2-4/5 Transport + Immunity Flashcards
What are the functions of phospholipids in the cell membrane?
Lipid and water-soluble molecules can enter
the membrane is flexible and self-healing
What are the two ways in which proteins are embedded in the bilayer?
Only in surface - Mechanical support, receptors with glycolipids All the way through - Water-filled channels for soluble ions - Carrier proteins that bind
What is the function of cholesterol in the membrane?
- Reduce lateral movement of other molecules
- Makes cells less fluid when hot
- Prevent leakage of water
What are the functions of glycolipids in the membrane?
- Recognition sites
- Maintain stability
- Attach and form tissues
What are the functions of glycoproteins in the membrane?
- Recognition sites
- attach and form tissues
Why can’t something cross the membrane?
- Not lipid soluble so cannot pass through the phospholipid bilayer
- Too large to pass through the channels in the membrane
- Of the same charge as the charge on the protein channels so are repelled
- Polar so have difficulty passing through the non-polar hydrophobic tails in the phospholipid bilayer
What is simple diffusion?
The net movement of molecules from an area of high concentration to low until even
What is facilitated diffusion?
A passive process that relies on kinetic energy of diffusing molecules, uses protein channels and carriers
What is osmosis?
- The diffusion of water molecules from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration of water
- Needs a partially permeable membrane
- Water tries to dilute out molecules that can’t move across the membrane until the concentration is equal
What is water potential?
- The pressure created by water molecules measured in kPa
- The addition of a solute to pure water lowers its water potential, the more that is added, the more negative the water potential is
Under standard conditions of temperature and pressure, pure water has a water potential of zero
How does osmosis occur?
A low concentration of one solution on one side, higher on the other, all are in random motion, will split evenly
What is active transport?
Movement of molecules from high concentration to low concentration aided by ATP and carrier proteins
How is ATP used in active transport?
Used to individually move molecules using a concentration gradient which has been set up by direct active transport, known as cotransport
Metabolic energy in the form of ATP is needed
Carrier proteins act as pumps to transport materials
How does a Na/K pump work?
3 Na+ ions and 2 K+ ions are moved in opposite directions each against conc gradient, glucose moves the opposite way
How is the rate of movement across membranes increased?
The epithelial cells lining the ileum possess microvilli about 0.6 um long
How is active transport involved in absorption?
Glucose and amino acids can only diffuse into the blood until equal, co-transport is used to ensure all glucose and amino acids are taken in
What are specific and non-specific defence mechanisms?
Non-specific - physical barriers, phagocytosis
Specific - T/B lymphocytes
How does the body recognise its own cells from foreign material?
Cells contain antigens which act as markers for recognition, any lymphocytes that show a self-response will be suppressed
What is phagocytosis?
Abnormal cells release attractants/chemo toxins
phagocytes have receptors that will bind to the pathogen and engulf it, forming a phagosome, lysosomes release lysozyme which hydrolyses the pathogen and debris is absorbed or released
What are B and T lymphocytes?
B - bone marrow - humoral immunity
T - thymus - cell-mediated
What is cell-mediated immunity?
T-cells mature in body and circle in blood until needed, killer t cells (lysis), helper t cells (helps b), suppressor (turn off immunity)
How do cytotoxic T-cells kill infected cells?
Produce a protein called perforin that make holes in the cell-surface membrane, they become fully permeable
What is humoral immunity?
B cells encounter foreign antigens and divide by mitosis rapidly to produce antibodies and memory cells which stay around
How do antibodies destroy antigens?
Cause agglutination od bacterial cells so phagocytes can locate them
What are monoclonal antibodies used for?
- Targeted therapy
- Diagnosis (ELISA testing)
- Pregnancy testing
What are the ethical issues surrounding use of monoclonal antibodies?
- Live mice
- Associated deaths
- Multiple organ failures in trials
What is passive immunity?
Anti-venom - acquired immunity, no contact with pathogen, no antibodies produced
What is active immunity?
Natural - becoming infected, producing antibodies
Artificial - vaccines, induced immune response
What makes a successful vaccine program?
Economically viable
Limited side effects
Means to deliver
The possibility of herd immunity
What is herd immunity?
A sufficient portion of population is immune so pathogen cannot spread
Why might a vaccine fail to eliminate a disease?
- Objectors
- Faulty immune systems
- Disease may develop
- Pathogen may mutate
What are the ethical issues surrounding vaccines?
- Animal testing
- Side effects
- Trialling
What is the structure of HIV?
- Lipid envelope, embedded attachment proteins
- Capsid containing two RNA strands + enzymes
- One enzyme ‘reverse transcriptase’ as catalyses DNA from RNA
How does HIV replicate?
- Enters into the bloodstream
- Protein on HIV binds to CD4 (T helper)
- Capsid fuses with membrane RNA and enzymes enter T helper
- Reverse transcriptase converts RNA tp DNA and inserts into the cells DNA, mRNA makes new viral proteins
- mRNA passes out to make new HIV cell
How does HIV cause symptoms of AIDS?
HIV attacks T helper cells and so the immune system is disrupted and the victim is susceptible to infection
How does the ELISA test work?
- Sample on the surface, wash and add antibody, leave to bind then wash
- Second antibody with colour, leave to bind then wash
colour relates to the amount of antigen present
Why don’t antibiotics work for bacterial infections?
Viruses don’t have cell walls to break, can’t break through lipid envelope
What does the cell membrane do?
Separates the living cell from its environment and controls traffic in and out of the cell
Made of a collage of proteins and other molecules embedded in a fluid matrix of the lipid bilayer
What is the rate of diffusion affected by?
Steepness of concentration gradient
Temperature
Surface area
Type of molecule/ion