Skip to main content
Back

Passive vs. Active Transport definitions

Control buttons has been changed to "navigation" mode.
1/15
  • Passive Transport
    Movement of molecules from high to low concentration across membranes without energy input, driven by concentration gradients.
  • Active Transport
    Movement of molecules from low to high concentration across membranes, requiring cellular energy, typically in the form of ATP.
  • Concentration Gradient
    Difference in the amount of a substance across a membrane, driving passive movement from high to low regions.
  • ATP
    High-energy molecule used by cells to power processes such as active transport against concentration gradients.
  • Membrane
    Biological barrier that regulates the passage of molecules into and out of cells, involved in both passive and active transport.
  • Transport Protein
    Membrane-embedded molecule that facilitates the movement of substances across the cell boundary, classified by direction and number of molecules moved.
  • Uniporter
    Type of transport protein that moves a single molecule in one direction across the membrane.
  • Symporter
    Transport protein that simultaneously moves two or more molecules in the same direction across the membrane.
  • Antiporter
    Transport protein that moves two or more molecules in opposite directions across the membrane at the same time.
  • Energy Requirement
    Cellular necessity for input, such as ATP, to drive processes like active transport against natural gradients.
  • Directionality
    Characteristic describing whether molecules move in the same or opposite directions during transport across membranes.
  • Co-transport
    Simultaneous movement of multiple molecules across a membrane, as seen in symporters and antiporters.
  • High Concentration
    Region where a particular molecule is present in greater abundance, serving as the starting point for passive movement.
  • Low Concentration
    Region where a molecule is less abundant, typically the endpoint for passive movement or starting point for active movement.
  • Biological Membrane
    Selective barrier composed of lipids and proteins, crucial for regulating molecular traffic in cells.