alleryStart learning →Two different solutes sit in the same extracellular fluid. How does each one diffuse?
ABoth follow the steeper of the two gradients
BBoth stop until the other has finished moving
CEach follows its own independent gradient
DEach waits for a carrier protein to be free
Answer & Solution
Correct answer: C. Each follows its own independent gradient
1. Each separate substance in a medium has its own concentration gradient, independent of the gradients of other materials.
2. Each substance then diffuses according to that gradient alone.
3. Within one system there will therefore be different rates of diffusion for the different substances present.
4. Nothing couples the two solutes together, so neither waits for the other and neither borrows the other's gradient.
_Source: OpenStax Biology (1st ed., CC BY 4.0), Ch 5 "Structure and Function of Plasma Membranes", section 5.2 Passive Transport_
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