Adrianne Karl Ogario

12-Zara
WHAT I HAVE LEARNED

Diffusion is the net passive movement of molecules or particles from

regions of higher to regions of lower concentration. For diffusion to occur there
must be a concentration gradient. The dissimilarity in the amounts of solutes,
particles, or molecules between the two regions will cause them to move
between the two regions. To define diffusion in the biological context, imagine
the ions, respiratory gases, glucose, or other particles that move randomly
between the crowded and the less-crowded regions (fluids), often across a semi-
permeable membrane.

Diffusion is of two major types. The first one does not require assistance
when moving down the concentration gradient. This type is called simple
diffusion. In contrast, facilitated diffusion, as the name implies, is one in which
assistance is required. The assistance comes, for instance, from the proteins
embedded in a biological membrane. Basically, these two types of diffusion differ
in the mechanism by which substances move – one that occurs without assistance
and the other one that occurs with the help of transport proteins. Thus, in
facilitated diffusion, the transport only occurs when the molecule is able to bind
to the membrane protein transporter. Both of them result in the net downhill
movement of substances and do not require chemical energy to proceed.

We can evaluate this phenomenon in our daily life, as we are exposed in

different materials and elements. The concentration of the oxygen in the
environment is diffused by the space of the planet. Similarly, in animals,
respiratory gases are transported generally by simple diffusion. In humans, the
diffusion of respiratory gases takes place at the capillary beds that separate blood
from the tissue fluid. In the lungs, carbon dioxide is released by diffusing from the
blood into the alveoli and then breathed out. Oxygen, in turn, is breathed in, and
then diffuses from the alveoli of the lungs into the blood. The oxygen then
diffuses from the circulating blood to the various tissues of the body.