Physiology Chapter 1,2

Physiology- study of animal function- the study of how animals work

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Integrates knowledge at Ecological and evolutionary level, Cellular level,

and Biochemical level

Animals- eukaryotic multicellular heterotrophs

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Porifera (sponges) do not have true tissues

Eumentazoans (most of the rest animals)- have true tissues: Nervous,
Muscle, Epithelial, and Connective

Homeostasis- regulation of the internal environment to maintain relatively stable

and constant conditions
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Regulators- animals that can maintain stable internal environments although

they require a lot of energy

Conformers- animals that cannot maintain stable internal environments but
they do not expend a lot of energy

Negative Feedback Control- a control system that opposes deviations of the

controlled variable from the set point
Positive Feedback Control- a control system that reinforces deviations of a
controlled variable from the set point
Colligative Properties- properties of solutions that depend on the ratio of the
number of solute particles to the number of solvent molecules in a solution, and not
on the type of chemical species present
- Osmotic Pressure- the minimum pressure which needs to be applied to a
solution to prevent the inward flow of water across a semipermeable
membrane
- Freezing Point Depression- describes the process in which adding a solute
to a solvent decreases the freezing point of the solvent
- Boiling Point Elevation- describes the phenomenon that the boiling point of
a liquid (a solvent) will be higher when another compound is added, meaning
that a solution has a higher boiling point than a pure solvent.
- Depression of Water Vapor Pressure- increased solute concentration in a
solvent will lower

Chapter 2
Phospholipid- polar head made of positive choline and negative phosphate, bound
to glycerol by ester linkages, bound to two nonpolar hydrocarbon chains (fatty
acids); amphipathic
- Found on cell membranes and intracellular membranes
- Form bilayers spontaneously when placed in aqueous solutions to become
more stable

Can move relative to each other because they are not covalently bounded;
fluidity

Fluidity depends on degree of saturation of hydrocarbon tails; saturated

hydrocarbons do NOT have double bonds whereas unsaturated hydrocarbons do
have double bonds
Sterols- found on cell membranes usually as cholesterol and cholesterol esters;
typically found in 1 to 10 ratios with phospholipids on cell membrane
Integral membrane proteins (transmembrane)- part of membrane and cannot
be removed without taking the membrane apart
- Contain both hydrophobic and hydrophilic regions with amino acid strings
Peripheral membrane proteins- are associated with membrane but can be
removed without destroying the membrane
- Are bonded noncovalently and are only on one side of the membrane
Five Functional Types of Membrane Proteins- Channels, Transporters (carriers),
enzymes, receptors, and structural proteins
- Not mutually exclusive
- Usually consist of repeating structural patterns known as domains
Carbohydrates are hydrophilic and are usually found covalently bonded to lipids or
proteins
Epithelia- a sheet of cells that covers a body surface surface or organ, or lines a
cavity
Simple epithelium- consists of a single layer of cells; found in intestines, kidney
tubules, blood vessels, and sweat glands
- Has a apical surface facing the cavity or open space and a basal surface
facing toward the underlying tissue
- Typically rests on a thin, permeable, nonliving sheet of matrix material called
the basement membrane
- Categorized as squamous: low and flat, cuboidal: cube shaped, columnar:
long and high; lines small intestine
Tight junction- a place where the cell membranes of adjacent cells are tightly
joined just below the apical surface; encircle each cell preventing passage of fluids
between cells
Septate junction- resemble tight junctions except they have finer structure
Desmosome- a junction at which mutually adhering glycoprotein filaments from
two adjacent cells intermingle across the space between the cells; only occur in tiny
isolated spots and not continuous bands
Gap junction- similar to desmosomes in that they occur at discrete spots but are
different because they have open pores between cells

Transcellular path- materials must cross both apical and basolateral cell
membranes
Paracellular path- materials must be able to move through the band or tight
junctions, in many epithelia, only very small molecules are able to do this

Enzymes are protein catalysts that speed chemical reactions and regulate reactions
- Catalysts accelerate reactions without being altered in the end
- E + S E-S complex E-P complex E + P
- Depends on 3D shape that is stabilized by weak noncovalent bonds- H bonds,
van der waals, and hydrophobic interactions
Reaction velocity- amount of substrate converted to product per unit of time
- At low substrate concentrations, reaction velocity increases as substrate conc
increases until Vmax is reached and enzyme molecules become saturated
Hyperbolic kinetics- occur when each enzyme molecule has just one substratebinding site for the particular substrate of interest or multiple sites that behave
independently
- V= (Vmax [S])/ [S] + Km
Maximum Velocity (Vmax)- saturated enzyme-catalyzed reaction converts
substrate product
- Properties of Vmax are determined by the number of active enzymes, the
catalytic effectiveness of each enzyme, and affinity of enzyme
molecules for substrate
Turnover number (kcat)- the number of substrate molecules converted to product
per second by each enzyme molecule saturated
Transition state- the intermediate chemical state that a substrate molecule must
pass through before forming a product molecule
Activation energy- the energy needed for a reaction to occur
- Extent to which enzymes lower AE is one factor that determines an enzymes
catalytic effectiveness
- Also how fast enzymes can change shape
Enzyme-substrate proclivity- the probability of the enzyme and substrate to
meet
Half-saturation constant (Km)- the substrate concentration required to attain
one half of the max reaction velocity
Ligand- any molecule that selectively binds by noncovalent bonds to a structurally
and chemically complementary site on a specific protein; not just enzymes
- Positive Cooperativity- ligand binding at one site facilitates binding of other
sites

Negative Cooperativity- ligand binding at one site inhibits binding at other

sites
Homotropic and Heterotropic cooperativity

Allosteric modulation- the modulation of the catalytic properties of an enzyme by

the binding of non-substrate ligands to specific nonsubstrate-binding sites: allosteric
sites
- Increases the affinity of the molecules active sites
- Allosteric inhibition- decreases affinity for substrate
Isozymes- different molecular forms of an enzyme produced by a single species
Interspecific enzyme homologs- different molecular forms of an enzyme coded
by homologous gene loci in different species
Example. LDH-A4 is more effective in using pyruvic acid as a substrate. Reduction of
pyruvic acid to lactic acid is essential for skeletal muscles to make more ATP than O2
supply permits.

Chapter 5: Transport of Solutes and Water

The solutions within cells do not differ greatly from outside solutions (similar
osmotic pressures)
However the solute compositions of the two solutions differ dramatically
- K+ concentration is much greater on the inside
- Na+ and Cl- concentrations are greater on the outside
Equilibrium- state of minimal capacity to do work under locally prevailing
conditions
- Passive transport mechanisms are only capable of carrying material in the
direction of eq
- Active transport mechanisms can carry material in the direction opposing
equilibrium
Simple diffusion- the transport of molecules from a region of high concentration to
a region of low concentration without using energy or transport proteins
Fick Diffusion Equation:
J = D((C1 C2)/X)
J= net rate of diffusion into low-concentration region
D= proportionality factor (diffusion coefficient), determined by material of
membrane and temperature
C1= region of high concentration
C2= region of low concentration
X= distance separating C1 and C2; can increase due to a boundary layer created by
outward diffusion, but increasing flow of water outside can reduce size of boundary
layer
J = D((C1 C2)/X)

Bulk solution- the solution that is away from contact with a membrane- the
concentrations of neg and pos charges are always equal therefore net charge is
zero; this means in bulk solutions, charges on solutes do not affect their diffusion
and is only based on concentration differences
However, along cell membranes or epithelia, electrical attraction and repulsion can
play large roles because lipid bilayers in cell membranes can maintain separation of
oppositely charged ions- by acting like capacitors in electrical circuits
Ion channels- permits the passive transport of inorganic ions
- Ions do not actually bind but selectively pass through
Gated Channels- open and close to increase or decrease transport of ions by
conformational changes to structure of protein channel
- Voltage gated, Ligand Gated, Phosphorylation gated, Stretch gated
Electrical gradient- difference in voltage between two sides of membrane that
affects diffusion of all charged solutes
Concentration gradient- difference in concentration of a solute between two side
of membrane that only affects a solutes own gradient
The Nernst equation helps compare concentration and electrical gradients to
determine which is stronger and thus predict the diffusion of an ion
Electrochemical equilibrium- the equilibrium of a charged solute when the
concentration effect on its diffusion and the electrical effect are equal but opposite
Facilitated diffusion- a form of passive transport for polar organic solutes that
always:
1. Occurs in the direction of the electrochemical equilibrium
2. Move across membrane much faster than they could if not associated with
transporter proteins
3. Requires solutes to bind reversibly with binding sites on transporter protein
Primary Active transport- uses ATP to directly or indirectly to transport molecules
across the membrane
- Electrouetrual if no electrical gradient is created and electrogenic if a charge
imbalance is created
- Na+/K+ pump transports 3 Na+ out of cell and 2 K+ into cell which creates a
charge difference
Secondary Active Transport- draws energy from an electrochemical gradient
created by ATPase pumps to drive transport
- Na+/glucose Cotransporter forces glucose against its electrochemical
gradient with the help of the Na+ electrochemical gradient
- Antiporter/Symporter- moves two solutes in obligatorily linked fashion in
opposite directions
Colligative properties- depend simply on the number of dissolved entities per unit
of volume rather than the chemical nature of the dissolved entities

Only dissolved materials affect the colligative properties of solutions

Osmosis- the passive transport of water across a membrane

Osmoloarity- moles of solute particles/ liter
- A solution with the higher osmolarity is considered to be hyperosmotic to a
solution with lower osmolarity, while the solution with the lower osmolarity
would be considered hypoosmotic to the solution with higher osmolarity.
- 1 molar solution of sucrose is ~ 1 osmoles/liter
- 1 molar solution of NaCl is ~ 2 osmoles/liter*
Tonicity- a property of a solution defined by a cells response when exposed to the
solution
A solution is said to be isotonic if cells do not shrink or swell in the solution
If cells swell in a solution then that solution is said to be hypotonic.
- If cells shrink in a solution then that solution is said to be hypertonic
Aquaporin- passive water-channel protein that is always in direction of equalizing
osmotic pressure
- H2O moves through in single file
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Electric Current (I)- the net movement of charges

Voltage- the separation of positive and negative electrical charges, or electrical
potential difference
Resistance (R)- limits the current flow measured in ohms
- A membrane exhibits resistance resulting from the fact that ions must flow
through restrictive ion channels
- Without membrane resistance to current flow, ions would freely diffuse
across the membrane and would not be able to maintain a potential difference
Capacitance- separates charge
- A membrane exhibits capacitance because of the insulating properties of the
bilayer, which allow oppositely charged ions to accumulate along the inner and
outer surfaces of the membrane
Ohms Law:

V= IR
V= change in potential (graded potential)
Time constant ()- the time it takes the voltage change to reach 63% of its final
value

= RC

Passive spread (electrotonic conduction)- the voltage change will decrease

exponentially with distance from the source producing it
- Steepness of this decrease is described by the membrane length constant ,
which represents the distance at which the decaying voltage change is 37% of
its value at the origin
Nernst Equation- relation between the concentration difference of a permeating
ion across a membrane and the membrane potential at equilibrium
E = (RT/zF)*ln(Cout/Cin)
Equilibrium potential- the value of the membrane potential at which specific ions
are at electrochemical equilibrium
The difference in ion concentrations between intra and extracellular fluids result
from the active transport of some ions and the passive distribution of other ions
- Neither Na+ nor K+ are at passive equilibrium because of the Na/K ATPase
pump
- A- anions are abundant inside the cell so they limit the tendency of K+ ions to
flow out and Cl- ions to flow inside the cell (Donnnon equilibrium)
- Membrane is only slightly permeable to Na+ so it enters slowly but pumped
out as fast as it diffuses in even though the driving force is great bc of both
electrical and chemical gradient
- Membrane is more permeable to K+ but since K+ is closer to equilibrium, the
driving force for K+ is low
- The resting membrane potential is largely determined by K+
concentrations bc cell membrane is more permeable to K+ than any other ion

Goldman Equation:
Vm = (RT/F)ln((Pk[K]o + Pna[Na]o + Pcl[Cl]i)/(Pk[K] + [Pna[Na]i +Pcl[Cl]o)
Voltage Clamp- an electronic device that allows the experimenter to measure
whole-cell ionic currents, by setting membrane potential very rapidly to a
predetermined value, and measuring the imposed current
- The clamp circuit generates an opposing (bucking) current hat is exactly
opposite to the net ionic current
- The capacitive transient is not ionic current but just a shift in accumulated
charges on either side of the membrane
- TTX blocks Na+ voltage gate channels which inhibits the intial inward flow but
doesnt affect the outward flow of K+ ions
- TEA blocks K+ voltage gate channels which inihibits the outward flow of K+
but doesnt affect the inward flow of Na+ ions
- When Na+ concentrations are equal on both sides of membrane, only current
is from K+ ions

Na+ and Ca+ voltage gated channels are psuedotetramers and K+ voltage gated
channel is a tetramer
- P loop mediates ion selectivity
- The cytoplasmic loop inactivates the channel by blocking the opening from
the cytoplasmic side
- Segment 4 of each domain is a voltage sensor
Nonspiking neurons- produces graded membrane potential changes in response
to a stimulus or synaptic input bc they substantially lack voltage gated sodium
channel
- Typically have short axons so a graded potential change can be sufficient to
spread electrotonically to the axon and evoke graded neurotransmitter release
- Examples include photoreceptors, bipolar cells, granule cells of olfactory bulb
Spiking neurons- can produce action potentials and are typically longer
Conduction Velocity increases with:
1. Increased axon diameter bc of the longer length constants; Ratio of Rm/Ri
increases linearly with increasing diameter
2. Myelination- concentric layers of glial membrane wrapped around an axon
-Schwann cell in PNS and oligodendrocytes in CNS
- Nodes of Ranvier- gaps at which glial wrapping are absent
- Saltatory conduction- action potential jumps from node to node without
propagation in the internode: region between the nodes of ranvier
- Increases resistance at internodes so current doenst flow outwards and
decreases membrane capacitance so time constant is not prolonged, thus
myelination greatly increases conduction velocity by increasing the axon
length constant without increasing the time constant
- Allows smaller axons to conduct faster which allows more axons to be
present
3. Increasing temperature by 10C nearly doubles conduction velocity for both
myelinated and unmyelinated axons