Tight junctions are protein junctions that provide a water-tight seal between cells. They ensure that materials must enter the cells (through diffusion or active transport) to pass through the tissue. Tight junctions are characteristic of cells lining the digestive tract, where materials are required to pass through cells (not between them) before they can travel into the blood. Can someone explain more clearly why lining the digestive tract?

Tight junctions are protein junctions that provide a water-tight seal between cells. They ensure that materials must enter the cells (through diffusion or active transport) to pass through the tissue. Tight junctions are characteristic of cells lining the digestive tract, where materials are required to pass through cells (not between them) before they can travel into the blood. Can someone explain more clearly why lining the digestive tract?

Biology Today and Tomorrow without Physiology (MindTap Course List)

5th Edition

ISBN:9781305117396

Author:Cecie Starr, Christine Evers, Lisa Starr

Publisher:Cecie Starr, Christine Evers, Lisa Starr

Chapter3: Cell Structure

Section: Chapter Questions

Problem 2CT

See similar textbooks

Similar questions

Cancer cells can eventually metastasize (or spread) from their tissue of organ to distant sites throughout the body. Which of the three types of cytoskeletal components could be used to detect the tissue of organ of a metastatic cancer cell? Why? (For example, if you took a biopsy of a tumor that had spread to the lungs, how could use what you know about the cytoskeleton to determine where the cancer originated? )
Is the following statement true or false? Digestive enzymes in the lysosome are inactivated when the lysosome becomes acidic.
The liver is involved in detoxification of many poisons and drugs. Which of the following structures is primarily involved in this process and therefore abundant in liver cells? Select one: A. lysosomes B. nuclear envelope C. smooth ER D. Golgi apparatus E. rough ER
Microvilli are commonly seen in cells involved in absorption of materials (like intestinal cells) because: none of the above they move cells forward they produce greater surface area of plasma membrane they move substances forward
Secretory vesicles fuse with the cell membrane to release their contents to the outside of the cell. In this process, the membrane of the secretory vesicle becomes part of the cell membrane because small pieces of the membrane are continually added to the cell membrane, one would expect the cell membrane to become larger and larger as secretion continues. The cell membrane stays the same size, however. Explain how this happens.
Shock (failure of the circulatory system) is an abnormal condition in which blood flow is inadequate. The most common causes of shock are massive blood loss and obstruction of blood flow. As a result of shock, there is a failure to provide cells with oxygen and nutrients. In this circumstance, cells swell and lysosomal membranes rupture, among other effects. Describe how energy is generated during shock and why cell structure becomes destabilized.
Release of lysosomal enzymes from white blood cells during a local immune attack can contribute to the symptoms of inflammation. Suppose to alleviate inflammation, you develop a drug that destroys all lysosomes. Would this drug have negative side effects? Why or why not? Answer this question in 1-2 sentences.
Why is it unnecessary for our cells to have a cell wall? What might happen if the lysosomes inside a cell stopped working properly?
The mouth is part of our digestive system. It would make sense then, that we would have more of the digestive organelles in our cheek cells. What is the digestive organelles in the cell? What is its function?
Which of the following processes results in the formation of food vesicle within the cell whose contents will subsequently be digested by enzymes in the lysosome a) receptor mediated endocytosis b) phagocytosis c) pinocytosis d) exocytosis
In plants, the cell wall forms as a young plant cell secretes polysaccharides onto the outer surface of its plasma membrane. Being thin and pliable, this primary wall allows the cell to enlarge and change shape. At maturity, cells in some plant tissues deposit material onto the primary wall’s inner surface. Why doesn’t this secondary wall form on the outer surface of the primary wall?
Many of the cell’s hydrolytic enzymes are located in the lysosome, where the pH is ∼5. What would you expect to be the optimum pH for these enzymes, and why would this protect the rest of the cell from the destructive power of these enzymes upon the accidental rupture of a lysosome?