Cell Physiology and Membrane Transport

What this unit covers

The resources here follow the cell from the outside in. Early material looks at body fluid compartments: where water sits in the body, and how plasma, interstitial fluid and intracellular fluid differ. From there the focus moves to the plasma membrane, its lipids and proteins, and what can or cannot cross the phospholipid bilayer.

Transport and excitable cells

Many listed items deal with diffusion, osmolarity, tonicity, passive and active transport, and vesicle-mediated transport such as endocytosis. Others go deeper into the Na+-K+ pump, voltage activated K+ channels, glucose transport, epithelial transport and calcium handling. Some quizzes, such as the one on cell physiology and general physiology of excitable tissues, extend into membrane potential and the action potential.

Where to start

1. Open the quiz on Body Fluid Compartments to see what you already know about water, membranes and the bilayer.
2. Read a mind map such as Membrane proteins or Passive Processes to see how the ideas connect.
3. Work through flashcards like Vesicle mediated transport or Transport accross a cell membrane to fix the key terms.
4. Return to a quiz, for example Mechanisms of Membrane Transport or Passive Transport, Osmosis, and Tonicity, and check what has stuck.

Using quizzes and maps together

Use a quiz first to spot weak points, then pick the mind map that matches the topic you missed. Flashcards suit short, repeated recall. If you want worked calculations, the Cellular Physiology I deck includes a dye-dilution problem on plasma volume. Teachers can use the quizzes, flowcharts and slide sets as ready-made material for a class.

Where it sits

This unit belongs to the Foundations of Physiology strand in the subject Physiology. It gives the cell-level base that later topics build on.

Choose one resource that matches what you are studying this week and give it a try.