Biochemistry Notes 

 
Active and passive transport 
● Active Transport 
○ The movement of substances across membranes against their concentration 
gradient using pumps 
○ Energy Dependent process 
○ Pumps: Allows AT to move particles from low concentration to high concentration  
■ Particles bind to transport proteins that use energy (ATP) to pump them 
across the membrane 
● Primary Active Transport 
○ Moves positively charged ions to establish a concentration gradient between the 
inside of the cell  
■ Ex. H+, Ca^2+, Na+, K+ 
○ Difference in charge results in a voltage (potential difference) 
○ Electrochemical gradient 
■ Stored potential pump that can be used for other transport mechanisms  
● Secondary Active Transport  
○ Uses an established concentration gradient (from primary transport) as its energy 
source to move other substances in or out. 
○ It is a process made by 2 mechanisms known ​SYMPORT AND ANTIPORT 
○ Symport 
■ The solute moves in the same direction as ions movement 
○ Antiport 
■ Moves in the opposite direction of ion movement  
 
● Passive Transport 
○ The movement of a substance across a membrane without expanding chemical 
energy 
○ Diffusion is what allows passive transport to happen 
■ Diffusion: The net movement of a substance from a region of high 
concentration to low concentration  
● Simple Diffusion 
○ The ability of small and non-polar substances to move across a membrane 
unassisted  
■ O2 and CO2 are readily soluble in the hydrophobic interior of a membrane 
and move from one side to the other  
■ Non-polar steroids and non-polar drugs can pass by the membrane easily  
■ Small uncharged molecules like water and glycerol can move fast across 
the membrane, even though they are polar  
■ Most membranes are impermeable to large molecules and ions  
● Facilitated Diffusion 
 ○ The facilitated transport of ions and polar molecules through a membrane via 
protein complexes  
■ Slow rate of Diffusion that can't keep up with the demand that metabolic 
processes often have for ions, many polar and charged molecules 
● Ex. water, amino acids, and sugars 
● Involves specific transporters, the movement of molecules and ions 
is driven by diffusion based on the concentration gradient 
● When equilibrium is reached and there is no concentration 
gradient, facilitated diffusion stops 
● Facilitated Diffusion is carried by integral membrane proteins called 
transport proteins that extend through the membrane  
● Diffusion of these compounds across a membrane can be helped 
by protein complexes  
● Rate of diffusion across membrane is influenced not only by 
concentration gradient and efficiency of transport proteins but by 
also the number of transport molecules 
 
● 2 types of transport proteins 
○ Channel proteins 
■ Hydrophilic tunnels (for water and ions), can be opened or closed with 
changes in voltage  
■ Most of these ion channels are voltage-gated channels. This means that 
they switch between open, closed, and intermediate states 
■ The gates are opened or closed by changes in voltage or by binding signal 
molecules 
○ Carrier proteins  
■ A protein that binds to a molecule and transports it across lipid bilayer  
● Each carrier protein binds to a specific solute such as a glucose 
molecule or particular amino acid, and transports it across the lipid 
bilayer 
● Diffusion would not be able to move a solute down its 
concentration gradient, without carrier proteins 
● The carrier protein changes shape, allowing the solute to move 
from one side of the membrane to the other. 
 
● Transport proteins are selective about which solutes they will carry  
● Rate of diffusion increases when the difference in concentration increases  
 
● Osmosis 
○ The passive diffusion of water across a membrane 
○ In living cells, the inward and outward movement of water by osmosis develops 
forces that can cause cells to swell or shrink  
 ○ Water diffuses from an area of lower concentration (low water concentration). This 
is influenced by any difference or change in solute concentration on either side of 
the membrane 
○ If the solution that is surrounding a cell contains dissolved substances at lower 
concentrations than they are in the cell, the solution is said to be hypotonic to the 
cell 
■ When a cell is in a hypotonic solution, water enters by osmosis and the cell 
swells 
○ An organism in a solution that contains salts or other molecules at higher 
concentrations than they are in its body must expend energy to replace the water 
that is lost by osmosis 
■ The outside solution is hypertonic to the organisms cell 
■ The concentration of water inside and outside cells is often equal or 
Isotonic  
● Hypotonic 
○ The property of a solution that has a lower solute concentration that another 
solution 
● Hypertonic 
○ The property of solution that has a higher solute concentration that another 
solution  
● Isotonic 
○ The property of a solution that has the same solute concentration as another 
solution 
 
 
Covalent and ionic bonding 
● Covalent 
○ Non-polar covalent 
■ 2 atoms share electrons; example would be O2 (Oxygen) 
○ Polar covalent 
■ A pair of electrons are unequally shared between 2 atoms; example would 
be H2O (water) 
● Ionic  
○ Bonding between 2 oppositely charged ions; example would be NaCl (salt) 
 
● Electronegativity determines which atom takes the electrons. Therefore, the atom with 
higher electronegativity takes the electron 
 
Allosteric site 
● Regulation Point 
● We can use this site to turn enzyme on or off 
● Other molecules can attach to this site to regulate 
● Ex. Can cause shape change of active site  
 
Substrate 
● The substance on which an enzyme acts. 
 
Substrate-enzyme complex 
 
Inhibition 
● Competitive Inhibition  
○ Molecules that take the substrate’s place in the active site and stop the enzyme 
from working 
 
● Non-Competitive Inhibition 
○ Molecule that sits on the allosteric site and turns the enzyme off  
 
Saturated vs. non-saturated fats, cis vs. trans 
● Saturated fats 
○ No Double Bonds 
○ Saturated/Plenty of Hydrogens 
○ Straight Chain  
○ Tend to be solid at room temperature 
 
● Unsaturated Fats 
○ One or More Double Bond 
○ Not Saturated with Hydrogens 
○ Straight Chain  
○ Tend to be solid at room temperature 
 
● Cis 
○ Very Bulky  
○ Liquid @ Room Temperature 
○ Natural Occurring 
 
● Trans 
○ Pack Together Well 
○ Can be solid 
○ Considered very unhealthy 
 
 
Extra Terms 
● Concentration gradient: The difference in concentration between 2 areas or across a 
membrane 
● Dynamic Equilibrium: The state in which the continuous action results in balanced 
conditions 
 ○ Even if the concentration of molecules or ions is the same in both regions there 
is no net change in concentration  
 
Q. I can investigate the movement of substances across membranes 
 
●   
 
Q.​I can make and draw carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, and fats, nucleic acids 
 
●    
 
Q.​I can explain the roles of various cell organelles 
● Golgi Apparatus
○ packages proteins inside the cell before they are sent to their destination.

● Rough Endoplasmic Reticulum

○ Commonly associated with the function of synthesizing proteins and transporting
protein molecules to different parts of the cell.

● Smooth Endoplasmic Reticulum

○ produce lipids, an essential component of a cell's outer membrane. Another
function it performs in all cells is the final production of glucose, an energy
storage molecule. The smooth endoplasmic reticulum also metabolizes natural
and ingested toxins in all cell types.

● Nucleus
○ A cellular organelle that is only present in eukaryotes. Its main function is to
regulate gene expression; it also controls cellular growth and replication. One of
the main functions of the nucleus is to carry DNA in the form of chromatin.