Vesicle Traffic and Cellular Transport

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The process of cellular transport is a concept we have all learned during our high school biology classes. In a eukaryotic cell, there are two types of cellular transport. Passive transport does not utilize ATP, or adenosine triphosphate, to move molecules or waste. Instead, it uses the process of diffusion, in which substances move between the plasma membrane of the cell from high concentration of the substance to low concentration. The substances that are usually moved are small, uncharged molecules, such as carbon dioxide. In facilitated diffusion, transport proteins are used to transport charged molecules, like ions. They are embedded in the plasma membrane of the cell and help bring substances in and out of the cell with the concentration gradient of the substance. Active transport utilizes ATP to move substances against the concentration gradient. In other words, substances are moved from low concentration to high concentration through the use of ATP. When large molecules are moved across the plasma membrane, vesicles that are formed in the membrane engulf the molecules within the cell and release the molecule outside the cell. This process is known as exocytosis. Endocytosis is the opposite of exocytosis where the cell takes in the large molecules using the vesicles formed by the plasma membrane.
But how do cells know where to transport materials, how to make vesicles, and what vesicles to fuse with? The 2013 Noble Peace Prize winners in Medicine, James E. Rothman, Randy W. Schekman, and Thomas C. Südhof discovered the mechanism behind vesicle traffic and how cells transport materials between other cells. These three winners were able to find out the secret behind vesicular traffic in three different experiments. Schekman ...

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... the levels of glucose in the blood. Glucose is needed so the body has enough energy to function and insulin helps glucose enter blood cells. As a result, the pancreas makes a surplus of insulin in order to control the blood glucose levels. But the body still isn’t using insulin properly! And then the pancreas can’t keep up so the blood glucose levels are really high! So how are we supposed to regulate the glucose in the blood?! The answer relies on James E. Rothman, Randy W. Schekman, and Thomas C. Südhof’s discovery on vesicular trafficking. By their discoveries, we can find a cure that allows glucose to enter the red blood cells without a problem.

Works Cited

"The 2013 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine – Advanced
Information".Nobelprize.org. Nobel Media AB 2013. Web. 30 Nov 2013.
http://www.nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/medicine/laureates/2013/advanced.html

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