Question

if 300 na ions are transported outside the cell in one second by a sodium-potassium pump, how many pump cycles (where 3 na ions are pumped outside and 2 k ions are pumped inside the cell in each cycle) happen in one second? that is, find the number of cycles required to transport 300 na ions outside of the cell in one second. how many k ions are transported inside the cell during that time? explain.

Answer 1

In one second, 300 sodium ions are transported outside the cell, which requires 100 pump cycles.

During that time, 200 potassium ions are transported inside the cell.

Step-by-step explanation:

The sodium-potassium pump is an active transport pump that moves 3 sodium ions out of the cell and 2 potassium ions into the cell in each pump cycle.

If 300 sodium ions are transported outside the cell in one second, we need to determine how many pump cycles occur in one second and how many potassium ions are transported inside the cell during that time.

Since 3 sodium ions are transported out in each pump cycle, we divide 300 by 3 to find the number of pump cycles:

= 300 / 3

= 100 pump cycles per second.

In each pump cycle, 2 potassium ions are transported inside the cell.

Therefore, in 100 pump cycles, a total of 100 x 2 = 200 potassium ions are transported inside the cell.