Mass transport

Question 1

Describe the structure of haemoglobin.

Answer 1

Globular, water soluble. Consists of four polypeptide chains, each carrying a haem group (quaternary structure).

Question 2

Describe the role of haemoglobin.

Answer 2

Present in red blood cells. Oxygen molecules bind to the haem groups and are carried around the body to where they are needed in respiring tissues.

Question 3

Name three factors affecting oxygen-haemoglobin binding.

Answer 3

1. Partial pressure / concentration of oxygen.
2. Partial pressure / concentration of carbon dioxide.
3. Saturation of haemoglobin with oxygen.

Question 4

How does partial pressure of oxygen affect oxygen-haemoglobin binding?

Answer 4

As partial pressure of oxygen increases, the affinity of haemoglobin for oxygen also increases, so oxygen binds tightly to haemoglobin. When partial pressure is low, oxygen is released from haemoglobin.

Question 5

How does partial pressure of carbon dioxide affect oxygen-haemoglobin binding?

Answer 5

As partial pressure of carbon dioxide increases, the conditions become acidic causing haemoglobin to change shape. The affinity of haemoglobin for oxygen therefore decreases, so oxygen is released from haemoglobin. This is known as the Bohr effect.

Question 6

How does saturation of haemoglobin with oxygen affect oxygen-haemoglobin binding?

Answer 6

It is hard for the first oxygen molecule to bind. Once it does, it changes shape to make it easier for the second and third molecules to bind, known as positive cooperativity. It is then slightly harder for the fourth oxygen molecule to bind because there is a low chance of finding a binding site.

Question 7

Explain why oxygen binds to haemoglobin in the lungs.

Answer 7

• Partial pressure of oxygen is high.
• Low concentration of CO2 in the lungs, so affinity is high.
• Positive cooperativity (after first oxygen molecule binds, binding of subsequent molecules is easier).

Question 8

Explain why oxygen is released from haemoglobin in respiring tissues.

Answer 8

• Partial pressure of oxygen is low.
• High concentration of carbon dioxide in respiring tissues, so affinity decreases.

Question 9

What do oxyhaemoglobin dissociation curves show?

Answer 9

Saturation of haemoglobin with oxygen (in %), plotted against partial pressure of oxygen (kPa). Curves further to the left show the haemoglobin has a higher affinity for oxygen.

Question 10

How does CO2 affect the position of the oxyhaemoglobin dissociation curve?

Answer 10

Curve shifts to the right because haemoglobin’s affinity for oxygen has decreased.

Question 11

Name the three common features of a mammalian circulatory system.

Answer 11

1. Suitable medium for transport, water-based to allow substances to dissolve.
2. Means of moving the medium and maintaining pressure throughout the body, such as the heart.
3. Means of controlling flow so it remains unidirectional, such as valves.

Question 12

Relate the structure of the chambers to their function.

Answer 12

• Atria: thin-walled and elastic, so they can stretch when filled with blood.
• Ventricles: thick muscular walls pump blood under high pressure. The left ventricle is thicker than the right because it has to pump blood all the way around the body.

Question 13

Relate the structure of the vessels to their function.

Answer 13

• Arteries have thick walls to handle high pressure without tearing and are muscular and elastic to control blood flow.
• Veins have thin walls due to low pressure, therefore requiring valves to ensure blood doesn’t flow backwards. Have less muscular and elastic tissue as they don’t have to control blood flow.

Question 14

Why are two pumps (left and right) needed instead of one?

Answer 14

To maintain blood pressure around the whole body. When blood passes through the narrow capillaries of the lungs, the pressure drops sharply and therefore would not be flowing strongly enough to continue around the whole body. Therefore, it is returned to the heart to increase the pressure.

Question 15

Describe what happens during cardiac diastole.

Answer 15

The heart is relaxed. Blood enters the atria, increasing the pressure and pushing open the atrioventricular valves. This allows blood to flow into the ventricles. Pressure in the heart is lower than in the arteries, so semilunar valves remain closed.

Question 16

Describe what happens during atrial systole.

Answer 16

The atria contract, pushing any remaining blood into the ventricles.

Question 17

Describe what happens during ventricular systole.

Answer 17

The ventricles contract. The pressure increases, closing the atrioventricular valves to prevent backflow, and opening the semilunar valves. Blood flows into the arteries.

Question 18

Name the nodes involved in heart contractions and where they are situated.

Answer 18

• Sinoatrial node (SAN) = wall of right atrium.
• Atrioventricular node (AVN) = in between the two atria.

Question 19

What does myogenic mean?

Answer 19

The heart’s condition is initiated from within the muscle itself, rather than by nerve impulses.

Question 20

Explain how the heart contracts.

Answer 20

• SAN initiates and spreads impulse across the atria, so they contract.
• AVN receives, delays, and then conveys the impulse down the bundle of His.
• Impulse travels into the Purkinje fibres which branch across the ventricles, so they contract from the bottom up.

Question 21

Why does the impulse need to be delayed?

Answer 21

In the impulse spread straight from the atria into the ventricles, there would not be enough time for all the blood to pass through and for the valves to close.

Question 22

How is the structure of capillaries suited to their function?

Answer 22

• Walls are only 1 cell thick; short diffusion pathway.
• Very narrow, so can permeate tissues and red blood cells can lie flat against the wall, effectively delivering oxygen to tissues.
• Numerous and highly branched, providing a large surface area.

Question 23

What is tissue fluid?

Answer 23

A watery substance containing glucose, amino acids, oxygen and other nutrients. It supplies these to the cells, whilst also removing any waste materials.

Question 24

How is tissue fluid formed?

Answer 24

As blood is pumped through increasingly small vessels, this creates hydrostatic pressure which forces fluid out of the capillaries. It bathes the cells, and then returns to the capillaries when the hydrostatic pressure is low enough.

Question 25

How is water transported in plants?

Answer 25

Through xylem vessels; long, continuous columns that also provide structural support to the stem.

Question 26

Explain the cohesion-tension theory.

Answer 26

Water molecules form hydrogen bonds with each other, causing them to ‘stick’ together (cohesion). The surface tension of the water also creates this sticking effect. Therefore, as water is lost through transpiration, more can be drawn up the stem.

Question 27

What are the three components of phloem vessels?

Answer 27

• Sieve tube elements = form a tube to transport sucrose in the dissolved form of sap.
• Companion cells = involved in ATP production for active loading of sucrose into sieve tubes.
• Plasmodesmata = gaps between cell walls where the cytoplasm links, allowing substances to flow.

Question 28

Name the process whereby organic materials are transported around the plant.

Answer 28

Translocation.

Question 29

How does sucrose in the leaf move into the phloem?

Answer 29

Sucrose enters companion cells of the phloem vessels by actively loading, which uses ATP and a diffusion gradient of hydrogen ions. Sucrose then diffuses from companion cells into the sieve tube elements through the plasmodesmata.

Question 30

How do phloem vessels transport sucrose around the plant?

Answer 30

As sucrose moves into the tube elements, water potential inside the phloem is reduced. This causes water to enter via osmosis from the xylem and increases hydrostatic pressure. Water moves along the sieve tubes towards areas of lower hydrostatic pressure, Sucrose diffuses into surrounding cells where it is needed.

Question 31

Give evidence for the mass flow hypothesis of translocation.

Answer 31

• Sap is released when a stem is cut, therefore there must be pressure in the phloem.
• There is a higher sucrose concentration in the leaves than the roots.
• Increasing sucrose levels in the leaves results in increased sucrose in the phloem.

Question 32

Give evidence against the mass flow hypothesis of translocation.

Answer 32

• The structure of sieve tubes seems to hinder mass flow.
• Not all solutes move at the same speed, as they would in mass flow.
• Sucrose is delivered at the same rate throughout the plant, rather than to areas with the lowest sucrose concentration.

Question 33

How can ringing experiments be used to investigate transport in plants?

Answer 33

The bark and phloem of a tree are removed in a ring, leaving behind the xylem. Eventually the tissues above the missing ring swells due to the accumulation of sucrose as the tissue below begins to die. Therefore, sucrose must be transported in the phloem.

Question 34

How can tracing experiments be used to investigate transport in plants?

Answer 34

Plants are grown in the presence of radioactive CO2, which will be incorporated into the plant’s sugars. Using autoradiography, we can see that the areas exposed to radiation correspond to where the phloem is.

Question 35

How can tracing experiments be used to investigate transport in plants?

Answer 35

Plants are grown in the presence of radioactive CO2, which will be incorporated into the plant’s sugars. Using autoradiography, we can see that the areas exposed to radiation correspond to where the phloem is.