Cambridge (CIE) IGCSE Your notes

Biology
Diffusion, Osmosis & Active Transport
Contents
Diffusion in Biology
Factors that Influence Diffusion
Water
Osmosis
Osmosis Experiments
Osmosis in Animals & Plants
Active Transport
Proteins & Active Transport

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 Diffusion in Biology
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Diffusion
What is Diffusion in Biology?
Diffusion is the movement of molecules from a region of its higher concentration to a
region of its lower concentration
Molecules move down a concentration gradient, as a result of their random movement

Diffusion across the cell membrane

For living cells, the principle of the movement down a concentration gradient is the
same, but the cell is surrounded by a cell membrane which can restrict the free
movement of the molecules
The cell membrane is a partially permeable membrane - this means it allows some
molecules to cross easily, but others with difficulty or not at all
The simplest sort of selection is based on the size of the molecules
Diffusion helps living organisms to:
obtain many of their requirements
get rid of many of their waste products
carry out gas exchange for respiration

Examples of diffusion in living organisms

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 You will need to learn examples of substances that organisms obtain by diffusion
Don’t forget that plants require oxygen for respiration at all times, as well as carbon Your notes
dioxide for photosynthesis when conditions for photosynthesis are right (e.g. enough
light and a suitable temperature)
Examples of Diffusion Table

Where does the energy for diffusion come from?

All particles move randomly at all times
This is known as Brownian motion
The energy for diffusion comes from the kinetic energy of this random movement of
molecules and ions

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 Your notes

Brownian motion

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 Factors that Influence Diffusion
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Factors that Influence Diffusion

Surface area to volume ratio
The bigger a cell or structure is, the smaller its surface area to volume ratio is, slowing
down the rate at which substances can move across its surface
Many cells which are adapted for diffusion have increased surface area in some way - eg
root hair cells in plants (which absorb water and mineral ions) and cells lining the ileum in
animals (which absorb the products of digestion)

Cell adaptations for diffusion

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 The highly folded surface of the small intestine increases its surface area
Distance Your notes
The smaller the distance molecules have to travel the faster transport will occur
This is why blood capillaries and alveoli have walls which are only one cell thick, ensure
the rate of diffusion across them is as fast as possible

Temperature
The higher the temperature, the faster molecules move as they have more energy
This results in more collisions against the cell membrane and therefore a faster rate of
movement across them

Concentration Gradient
The greater the difference in concentration on either side of the membrane, the faster
movement across it will occur
This is because on the side with the higher concentration, more random collisions
against the membrane will occur

Examiner Tips and Tricks

You should have carried out investigations into the factors that influence the rate of
diffusion and as so should be able to use the information above to explain
experimental results in an exam. You should also be able to plan and carry out an
experiment which can investigate the effect of one of these factors.

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Water
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Water as a Solvent
Water is important for all living organisms as many substances are able to dissolve in it
(it is a solvent)
This makes it incredibly useful and essential for all life on Earth
Water is important as a solvent in the following situations within organisms:
Dissolved substances can be easily transported around organisms - eg xylem and
phloem of plants and dissolved food molecules in the blood
Digested food molecules are in the alimentary canal but need to be moved to cells
all over the body - without water as a solvent this would not be able to happen
Toxic substances such as urea and substances in excess of requirements such as
salts can dissolve in water which makes them easy to remove from the body in urine
Water is also an important part of the cytoplasm and plays a role in ensuring
metabolic reactions can happen as necessary in cells

Water as a solvent

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Osmosis
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Osmosis
All cells are surrounded by a cell membrane which is partially permeable
Water can move in and out of cells by osmosis
Osmosis is the diffusion of water molecules from a dilute solution (low solute
concentration) to a more concentrated solution (high solute concentration ) across a
partially permeable membrane
In doing this, water is moving down the concentration gradient from where there is
more water to where there is less
The cell membrane is partially permeable which means it allows small molecules (like
water) through but not larger molecules (like solute molecules)

Osmosis and the partially permeable membrane

Examiner Tips and Tricks

Note that for extended students, it is important to be able to explain the process of
osmosis with reference to water potential gradients, as detailed in the revision note
page titled 'Osmosis in Animals & Plants'

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 Osmosis Experiments
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Osmosis Experiments
Immersing plant cells in solutions of different concentrations
The most common osmosis practical involves cutting cylinders of root vegetables such
as potato or radish and placing them into distilled water and sucrose solutions of
increasing concentration
The cylinders are weighed before placing into the solutions
They are left in the solutions for 20 - 30 minutes and then removed, dried to remove
excess liquid and reweighed

Potatoes are usually used in osmosis experiments to show how the concentration of a
solution affects the movement of water, but radishes can be used too
If the plant tissue gains mass:
Water must have moved into the plant tissue from the solution surrounding it by
osmosis

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 The solution surrounding the tissue is more dilute than the plant tissue (which is more
concentrated)
If plant tissue loses mass: Your notes
Water must have moved out of the plant tissue into the solution surrounding it by
osmosis
The solution surrounding the tissue is more concentrated than the plant tissue
(which is more dilute)
If there is no overall change in mass:
There has been no net movement of water as the concentration in both the plant
tissue and the solution surrounding it must be equal
Remember that water will still be moving into and out of the plant tissue, but there
wouldn’t be any net movement in this case
Investigating osmosis using dialysis tubing
Dialysis tubing (sometimes referred to as visking tubing) is a non-living partially
permeable membrane made from cellulose
Pores in this membrane are small enough to prevent the passage of large molecules
(such as sucrose) but allow smaller molecules (such as glucose and water) to pass
through by diffusion and osmosis
This can be demonstrated by:
Filling a section of dialysis tubing with concentrated sucrose solution
Suspending the tubing in a boiling tube of water for a set period of time
Noting whether the water level outside the tubing decreases as water moves into
the tubing via osmosis
Water moves from a region of higher water potential (dilute solution) to a region
of lower water potential (concentrated solution), through a partially permeable
membrane

An example setup of a dialysis tubing experiment

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Osmosis in Animals & Plants
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Osmosis in Plant Tissues

When water moves into a plant cell, the vacuole gets bigger, pushing the cell membrane
against the cell wall
Water entering the cell by osmosis makes the cell rigid and firm
This is important for plants as the effect of all the cells in a plant being firm is to provide
support and strength for the plant - making the plant stand upright with its leaves held
out to catch sunlight
The pressure created by the cell wall stops too much water entering and prevents the
cell from bursting
If plants do not receive enough water the cells cannot remain rigid and firm (turgid) and
the plant wilts

Osmosis: Extended
Osmosis is the net movement of water molecules from a region of higher water
potential (dilute solution) to a region of lower water potential (concentrated solution),
through a partially permeable membrane
To understand this topic with clarity, it is important to understand the following
High water potential = dilute solution = low solute concentration (right side of
diagram)
Low water potential = concentrated solution = high solute concentration (Left side
of diagram)

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 Your notes

How osmosis works

Examiner Tips and Tricks

The best explanations to do with osmosis will refer to water potential, so if you are
aiming for a 7, 8 or 9 you will need to understand the concept and use it in your
explanations.

Osmosis in Animals & Plants: Extended

Plant cells in solutions of different concentrations
When plant cells are placed in a solution that has a higher water potential (dilute
solution) than inside the cells (e.g. distilled water) then water moves into the plant cells
via osmosis

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These water molecules push the cell membrane against the cell wall, increasing the
turgor pressure in the cells which makes them turgid
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A turgid plant cell

When plant cells are placed in a concentrated solution (with a lower water potential than
inside the cells) water molecules will move out of the plant cells by osmosis, making
them flaccid
If plant cells become flaccid it can negatively affect the plant's ability to support
itself
If looked at underneath the microscope, the plant cells might be plasmolysed, meaning
the cell membrane has pulled away from the cell wall

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 Your notes

A plasmolysed plant cell

Animal cells in solutions of different concentrations
Animal cells also lose and gain water as a result of osmosis
As animal cells do not have a supporting cell wall, the results on the cell are more severe
If an animal cell is placed into a strong sugar solution (with a lower water potential than
the cell), it will lose water by osmosis and become crenated (shrivelled up)
If an animal cell is placed into distilled water (with a higher water potential than the cell),
it will gain water by osmosis and, as it has no cell wall to create turgor pressure, will
continue to do so until the cell membrane is stretched too far and it bursts

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 Your notes

Effect of osmosis on animal cells

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Active Transport
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Active Transport
Active transport is the movement of particles through a cell membrane from a region of
lower concentration to a region of higher concentration using energy from respiration

The process of active transport

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Proteins & Active Transport
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Importance of Active Transport:

Extended
Energy is needed because particles are being moved against a concentration gradient,
in the opposite direction from which they would naturally move (by diffusion)
Active transport is vital process for the movement of molecules or ions across
membranes
Including:
uptake of glucose by epithelial cells in the villi of the small intestine and by kidney
tubules in the nephron
uptake of ions from soil water by root hair cells in plants

Protein Carriers: Extended

Active transport works by using carrier proteins embedded in the cell membrane to pick
up specific molecules and take them through the cell membrane against their
concentration gradient:
1. Substance combines with carrier protein molecule in the cell membrane
2. Carrier transports substances across membrane using energy from respiration to give
them the kinetic energy needed to change shape and move the substance through the
cell membrane
3. Substance released into cell

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 Carrier proteins in active transport

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Examiner Tips and Tricks

You don't need to know anything about the phospholipid bilayer when it comes to
active transport!

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