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Urgent AS bio help please

Hey guys i just need some help with the following question. Thanks in advance

A student put plant cells in a solution of calcium ions. One containing oxygen and one without oxygen.

At a constant concentration of calcium ions, why is the rate of uptake of calcium ions by plant cells higher when the solution contains oxygen in comparion to the one without oxygen?

(edited 8 years ago)

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kkboyk

Original post by Aty100

Hey guys i just need some help with the following question. Thanks in advance

A student put plant cells in a solution. One containing oxygen and one without oxygen.

At a constant concentration of calcium ions, why is the rate of uptake of calcium ions by plant cells higher when the solution contains oxygen in comparion to the one without oxygen?

To answer this question you'll need to think about what happens in the plasma membrane. Lipid soluble molecules e.g. oxygen can diffuse through the pores in the membrane, but large non lipid soluble molecules such as Na+ and K+ have to be transported via protein channels and protein carriers. These carriers transport this molecules through facilitated diffusion and active transport.

Calcium ions are transported via the proteins by active transport, so why do you think oxygen is required?

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