Worksheet 8: Membrane Transport

Multiple Choice and True or False

1) The selectively permeable membrane regulates the type and rate of molecular traffic into and
out of the cell and organelles due to:
A) The characteristics of materials being transported
B) The characteristics of membrane solubility
C) The presence of specific transmembrane transport proteins
D) A and C
E) All of the above
2) The larger the molecule and less strongly its association with water, the more rapidly it may
diffuse across a bilayer
A) True
B) False
3) Which of the following can dissolve into and pass through the lipid bilayer most
easily/rapidly?
A) small uncharged, nonpolar molecules
B) small uncharged, polar molecules
C) large uncharged, polar molecules
D) ions
4) Active transport moves solutes AWAY from thermodynamic equilibrium.
A) True
B) False
5) Which of the following prevents ions from passing through a lipid bilayer?
A) The hydrophilic exterior of the lipid bilayer
B) The hydrophilic interior of the lipid bilayer
C) The hydrophobic exterior of the lipid bilayer
D) The hydrophobic interior of the lipid bilayer
6) Which of the following statements is True?
A) Na+ is the most plentiful positively charged ion outside the cell, while
K+ is the most plentiful inside.
B) K+ is the most plentiful positively charged ion outside the cell, while
Na+ is the most plentiful inside.
C) K+ and Na+ are balanced on each side of the cell.
D) None of the above
7) What is the difference between transporters and channels?
A) Transporters discriminate between solutes mainly on the basis of size
and charge; channels bind their solutes with great specificity in the
same way an enzyme binds its substrate

B) Channels discriminate between solutes mainly on the basis of size and

charge; transporters bind their solutes with great specificity in the
same way an enzyme binds its substrate
C) Channels will allow the passage of any solute as long as it has a
charge; transporters bind their solutes with great specificity in the
same way an enzyme binds its substrate
D) There is no difference between transporters and channels
8) The movement of an ion down its electrochemical gradient is called:
A) Active transport
B) Passive transport
C) Simple diffusion
D) Pumping
9) Which of the following statements is NOT true regarding active transport?
A) Some solutes are moved against their concentration gradients, from
one side of a membrane to the other, using energy from ATP
hydrolysis.
B) Light-driven pumps couple the movement of solutes against their
concentration gradient to an energy input from light.
C) A coupled transporter brings two different types of solutes across the
membrane, both moving from higher concentration to lower
concentration.
D) None of the above
10) The Na+-K+ pump uses the energy from ATP hydrolysis to pump sodium
and potassium ions against their electrochemical gradients. In which
direction are the ions pumped across the membrane?
A) Na+ out and K+ in
B) K+ in and Na+ out
C) Na+ and K+ both out
D) Na+ and K+ both in
11) The glucose-Na+ symport in epithelial cells uses the electrochemical
gradient of Na+ to draw glucose into the cell.
A) True
B) Fasle
12) Intestinal epithelial cells use what type of transport to absorb
glucose?
A) Uniport
B) Symport
C) Antiport
D) Glucose pump
13)

What is typically true of ion channels?

A)
B)
C)
D)

They are open all the time

They are gated
They operate by active transport
B and C

14) Auditory hair cells in the ear depend on what type of ion channel to
detect sound vibrations?
A) Voltage-gated channels
B) Ligand-gated channels
C) Mechanically-gated channels
D) They do not depend on ion channels
15) Most cell membranes have a voltage across them, an electrical potential, where the
cytosolic side is usually positive.
A) True
B) False
16) A method for studying transmembrane ion channels :
A) Heat clamping
B) Patch clamping
C) Hatch clamping
D) Electrical clamping
17) Which of the following is an example of a symporter?
A) A transpoter that moves sodium ions into the cell and calcium ions out
of the cell
B) The sodium-potassium pump
C) A transporter that moves both sodium and glucose into the cell
D) A transmembrane protein that has a pore for water
E) None the above
Fill in the blanks
An example of coupled transport is the transport of glucose into gut epithelial cells. The gut
epithelial cells have a ____glucose/Na+ ___ symport located on the apical (top) cell surface as
well as a ___glucose___ uniport and a ____Na+-K+ ___ pump on the posterior cell surface.
Glucose being taken up by the gut is driven by the ___electrochemical__ gradient of ____Na+__
through the symporter. As glucose levels increase in the gut epithelial cells, the uniporter is
driven by the __concentration__ gradient to mediate the __passive__ transport of glucose into
the ___cytosol__. Lastly, the pump is driven by ___ATP___ hydrolysis to continue the flow of
ions used at the symporter.

Define the following:

Simple diffusion: direct, unaided net movement of molecules into and through the lipid bilayer in
the direction dictated by the concentrations of the solute on the two sides of the membrane
Facilitated transport: passive movement of solutes driven by concentration gradient of solute and
electrochemical gradient
Coupled transport: transport of two different solutes simultaneously or sequentially; it couples
the uphill transport of one solute across the membrane to the downhill transport of another
(ACTIVE TRANSPORT)
ATP-driven pumps: transporter that move solutes against their electro-chemical gradient or
concentration gradient via the direct input of energy from ATP hydrolysis (ATPase) or light
(ACTIVE TRANSPORT)
Electrochemical gradient: the net force driving charged molecules and ions across a membrane; it
is the composite of the concentration gradient and voltage across the membrane
Short Answer:

What determines if an electrochemical gradient across a membrane is strong or weak?

When the voltage and concentration gradient work in the same direction, they create a strong
electrochemical gradient. However, when the voltage and concentration gradients are
working in opposite directions the electrochemical gradient is weak.

Explain how the collaboration between an ATPase pump and a coupled

transporter (symport or antiport) is used to transport nutrients against a
concentration gradient into cells
1. A single ATPase pump actively transports a solute against its gradient ; in most cases, this
solute is an ion
2. The ion moves down its electrochemical/ concentration gradient through a symport (or
antiport), driving the transport of a second solute against its gradient

Explain how the three transporters in the gut epithelial cells work together to transport
glucose into and out of the epithelial cells.
Gut epithelial cells have:
1. glucose/Na+ symport located on the
apical (top) cell surface: mediates
transport of glucose and sodium
from the gut into the cells; driven by
the electrochemical gradient of Na+
2. glucose uniport on posterior cell
surface: mediates the passive
transport of glucose from the cells
into the surrounding extracellular
fluid; driven by the concentration
gradient of glucose in the cytosol
3. Na+-K+ pump on posterior cell surface: transport of Na+ out of the cells and K+ into the
cells; driven by ATP hydrolysis. The uniport and symport are functionally coupled to a
Na+-K+ pump

Ion channels are selectively permeable transmembrane channels. Their selectivity involves:
1. Pore size
2. Distribution of charged amino acids in the channel pore

Ion channels may be classified by gating, i.e. what opens and closes the channels. List and
describe three types of ion channels based on the stimuli that regulate their opening/closing.
1. voltage-gated channel: changes in electrical potential across a membrane
2. ligand gated channel: controlled by the binding of specific ligand
3. Mechanically gated channel: respond to mechanical forces that act on membrane