The Use of Ionic Matter in Living Organisms

Living systems have evolved to make use of ionic matter in some ingenious ways. The soluble ionic material is used as a means of electric communication between our brain and the body, while the insoluble ionic material creates our skeleton and our teeth. 

1 Soluble Ionic Material Takes Care of Biological Communication 

The soluble ionic material creates free ions, which are mobile and can move under the influence of voltage variation (electric fields). Living organisms have made use of this mobility and harnessed ions like Na+, K+, and Ca + in neurons (nerve cells). We discussed already in Lecture 5 the receptor (bundle of proteins) that opens a pore in response to the binding of serotonin. Once the pore is opened, K+ ions flow through the receptor and cause communication between billions of neurons. In the case of serotonin, this results in our being psychologically balanced. 

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