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CIE IGCSE Biology Your notes

3.1 Diffusion, Osmosis & Active Transport

Contents
3.1.1 Diffusion in Biology
3.1.2 Factors that Influence Diffusion
3.1.3 Water
3.1.4 Osmosis
3.1.5 Osmosis Experiments
3.1.6 Osmosis in Animals & Plants
3.1.7 Active Transport
3.1.8 Proteins & Active Transport

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3.1.1 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 siz e 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

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Examples of diffusion in living organisms

You will need to learn examples of substances that organisms obtain by diffusion Your notes
Don’t forget that plants require oxygen for respiration at all times, as well as carbon 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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Brownian motion

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3.1.2 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
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

Exam Tip
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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3.1.3 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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3.1.4 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 (high concentration of water)
to a more concentrated solution (low concentration of water) across a partially permeable
membrane
In doing this, water is moving down its concentration gradient
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

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3.1.5 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

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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
The solution surrounding the tissue is more dilute than the plant tissue (which is more
concentrated)
If plant tissue loses mass:
Water must have moved out of the plant tissue into the solution surrounding it by osmosis

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The solution surrounding the tissue is more concentrated than the plant tissue (which is more
dilute)
If there is no overall change in mass: Your notes
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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3.1.6 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

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Osmosis: Extended
Osmosis is the net movement of water molecules from a region of higher water potential (dilute Your notes
solution) to a region of lower water potential (concentrated solution), through a partially
permeable membrane
It can get a little confusing to talk about the 'concentration of water' when we also talk about
solutions being ‘concentrated’ (having a lot of solute in them), so instead we can say that a dilute
solution has a high water potential (the right-hand side of the diagram below) and a
concentrated solution has a low water potential (the left-hand side of the diagram below)

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How osmosis works

Exam Tip
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.

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Osmosis in Animals & Plants: Extended

Plant cells in solutions of different concentrations Your notes
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
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

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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 Your notes
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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A plasmolysed plant cell

Animal cells in solutions of different concentrations

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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 Your notes
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

Effect of osmosis on animal cells

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3.1.7 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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3.1.8 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

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Protein Carriers: Extended

Active transport works by using carrier proteins embedded in the cell membrane to pick up Your notes
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

Carrier proteins in active transport

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

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