Toad bladders were challenged with vasopressin at one temperature, fixed on the mucosa with 1% glutaraldehyde, and then subjected to an osmotic gradient at another temperature. Thus, the temperature dependence of vasopressin action on membrane permeability was distinguished from the temperature dependence of osmotic water flux. As the temperature was raised from 20 degrees to 38 degrees C, ther...

The functional significance of water channels in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) root membranes was assessed using light scattering to measure vesicle shrinking in response to osmotic gradients rapidly imposed in a stopped flow apparatus. Vesicles were obtained from both a plasma membrane fraction and a plasma membrane-depleted endomembrane fraction including tonoplast vesicles. Osmotic water perm...

Despite steady advances in the technology, desalination remains one of the most expensive ways to produce potable water. But as water scarcity forces communities to find new sources of drinking water, scientists are developing innovations that may soon make desalination a reasonable option for many more communities. The newest approach to desalination is membrane systems, which include reverse ...

In order to clarify the mechanism of the increased osmotic resistance of red blood cells in lead workers 19 men employed in a lead refining factory and 18 control male workers employed in railway construction were examined for red cell count, haematocrit, MCV, blood and urine lead concentrations, urine coproporphyrin and delta-aminolevulinic acid, osmotic resistance of red cells, lecithin-chole...