Active Transport moves

substances from a region of

low concentration to a region
of high concentration.
•Some cells need to move
substances through cell membranes
in a direction against the
concentration gradient (low to high
solute concentration)
-Kidney cells
-Thyroid gland
-Cells lining the intestines
Active Transport
• Movement of molecules against the concentration
gradient across the cell membrane that requires
energy.
• Involves carrying proteins which are often called
pumps
• Pumps – because like a water pump that uses
energy to move water against the force of gravity
• Example : Sodium – Potassium pump
Properties of Active Transport
• Energy is needed in the form of ATP
• Transport protein are highly specific to the type of
molecules they can transport across the
membrane
• The rate of transport reaches a maximum when
all the membrane transport proteins are being
used (saturation)
• Membrane transport proteins are sensitive to
inhibitors that can cause them not to function
 Large molecules are
transported into and out of
the cell using bulk transport
mechanisms.
Macromolecules like proteins and
other large particles, cannot enter
and exit the cell through carrier
proteins. They enter the cell in a
different process that also
requires energy.
ENDOCYTOSIS
•Cell membrane bends inward or invaginates,
forming a vesicle containing the
macromolecule that needs to be transported.
•Three types:
• Phagocytosis
• Pinocytosis
• Receptor-mediated endocytosis
Phagocytosis
•Cell eating
•Process by which cells
take in large particles
or solids through
infolding of the cell
membrane to form
endocytic vesicles.
Phagocytosis
•Exhibited by
White Blood Cells
to capture and kill
the invading
bacteria
Pinocytosis
•Cell drinking
•Process of taking
in fluids into the
cell by
invagination of
cell membrane.
Receptor-mediated
Endocytosis
• Very specific
• The plasma membrane
becomes indented and
forms a pit.
• Metabolites, hormones,
and other proteins enter
through this process.
Receptor-mediated Endocytosis
• The pit lined with receptor
proteins picks specific
molecules from the
surroundings
• The pit then closes and
pinches off to form a
vesicle, which eventually
carries the molecules
inside the cytoplasm.
EXOCYTOSIS
• Opposite of endocytosis
• Materials for export, like
proteins produced in the
ribosomes and packaged
in the Golgi Apparatus,
are secreted out of the
cell by exocytosis.
EXOCYTOSIS
•Macromolecules to be
transported are carried by
vesicles to the cell
membrane
•The membrane
surrounding the vesicle
then fuses with the cell
membrane and breaks off.
Overall, cells maintain internal
balance by transporting
essential substances into and
out of the cell through various
transport mechanisms that
may or may not require energy.