosis (STEM_BIO11/12
– Ig – h – 14).

What I Know

Recall from Module 1 that cell membrane, sometimes called as plasma

membrane, is the part of a eukaryotic cell that separates the cell from its
external environment. It functions as a selectively permeable membrane that
regulates the entrance and exit of substances into the cell. Cell membranes and
other biological membranes are composed of phospholipids and proteins. These
components enable the cell membrane to provide shape and flexibility to the cell,
to maintain its integrity and fluidity, and to transmit signals for cell– cell
recognition.

Like other biological membranes, cell membranes are commonly described as

fluid mosaic. The word “mosaic” entails that the cell membrane has a surface
made of small pieces. These pieces refer to the diverse protein molecules
embedded in a framework of phospholipids. Most of these molecules can drift
about in any direction, describing the cell membrane as “fluid”.

Since the main focus of this module is the cell membrane and its job in allowing
some materials to freely enter or leave the cell while others cannot, it is very
important for you to review first the structures and functions of the cell
membrane. To test your prior knowledge about the structures of the cell
membrane, the activity below is provided for you. All you have to do is to label
the structures in this fluid mosaic model of the cell membrane. Also, review the
roles of each of these structures by picking their functions inside the box located
below the model which may be used more than once.

1 4

2 5
3

for cell recognition

aids in the interaction of the cell with its watery environment
maintains the fluid character of the cell membrane
serves as the main fabric of the cell membrane for cell adhesion

Lesson

1 Transport Mechanisms

Most living cells exist in a liquid environment. Liquids that surround the cells
may be the organisms’ habitat, like that of freshwater or seawater organisms.
Liquids for land dwellers like you may be in the form of blood. The blood bathes
most of your body cells in liquid. Generally, the cytoplasm of a cell is composed
mostly of water. It comes in the form of a dissolving medium for many
substances, or as a solution where various substances are suspended.

If the cell has to remain alive, it must maintain its interaction with the liquid
environment, a give-and-take that never ceases. For cells to function, some
substances, like food, water, and oxygen, must be allowed to enter the cell; while
other substances, like the waste products of metabolism, must be moved out.
With these, the cell will keep themselves in equilibrium with their external
environment. This state of equilibrium is called homeostasis, from the Greek
words homoi, which means “like” or “same”, and stasis, which means “standing”.
Homeostasis must be achieved in order for the cell to survive and build new
parts.

Scientists and researchers have been very busy for many years just to study the
most sophisticated and important function of a cell: its ability to exchange
materials with the external environment. How do gases, nutrients, and other
substances enter and leave the cell? Let’s find out as you dig in more to this
module.

What’s In

Let us first have a short recap of the two major processes involved in the
movement of materials into and out of the cell so you can understand that this
passage of materials is made possible at different rates and energy input.

Below is a simple activity that can lead you to differentiate passive transport and
active transport. You need to identify which of the following pictures depicts
passive transport and which one portrays active transport. Also, you have to
interpret each picture, so you can identify the distinct feature of the two major
transport mechanisms.
 Notes to the Teacher
This module aims to familiarize the students about the different
transport mechanisms. Point out the similarities and differences
among the cell transports.

What’s New

The existence of the cell membrane was discovered in the 1890s. Knowledge of
the structure of the cell membrane stems from the century-long studies of
scientists, which began when lipids and proteins were recognized as components
of the cell membrane until all of its chemical components were determined in
1915. From their studies, they described the cell membrane and its minute
components through models. These models have evolved over time, until the best
model that provides a good description not only for the principal components and
functions of the cell membrane but also the behavior of the cell membrane was
made. Do you know what model of cell membrane it is? To know the name of this
model, you have to do the activity given on the next page.

Identify the term that is being described in each statement and write your answer
on the numbered line given above the statements. As you finish answering the
questions, try to guess the missing concept to complete the sentence using your
answers which correspond to the syllables and words of the missing concept.
__________ __________ __________ __________ __________
1 2 3 4 5
 1. any of several virus diseases marked especially by respiratory or intestinal
symptoms; clipped word of influenza
2. a plant that is not valued where it is growing and is usually or vigorous
growth; other term for marijuana
3. small, non – vascular flowerless plants that typically form dense green
clumps or mats; grow in damp or shady locations
4. a usually dull persistent pain; a condition marked by aching
5. a representation of an idea, an object, or even a process that is used to
describe and explain phenomena that cannot be experienced directly

What is It

It has already said that among a cell’s most important activities are its
interactions with the environment. Without it, life could not persist. Living cells
are enclosed in a phospholipid membrane through which few water-soluble
substances can pass through; but at the same time, the membrane contains
proteins which serve as passageways that permit specific substances to enter
and leave the cell and allow the cell to transmit and recognize signals with its
environment. We call the delicate membrane of phospholipid and protein
molecules that encase the cell a cell membrane and in this module, we will start
by considering the theories that have been advanced about membrane structure.

What are the different models that account for the principal components
and functions of the cell membrane?

For many years, scientists and researchers have been very busy just to study not
only the structure and functions of the cell membrane but also the fluidity of cell
membrane. They proposed different models that best describe as to how the fluid
character of the cell membrane works with its minute components while
performing their functions. For you to know and understand the different models
of cell membrane, study the table given below. The table on the next page shows
the names of cell membrane models, their proponents, pictures of how these models
look like, and as to how they describe the cell membrane.

Cell Membrane Models

Model Year Proponents Illustration Description

Model of 1925 Evert Gorter The cell
Bimolecular and Francois membrane is
Phospholipid Grendel composed of a
Membrane lipid bilayer with
the layer facing
inward, away from
the aqueous
environment that
surrounds the
membrane, and is
hydrophobic
(water – fearing);
the other layer
facing outward,
toward the outside
environment of the
cell, and is
hydrophilic (water
– loving)
Davson – 1935 Hugh The cell
Danielli Davson and membrane is
Model James described as a
Danielli phospholipid
bilayer
sandwiched by a
coat of protein on
either surface.

Singer – 1972 Seymour J. The cell

Nicolson Singer and membrane is a
Model or Garth L. mosaic of proteins
Fluid Mosaic Nicolson that are embedded
Model or attached to a
fluid bilayer of
protein

What are the principal components

and functions of the cell
membrane?
 A multicellular organism contains cells with distinct membranes. Although the
membranes are not the same, they share common fundamental architecture.
Cell membranes are assembled from five components: phospholipid, cholesterol,
integral proteins, peripheral proteins, Image source: Wikimedia Commons
and carbohydrates. For you to know File name: File:Cell membrane
detailed and understand the function of each diagram en.svg principal
component of the cell membrane, study the table given below.

The Components and Functions of the Cell Membrane

Component Function/Feature
Phospholipid Main fabric of the cell membrane
Integral proteins Transport substance through cell
membrane; function as receptors; for
cell adhesion; for structural support
Peripheral proteins Function to transmit and recognize
signals to and from the external
environment
Cholesterol Maintains the integrity and fluidity of
the cell membrane; dampens effects of
temperature
Carbohydrates Function to transmit and recognize
signals to and from the external
environment; serve as an effective
interaction with the aqueous
environment

What are the two major types of cell transport? How do they differ from each
other?

The cell membrane, as we have described earlier, is similar to a screened window; it

is permeable to certain substances and avoids some harmful materials from entering
and some essential materials from leaving. This is why the cell membrane is
classified as selectively permeable or differentially permeable. If it were to lose
this selectivity, the cell would no longer be able to sustain itself and it would be
destroyed. If the cell has to remain alive, it must maintain its internal environment
by exchanging materials with its surroundings. With this, the cell must have a way of
obtaining these materials from the external environment. This may happen passively,
as certain substances move into and out of the cell, or the cell may have special
mechanisms that facilitate transport. There are materials that are so important to a
cell that it harvests some of its energy to obtain these materials. For you to know and
understand the different transport mechanisms and their distinctive features, study
the table given. The table on the next page shows the different transport
mechanisms, pictures of how these transport mechanisms look like, and the way
they work.
 Mechanisms for Transport Across Cell Membranes
Transport mechanism How it works
Passive transport is the movement of substances across membranes without
energy expenditure.
Diffusion The tendency of ions, food, and other
dissolved substances to move from an
Extracellular space area of high concentration to an area of
low concentration until the
concentration is equal across a space

Phospholipid bilayer

Intracellular space

Facilitated diffusion The tendency of ions, food, and other

Channel protein dissolved substances to move from an
Extracellular space
area of high concentration to an area of
low concentration with the help of
membrane proteins

Phospholipid bilayer Intracellular space Carrier protein

Osmosis

Hypertonic Isotonic Hypotonic The movement of water across a

porous membrane from a dilute
H2 O H2O H2 O H2 O solution to a more concentrated
H2O
solution

Plasmolyzed Flaccid Turgid

- Biologists make and use special
vocabularies to describe the
relationship between the internal
environment and extracellular
Hypertonic Isotonic Hypotonic
fluids of a cell. Tonicity describes
the concentration of solute inside
and outside the cell and how it
afflicts the volume of the cell.
Osmolarity describes the
concentration of solute of the
H2 O H2 O H2 O
H2O solution.

- To describe how the principles of

osmosis and tonicity apply to cells,
three physiological solutions must
be considered: hypotonic,
isotonic, and hypertonic
solutions.

- A cell that is placed in a hypotonic

solution will tend to swell and
 eventually burst; a phenomenon
known as cytolysis (hemolysis in
red blood cells). It is because the
osmolarity inside the cell is higher
than its surroundings and so, the
water will enter the cell.

- A cell that is placed in a hypertonic

solution will tend to shrivel; a
phenomenon known as
plasmolysis. It is because the
osmolarity inside the cell is lower
than its surroundings and so, the
water will leave the cell.

- A cell that is placed in an isotonic

solution will remain the cell’s
volume constant. Virtually, there
will be no net movement of water
into or out of the cell, although
water will still move in and out.

Active transport is the means of moving substances across a membrane which

requires the expenditure of energy, usually in the form of adenosine triphosphate
(ATP), through the transport proteins called carrier proteins.

Extracellular space
Na+ K+

ATP

Pi (inorganic
ADP (adenosine phosphate)
Phospholipid bilayer diphosphate)
Intracellular space

Types of active transport

Primary active transport The movement of ions across a
membrane which creates a difference
in charge across that membrane
Secondary active transport The movement of biomolecules like
amino acids and glucose across a
membrane which is driven by primary

active transport of ions such as sodium,

potassium, and calcium
Bulk transport Larger molecules and particles are
encased in vesicles to enter or leave the
cell which requires the expenditure of
cell’s energy. They need to move across
the membrane in bulk because it is
impossible for them to pass through
directly to the membrane even with
energy supplied by the cell.

Types of bulk transport

Endocytosis A variation of active transport in which
large particles, such as large food
molecules, organelles, or even whole
cells, are brought into a cell

Exocytosis The process of removing waste

materials from the cell into the
Extracellular space
extracellular fluid

Vesicle

Cytoplasm

Types of endocytosis
Phagocytosis (cellular eating) The process whereby a cell ingests or
engulfs large particles, such as
undissolved materials, cells, and large
food molecules, using its cell membrane

Solid particle

Cell membrane

Pseudopodium

Phagosome (food
vacuole)
Pinocytosis (cellular drinking) The process by which the cell takes in
molecules, including water, which the
cell needs from the extracellular fluids

Extracellular space

Cell membrane

Vesicle

Cytoplasm

Receptor – mediated endocytosis The obtaining of substances by the cell

which targets a single type of substance
that binds to the receptor on the external
surface of the cell membrane

Receptor
Clathrin

Coated vesicle

What’s More

Since you have already learned the principal components and functions of the
cell membrane, the activity below is provided for you.

The table below consists of three columns with the pictures found in the first
column. Then, on the second column, you have to write the component of the cell
membrane which is analogous to the presented pictures/illustrations. You can
choose between PHOSPHOLIPID, CARBOHYDRATE, CHOLESTEROL, INTEGRAL
PROTEINS, and PERIPHERAL PROTEINS which may be used more than once.
Lastly, on the third column, you have to write the SPECIFIC FUNCTION of the
component of the cell membrane that is depicted by each picture/illustration.
 PHOTO – COGNITION

Component of the Function being

cell membrane portrayed
Picture
being described
 What I Have Learned

Now it’s your turn! Try to picture out the structure and functions of the cell
membrane close – up by completing the following story.

Your first mission as a Bionaut requires you to enter a blood vessel and observe
the structure and functions of the cell membranes. You step into the water –
filled chamber of the microtron, which quickly shrinks you to a size much
smaller than a red blood cell.

Through the tunnel – like needle of a syringe, you fall suddenly and
uncontrollably enter in a blood vessel in the arm of a volunteer. You
continuously float together with large, bouncy, and elastic red blood cells until
you notice that the liquid turns to yellow in color. You know that you have
reached already the blood plasma, so you switch on your headlamp and observe
the cells of the epithelial tissues that line the wall of the blood vessel. Their cell
membranes seem to be made of millions of small balloons. These are the
hydrophilic heads of the (1) __________ molecules that make up most of the
membrane surface. Through the transparent surface, you can see their flexible,
(2)__________ tails projecting inward toward the interior of the cell membrane,
and beyond them an inner layer of (3)__________ molecules with their tails
pointing toward you. Here, there are (4)__________ proteins embedded on the cell
membrane; some rest lightly on the surface, but most project all the way into the
interior of the cell. The cell membrane is indeed a (5)__________ mosaic, the
proteins are embedded like the pieces of a picture, but you can see that they are
free to move around. You push on one of the proteins, and it bobs like an
iceberg. Some of the phospholipids and proteins have (6)__________ attached to
them which serve as an effective interaction with the aqueous environment that
surrounds the cell. You notice that one of the proteins has a dimple in its
surface. Just then a minute, plump molecule floating in the blood plasma
installs in a depression of a protein. The molecule is a hormone, a chemical
signal, and the dimpled protein is the
(7)__________ that enables the cell to respond to it.

In your light beam, you can see the sparkle and shimmer of many molecules,
large and small, in the blood and pass through the cell membrane. You see that
the transparent gas of oxygen is moving from the plasma and enters the cell
interior. This movement is (8)__________; which it occurs through biological
membrane, it is called (9)__________ transport. Similarly, carbon dioxide is
flowing out of the cell, down its (10)__________ gradient, from the cell interior,
where it is (11)__________ concentrated, to the blood, where it is (12)__________
concentrated.

You note that water molecules are passing through the cell membrane equally in
both directions. The total concentration of solutes in the cell and in the blood
must be equal; the solution must be (13)__________. You signal the control team
to inject a small amount of concentrated salt solution into the blood, making the
blood slightly (14)__________ relative to the cell contents. This causes water to
flow (15)__________ the cell, until the two solutions are again in equilibrium. This
diffusion of water through a (16)__________ permeable membrane is called
(17)__________.

Some sugar molecules floating in the blood are simply too large to pass easily
through gaps in the cell membrane like the much smaller water molecules can.
These sugar molecules slowly glide past on the cell membrane and pass through
pores in special (18)__________ proteins. This is a type of passive transport,
because the molecules move down a concentration gradient without the
expenditure of (19)__________. Because transport proteins help out, it is called
(20)__________ diffusion.

Your chemscanner detects that the cell interior is concentrated with potassium
ions. Transport proteins here and there in the membrane are able to move
potassium ions into the cell against the concentration gradient. This must be
(21)__________ transport; the cell expends (22)__________ to provide energy to
“pump” the potassium ions into the cell.

Suddenly there is a tug at your foot. You look down to see your flipper engulfed
by a rippling membrane. A leukocyte the size of a building quickly holds you
against the wall of the blood vessel. The phospholipids of its cell membrane are
pressed against your face mask. The cell is engulfing you, protecting the body
from a foreign invader! Taking in a substance in this way is called (23)__________,
more specifically (24)__________, if the substance is a solid particle. Suddenly the
pressure diminishes, and you are inside the leukocyte, floating free in a
membrane – enclosed bag, or (25)__________. Another sac is approaching; it is a
(26)__________, full of digestive enzymes. You manage to get your legs outside of
the vacuole and move it back toward the inner surface of the cell membrane. As
the vacuole joins with the cell membrane, you pull your feet freely and you glide
away from the impatient cell, realizing that(27)__________ released you as fast as
endocytosis engulfed you!

You swim to the exit point, and the control team removes you by syringe. This is
quite enough adventure for one day.

What I Can Do

Cells are highly organized structures with parts that perform specific functions.
Starting from the cell membrane with its incomparable abilities not only to provide
shape and flexibility to the cell but also to determine the nature of its interaction
with its environment. For you to recognize these functions, make an illustration
(with a title) that shows a place which resembles a cell membrane. Also, write the
things that you think they are similar. Your product will be assessed based on the
following criteria: organization and content accuracy, appropriateness of elements,
creativity, and appearance. The actual rubric to be used in assessing your product
will be found on page 21.
 Assessment

Let’s see how well you have enjoyed the amazing world of cell cycle and mitosis
by answering the following questions. Choose and encircle the letter of the best
answer.

_____1. Which of the following contributes to the fluidity of the plasma

membrane?
a. Hydrophilic heads of phospholipid bilayer
b. Integral and peripheral proteins
c. Lipids and carbohydrates
d. Cholesterol

_____2. What is the primary function of carbohydrates attached to the cell

membranes?
a. Flexibility of the membrane
b. Identification of the cell
c. Channels through membrane
d. Strengthening the membrane

_____3. Water moves via osmosis _____.

a. from an area with a high concentration of solutes to a lower one
b. from an area with a high concentration of water to one of lower
concentration
c. from an area with a low concentration of water to of higher
concentration
d. throughout the cytosol of the cytoplasm

_____4. What happens to the vesicle after exocytosis?

a. It leaves the cell.
b. It is disassembled by the cell.
c. It fuses with and becomes part of the plasma membrane.
d. It is used again in another exocytosis event.

_____5. Which transport mechanism can bring whole cells into a cell?
a. Pinocytosis c. Facilitated diffusion
b. Phagocytosis d. Osmosis

_____6. In what important way does receptor – mediated endocytosis differ from
phagocytosis?
a. It does not involve the pinching off of membrane.
 b. It brings substances into the cell.
c. It brings in only a specifically targeted substance.
d. It transports only small amounts of fluid.
_____7. If a cell is in a hypertonic environment, then which of the following is
true?
a. The cell will gain water and burst.
b. The cell will lose water and shrink.
c. No water will move across the membrane.
d. There is no net gain or loss of cell volume.

_____8. What chemical property characterizes the interior of the phospholipid

bilayer?
a. It is hydrophobic. c. It is hydrophilic.
b. It is polar. d. It is saturated.

_____9. The movement of water across a membrane is dependent on _____.

a. the solvent concentration c. the presence of carrier
proteins
b. the solute concentration d. membrane potential

_____10. The description of a membrane as a “fluid mosaic” means _____.

a. water molecules make up part of the membrane
b. the phospholipids that make up the membrane can move
c. the membrane is made of phospholipids and proteins
d. the membrane is made of glycoprotein bilayer

_____11. A liver cell is placed in a solution whose osmolarity is twice as great as

the solute concentration of the cell cytoplasm. The cell membrane is
selectively permeable, allowing water but not the solutes to pass
through. What will happen to the cell?
a. No change will occur because it is an animal cell.
b. The cell will shrivel because of osmosis.
c. The cell will swell because of diffusion.
d. The cell will shrink because of active transport.

_____12. A white blood cell is capable of producing and releasing thousands of

antibody molecules every second. Antibodies are large, complex protein
molecules. How would you expect them to leave the cell?
a. Active transport c. Receptor – mediated endocytosis
b. Exocytosis d. Passive transport

_____13. Which cell membrane component can be either found on its surface or
embedded in the membrane structure?
 a. Protein c. Carbohydrate
b. Cholesterol d. Phospholipid

_____14. A nursing infant is able to obtain disease – fighting antibodies, which

are large protein molecules, from its mother’s milk. These molecules
probably enter the cells lining the baby’s digestive tract via _____.
a. osmosis c. pinocytosis
b. potocytosis d. phagocytosis

_____15. A doctor injects a patient with what the doctor thinks is an isotonic
saline solution (Normal Saline Solution). The patient dies, and an
autopsy reveals that many red blood cells have been destroyed. Do you
think the solution the doctor injected was really isotonic?
a. No. The solution and the RBCs are of the same osmolarity and so, the
RBCs will eventually burst.
b. No. The solution and the RBCs are of the same solvent concentration
but the RBCs have higher osmolarity and so, the water will enter the
RBCs.
c. No. The solution and the RBCs are of the same solute concentration but
the RBCs have lower osmolarity and so, the water will leave the RBCs.
d. No. The solution is hypertonic in nature and has lower osmolarity than
inside the RBCs and so, the RBCs will eventually burst.

Additional Activities

You did a great job on reaching at this far end of this module! Let’s wrap up this
brilliant learning experience with another exciting activity.

As you have gone through the lesson, most cells exist in an aqueous
environment. Their cell membranes selectively obtain certain materials from this
liquid environment for them to remain alive and prevent some harmful materials
from entering. Also, their cell membranes expel out harmful substances, like the
waste products of cellular activities, and prevent essential substances from
leaving. But what do you think would happen to a cell if its cell membrane lost
its selectivity? Make an illustration (with a title) that shows your response to this
question. Your product will be assessed based on the following criteria:
organization and content accuracy, appropriateness of elements, creativity, and
appearance. The actual rubric to be used in assessing your product will be found
on page 21.

Rubric for Illustration Making

Criteria Exceeds (12) Good (9) Fair (6) Poor (3)
Organization and All ideas are Most of the Most of the The ideas are not
Content easily ideas are ideas are not detailed, they look
Accuracy distinguishable distinguishable distinguishable like uniformed
(_____/12) and accurately and accurately and more and/or misshapen
detailed. detailed. details are making them
needed in order indistinguishable.
for them to
identify.
Appropriateness Appropriate Appropriate Appropriate Inappropriate
of Elements materials were materials were materials were materials were
(_____/12) selected and selected and selected selected and
creatively there was an contributed to the
modified in attempt at product that
ways that made creative performed poorly.
modification to
them better.
make them
better.
Creativity The product is The product is The product is The product lacks
(_____/12) very creative creative. Lots of somewhat creativity and
and colors, shapes, creative. Not looks messy. Lacks
eyecatching. and appealing very appealing. colors, shapes,
Great use of design are used. Limited use of and appealing
colors, texture, creative design
and shapes. materials.
Limited used of
colors, shapes,
and appealing
design.
Appearance Great care Construction Construction is Construction
(_____/12) taken in was careful and accurate, but 3 appears careless.
construction accurate for the – 4 details Many details need
process so that most part but 1 could have refinement for a
the structure is – 2 details been refined for strong or attractive
could have been a more accurate
neat, attractive, product.
refined for product.
and accurate.
a more
attractive
product.
Total: _____ + 2 =
_____/50