Question

Facilitated diffusion can be described as the favorable movement of one solute down its concentration gradient being coupled with the unfavorable movement of a second solute up its concentration gradient. True or false?

Answer 1

Facilitated diffusion does not couple the movement of one solute down its concentration gradient with the movement of another solute up its gradient; rather, it is a passive process where substances move down their concentration gradient through transport proteins.

Step-by-step explanation:

The statement that facilitated diffusion couples the movement of one solute down its concentration gradient with the unfavorable movement of a second solute up its concentration gradient is false. Facilitated diffusion is a process in which substances move across the plasma membrane down their concentration gradient with the aid of transport proteins, and this process does not require energy input. A typical example of facilitated diffusion is the transportation of glucose across a cell membrane using a transport protein called the glucose transporter. During this process, each solute crosses the membrane independently, driven by its own concentration gradient without the need for energy expenditure or the coupling of the movement of another solute against its gradient.

Answer 2

False.

Step-by-step explanation:

In Facilitated Diffusion, which is a type of passive transport, the solute moves down its concentration gradient passing through transmembrane proteins that can be either channels or carriers. The transport described in the question is coupled transport and is a kind of active transport.