Water

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 Introduction
Water is essential for life.
The human body is comprised of over 60% water
It is a major component of many bodily fluids including
blood, urine and saliva.
Homeostasis is defines the distribution of water and the
maintenance of pH and electrolyte concentrations
Water distribution maintained by the kidneys, antidiuretic
hormone, hypothalamic thirst response, respiration and
perspiration

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 Structure of Water
Water (H2O) is made up of 2
hydrogen atoms and one oxygen
atom
Hydrogen bonds exist between
water molecules
Water is a dipolar molecule.
Each water molecule can form up
to four hydrogen bonds.

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 Function of water
Dissolve and transport substance
Make up the majority of blood volume
Helps to maintain body temperature
Protects and lubricates body tissues

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 Water Balance
There has to be a balance b/n the water intake and water
output
To keep the composition of cell water and extracellular
fluid constant
Daily water intake should be replaced daily.
Water intake is from:
Fluid drunk
Water in food eaten
Metabolic water- water is formed by oxidation of
carbohydrate, lipid and protein.

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• Water output takes place through:
Urine
Water in feaces
Water evaporated through skin and lungs

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 Properties of Water
Water has important effects on all biological systems.
Water has two very important properties:
1. Physical Properties
2. Chemical Properties

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1. Physical Properties
Polar molecule
Hydrophilic substances dissolve
Hydrophobic substances aggregate
Osmosis
Diffusion

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2. Chemical Properties
Ionizes to O and OH
Acids and bases alter pH
Buffers resists changes in pH

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Cont…
Water is a polar solvent. Compounds that dissolve easily in
water are hydrophilic (Greek, “water-loving”).
It readily dissolves most biomolecules such as DNA, amino
acid, glucose which are generally charged or polar compounds.
In contrast,
Nonpolar solvents such as chloroform and benzene are poor
solvents for polar biomolecules but easily dissolve those that
are hydrophobic—nonpolar molecules such as lipids and
waxes.

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Biomolecules that have both hydrophilic and hydrophobic
regions are termed amphipathic. e.g Proteins, certain
vitamins, and the sterols and phospholipids of membranes
These stable structures of amphipathic compounds in water
are called micelles.
Hydrophobic interactions among lipids, and between lipids
and proteins, are the most important determinants of
structure in biological membranes.

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 Osmosis
Osmosis is the passage of water from a region of high
water concentration to the lower region through a semi-
permeable membrane driven by differences in osmotic
pressure.
Semi-permeable membranes are very thin layers of
material (cell membranes are semi-permeable)
Cell membranes will allow small molecules to pass
through like Oxygen, water, Carbon Dioxide, Ammonia,
Glucose, etc..
It will not allow larger molecules to pass through like
Sucrose, Starch, protein, etc..
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Osmotic pressure – Force that results from water entering
a cell that is in a hypotonic solution.

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Salt is a solute when it is concentrated inside or outside
the cell, it will draw the water in its direction.

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Cont…
Isotonic – solutions of equal osmolarity (solute
concentration).
Hypertonic – A cell is in a hypertonic solution if the
medium has a higher osmolarity than the cytosol. Water
flows out of the cell, and the cell shrinks.
Hypotonic - A cell is in a hypotonic solution if the
medium has a lower osmolarity than the cytosol. Water
flows into the cell, and the cell swells.

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 Diffusion
Diffusion refers to the movement of a SOLUTE across a

plasma membrane..
Solutes move from the area of higher concentration to the

area of lower concentration (from the hypertonic

compartment to the hypotonic compartment) until an
isotonic solution is reached.

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 Dissociation of Water and pH
Water naturally dissociate into hydroxide ions and Protons.
H2O  H+ + OH-
The acidity of the aqueous solution is usually reported
using the logarithmic pH scale.
pH is defined as the negative logarithm of the hydrogen
ion concentration.
pH= -log (H⁺)
The pH scale ranges from 1 to 14.

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 Equilibrium Constant
H2O OH- + H+
[OH-] [H+]
Equilibrium
K= eq = = 1.8 x 10-16 M
constant
[H2O]
Ion product = = [OH-] [H+] = 10-14 M2
of water Kw

[H2O]=55.5 M
Pure H2O : [H+] = [OH-] = 10-7 M
pH = - log [H+] = -log (10-7) = 7 (neutral)
If [H+] > 10-7 M then pH < 7 (acidic)
If [H+] < 10-7 M then pH > 7 (basic)

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The pH Scale

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 Acids and Bases

Acid (HA) - something that has a proton and is willing to give it up.
Base (A-) - something that has a place to put a proton

HA H + + A- Or HA + H2O H 3 O+ + A -

[A-] [H+]
Ka =
[HA]
O
H2PO4- HPO42- + H+
(acid) (base) O P OH
[HPO42-] [H+]
OH
Ka =
[H2PO4-]
= 1.51 x 10-7 M

pKa = - log (Ka) = 6.82 22

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The Henderson-Hasselbalch Equation
The quantitative relationship between the pH of the
solution and the concentration of a weak acid and its
conjugate base is described by Henderson -Hasselbalch
equation
pH = pKa + log10
¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯¯
[A¯ ]

[HA]

pKa - the negative log of the dissociation constant,

which is a measure of strength of an acid/base .

pKa is defined as the pH at which the protonated and

unprotonated species are present in equal concentrations.24
Cont…
A low pKa value indicates that the compound is acidic
and will easily give up its proton to a base.

At pH < pka, protonated acid form is more ( it will

give out its H⁺ ions )

At pH > pka, deprotonated base form is more in the

solution ( it will take H⁺ ions to neutralize the pH).

At pKa = pH, there is equal concentration of acid and

its conjugate base.

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 Applications of Henderson-Hassselbalch
1.How the pH of the physiologic solution will respond to
changes in the concentration of a weak acid and its base.
e.g. Changes in the HCO3 buffer system.
Increase in HCO3 will increase the pH
In turn CO2 will be retained to decrease the pH.
2. It is used to calculate the ionized and unionized form of the
drugs.
Uncharged drug will cross the membrane more readily than the
charged form

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 Titration Curves
Titration is used to determine the amount of an acid in a given
solution.
A measured volume of the acid is titrated with a solution of a
strong base, usually sodium hydroxide (NaOH), of known
concentration.
The NaOH is added in small increments until the acid is
consumed (neutralized)
The concentration of the acid in the original solution can be
calculated from the volume and concentration of NaOH added.

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Buffer
Buffers are solutions that resist changes in pH when acids
and bases are added
Most buffers consist of a weak acid and its conjugate base
Buffers are very important to biological systems
Effectiveness of a buffer is determined by:
1. The pH of the solution, buffers work best within 1
pH unit of their pKa
2. The concentration of the buffer; the more present,
the greater the buffering capacity

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 The buffering capacity is
dependent on the
concentration of the
buffering agent.
 Buffering capacity is +/-1 pH
unit from the pKa
 Different compounds have
different buffering ranges

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 BIOLOGICAL BUFFER SYSTEMS

Almost every biological process is pH-dependent

The pH in the human body needs to remain ~7.4
Cells and organisms maintain a specific and constant
cytosolic pH.
Some important buffering systems of body fluids which help
maintaining pH are:
Biocarbonate buffer
Phosphate buffer
Protein
Hemoglobin buffer

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Thank you

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