Question

Endothelial cells and pericytes in the retina of the eye have different mechanisms for glucose uptake. The figure shows the rate of glucose uptake for each type of cell in the presence of increasing amounts of sodium. What do these results reveal about the glucose transporter in each cell type?

Short answer

At the epithelial cell, there is not enough information for protein-mediated transport.

Step-by-step solution

Introduction

Large or polar biological substances diffuse through membranes, aided by proteins and other molecules. Membrane proteins are proteins present at the cell membrane that interact with the biological membrane and ions. Glucose transporters are considered to move glucose-dependent on the concentration of the molecule.

Glucose transporter in each cell type

Because glucose absorption mechanisms differ inendothelium and pericytesin the retina of the eye, the graph depicts the rate of glucose uptake in both of these regions. The hyperbolic curveappears to be this curve. The sodium-dependent and protein-mediated mechanism is shown. Binding sites for sodium ions are found in the transport protein. Glucose transportis exactly proportional to Na⁺ at lower Na⁺ concentrations. The full Na⁺ binding sites on the protein transport chain are occupied when the concentration of Na⁺ is greater. As a result, the glucose transporter reaches itsmaximum speed. The growing concentration at the pericytes is aided by the entry of glucose. There is insufficient data on protein-mediated transport in epithelial cells.