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Related Concept Videos

Secondary Active Transport01:32

Secondary Active Transport

7.9K
One example of how cells use the energy contained in electrochemical gradients is demonstrated by glucose transport into cells. The ion vital to this process is sodium (Na+), which is typically present in higher concentrations extracellularly than in the cytosol. Such a concentration difference is due, in part, to the action of an enzyme "pump" embedded in the cellular membrane that actively expels Na+ from a cell. Importantly, as this pump contributes to the high concentration of...
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Active Transport01:14

Active Transport

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Active transport is a critical biological process that allows cells to move solutes against an electrochemical gradient. This process requires direct energy input and is characterized by its selectivity, saturability, and susceptibility to competitive inhibition.
Primary active transporters, like Na+, K+ and -ATPase, directly utilize ATP to move ions across the membrane. These transporters play significant roles in various physiological processes. For instance, Na+, K+ and -ATPase maintain...
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Primary Active Transport01:29

Primary Active Transport

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In contrast to passive transport, active transport involves a substance being moved through membranes in a direction against its concentration or electrochemical gradient. There are two types of active transport: primary active transport and secondary active transport. Primary active transport utilizes chemical energy from ATP to drive protein pumps embedded in the cell membrane. With energy from ATP, the pumps transport ions against their electrochemical gradients—a direction they would...
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Membrane Transporters01:31

Membrane Transporters

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Transporters are essential membrane transport proteins with functions related to cell nutrition, homeostasis, communication, etc. Approximately 7% of all genes in the human genome code for transporters or transporter-related proteins.
Transporters are mainly composed of alpha-helices, built from bundles of ten or more helices traversing the plasma membrane. The solute-binding sites are located midway, where some of the helices are broken or distorted, making space for the binding site through...
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Drug Absorption Mechanism: Carrier-Mediated Membrane Transport01:19

Drug Absorption Mechanism: Carrier-Mediated Membrane Transport

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Certain large, lipid-insoluble drug molecules that resemble amino acids, peptides, or glucose, require specialized carrier proteins to facilitate their diffusion across cell membranes. This transport can occur through either facilitated diffusion, which does not require energy input, or active transport, which does require energy input.
Facilitated diffusion is a passive process that utilizes human Solute Carrier (SLC) transporters. These transporters bind to the drug, undergo structural...
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Carrier-Mediated Transport01:06

Carrier-Mediated Transport

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Carrier-mediated transport is a pivotal process in drug absorption, particularly for lipid-insoluble drugs, and encompasses facilitated diffusion and active transport. Facilitated diffusion allows drugs to move along their concentration gradient without energy expenditure, while active transport utilizes ATP to drive drug movement against this gradient.
Active transport involves two types of membrane-spanning transporters: uptake and efflux. Uptake transporters are expressed in the small...
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Introduction to Solid Supported Membrane Based Electrophysiology
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General principles of secondary active transporter function.

Oliver Beckstein1, Fiona Naughton1

  • 1Department of Physics, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona 85287, USA.

Biophysics Reviews
|April 18, 2022
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Integral membrane proteins use energy to transport molecules against gradients. Recent structural and simulation data reveal common mechanisms, like alternating access, unifying transporter functions.

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Area of Science:

  • Biochemistry
  • Structural Biology
  • Molecular Biophysics

Background:

  • Integral membrane proteins catalyze active transport across cell membranes.
  • Secondary active transporters utilize ion gradients (e.g., Na+, H+) to drive substrate flux.
  • The alternating access model describes transporter conformational changes.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To elucidate the molecular mechanisms of secondary active transport.
  • To identify common principles across diverse transporter families.
  • To connect protein structure to transporter function.

Main Methods:

  • High-resolution crystal structure analysis.
  • Detailed computer simulations.
  • Kinetic modeling of conformational and binding states.

Main Results:

  • Inverted repeat symmetry is key to transporter bi-stable function.
  • Three classes of alternating access mechanisms identified: rocker-switch, rocking-bundle, and elevator.
  • Transporters function as gated pores with coupled gates, including occluded states.
  • A unified kinetic model integrates symporter, antiporter, and uniporter functions as extremes.

Conclusions:

  • Structural insights reveal conserved molecular principles in secondary active transport.
  • The gated pore model provides a framework for understanding transporter conformational dynamics.
  • Kinetic modeling bridges structural data and functional diversity in membrane transport.