Osmotically active

Osmotic Control. Several oral osmotic systems (OROS) have been developed by the Alza Corporation to allow controUed deHvery of highly water-soluble dmgs. The elementary osmotic pump (94) consists of an osmotic core containing dmg surrounded by a semi-permeable membrane having a laser-drilled deHvery orifice. The system looks like a conventional tablet, yet the outer layer allows only the diffusion of water into the core of the unit. The rate of water diffusion into the system is controUed by the membrane s permeabUity to water and by the osmotic activity of the core. Because the membrane does not expand as water is absorbed, the dmg solution must leave the interior of the tablet through the smaU orifice at the same rate that water enters by osmosis. The osmotic driving force is constant until aU of the dmg is dissolved thus, the osmotic system maintains a constant deHvery rate of dmg until the time of complete dissolution of the dmg. 

As Morawetz puts the matter, an acceptance of the validity of the laws governing colligative properties (i.e., properties such as osmotic pressure) for polymer solutions had no bearing on the question whether the osmotically active particle is a molecule or a molecular aggregate . The colloid chemists, as we have seen, in regard to polymer solutions came to favour the second alternative, and hence created the standoff with the proponents of macromolecular status outlined above. 

The semi-permeable membrane is the heart of the reverse osmosis separation process. Semi-permeable membranes for reverse osmosis are broadly divided into two types. The earhest practical membrane was of the asymmetric type [3-6]. It consisted of an osmotically active surface layer with very small pores (less than 1 nm) with a thickness of 30-100 nm. This layer was physically supported on a porous substructure, whose porosity increased with distance from the surface layer. In such a membrane, the... 

A number of chapters in this volume (especially Chapters 5 and 6) provide a more thorough discussion of osmotic adjustment by intact plants and tissues in response to environmental stress and the role of osmotically active solutes in this response. The following section focuses on the role of organic osmotica in the response of plant cells to salt stress. Cultured plant cells offer the opportunity to evaluate the effect of both internally synthesised and externally administered organic osmotica. 

Moderate soil salt concentration. These are external concentrations at which substantial osmotic adjustment in the plant is required, and could not be achieved with NaCl without compartmentation between cytoplasm and vacuole. Damage may still be attributable to excessive internal concentrations, but simply minimising salt uptake is not a sufficient answer. The concentration of osmotically active solutes within the cells has to be... 

Lactulose is the foundation of pharmacologic therapy to prevent and treat hepatic encephalopathy. It is a non-digestible synthetic disaccharide laxative that is hydrolyzed in the gut to an osmotically-active compound that draws water into the colon and stimulates defecation. Lactulose also lowers colonic pH, which favors the conversion of ammonia (NH3) to ammonium (NHf).48 Ammonium is ionic and cannot cross back into systemic circulation it is eliminated in the feces. Lactulose is usually initiated at 15 to 30 mL two to three times per day and titrated to a therapeutic goal of two to four soft bowel movements daily.20 49 50... 

Osmolality is a measure of the number of osmotically active particles per unit of solution, independent of the weight or nature of the particle. Equimolar concentrations of all substances in the undissociated state exert the same osmotic pressure. Although the normal serum osmolality is 280 to 300 mOsm/kg (280 to 300 mmol/kg), multiple scenarios exist where this value becomes markedly abnormal. The calculated serum osmolality helps determine deviations in TBW content. As such, it is often useful to calculate the serum osmolality as follows ... 

Hypertonic hyponatremia is usually associated with significant hyperglycemia. Glucose is an osmotically active agent that leads to an increase in TBW with little change in total body sodium. For every 60 mg/dL (3.33 mmol/L) increase in serum glucose above 200 mg/dL (11.1 mmol/L), the sodium is expected to decrease by approximately 1 mEq/L (1 mmol/L). Appropriate treatment of the hyperglycemia will return the serum sodium to normal.15... 

Sodium is the most abundant extracellular cation in the body and is the major osmotically active ion in the extracellular fluid. Sodium concentration determines the distribution of... 

Additional epithelial aqueous pathways of significantly smaller radius (<3 A) have also been documented utilizing both equivalent pore and circuit theory [25], These pathways may correspond to specific channels through lipid membranes as opposed to paracellular pathways. Osmotically activated ion channels [35] and even specific water channels [36] have been characterized in renal epithelia. In intestinal epithelia, mucosal chloride channels have been studied in secreting crypt cells, and basolateral potassium channels in colonic epithelia serve cellular ion and volume homeostatic functions. 

The answer is b. (Hardman, pp 695-697.) A significant increase in the amount of any osmotically active solute in voided urine is usually accompanied by an increase in urine volume Osmotic diuretics affect diuresis through this principle. The osmotic diuretics (such as mannitol) are nonelectrolytes that are freely filtered at the glomerulus, undergo limited re absorption by the renal tubules, retain water in the renal tubule, and promote an osmotic diuresis, generally without significant Na excretion. Ln addition, these diuretics resist alteration by metabolic processes. 

Cell-volume regulation involves control of the content of osmotically active impermeant molecules and ions 88... 

The amount of osmotically active particles present per litre of solution (mmol.l-1). 

The pressure exerted within a sealed system of solution in response to the presence of osmotically active particles on one side of a semipermeable membrane (kPa). 

In summary, the lag time of drug release may be controlled by the rate at which water penetrates through the coating or shell, the rate of fluid absorption of the polymer layer, the osmotic activity of salts and osmopolymers, the erosion and dissolution rate of the polymer layers and the thickness of the layers or coatings. 

Osmotically active laxatives (C) are soluble but nonabsorbable particles that retain water in the bowel by virtue of their osmotic action. The osmotic pressure (particle concentration) of bowel contents always corresponds to that of the extracellular space. The intestinal mucosa is unable to maintain a higher or lower osmotic pressure of the luminal contents. Therefore, absorption of molecules (e.g., glucose, NaQ) occurs isoosmotically, i.e., solute molecules are followed by a corresponding amount of water. Conversely, water remains in the bowel when molecules cannot be absorbed. 

Water. Water resorption in the proximal tubule is a passive process in which water follows the osmotically active particles, particularly the Na" ions. Fine regulation of water excretion (diuresis) takes place in the collecting ducts, where the peptide hormone vasopressin (antidiuretic hormone, ADH) operates. This promotes recovery of water by stimulating the transfer of aquaporins (see p. 220) into the plasma membrane of the tubule cells via V2 receptors. A lack of ADH leads to the disease picture of diabetes insipidus, in which up to 30 L of final urine is produced per day. 

If drugs are used, the first choice should be a bulk laxative, e.g. isphagula or sterculia gum. Nonabsorbent carbohydrates with osmotic activity also work well but often cause flatulence. Salinic laxatives like polyethylene glycol and magnesium oxide are very effective but often cause stomach upsets like flatulence and abdominal pain. Tegaserod, a 5-HT4 partial agonist, appears to improve the frequency of bowel movements in those with chronic constipation (see Evans et ah, 2007). 

The liver secretes about 1 L of bile daily. Bile flow and composition depend on the secretory activity of the hepatic cells that line the biliary canaliculi. As the bile flows through the biliary system of ducts, its composition can be modified in the ductules and ducts by the processes of reabsorption and secretion, especially of electrolytes and water. For example, osmotically active compounds, including bile acids, transported into the bile promote the passive movement of fluid into the duct lumen. In the gallbladder, composition of the bile is modified further through reabsorptive processes. 

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