The classical thermodynamic treatment of osmotic pressure is quite sufficient to describe equilibrium situations and compute most quantities of interest without reference to any molecular model (see, for example, Finkelstein, 1987). However, one's intuition is always aided by molecular models, and a microscopic picture can be quite useful when thinking about osmotic flow in unfamiliar situation...

In 1895 Starling (2) first showed that the colloid osmotic pressure of the serum was proportional to the concentration of protein in it. He advanced the theory that decreased osmotic pressure in the serum was responsible for the deposition of water in the tissues. Disagreeing with Starling, Martin Fischer (3) claimed that edema resulted from alteration of the hydrogen ion concentration of blood...

ABSTRACT: The combination of pulsed vacuum osmotic dehydration and microwave drying of garlic bulbs were examined. The response surface methodology (RSM) was used to determine the effect of NaCl concentration (8%-20%), osmotic solution temperature (25-65°C), operation pressure (240-830 mbar), immersion time (20-300 min) and microwave power level (100-600 W) on water loss (WL), solids gain (SG),...

To apply accurate and uniform osmotic pressures to liposomes, they can be formed using the spontaneous transfer method in solutions with different osmolarities. The majority of liposomes unexpectedly opened large holes (several micrometers in diameter) in response to the osmotic pressure regardless of its strength, that is, the difference between the outside and inside solute (sucrose or KCl) c...

Section on Tissue Biophysics and Biomimetics, NICHD, National Institutes of Health, 13 South Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA E-mail: [email protected] Summary: Aggrecan is a charged biopolymer whose complexes with hyaluronic acid provide the compressive resistance of cartilage. In cartilage extracellular matrix aggrecan-hyaluronic acid complexes are enmeshed within a network of collagen fibr...

In 1895 Starling (2) first showed that the colloid osmotic pressure of the serum was proportional to the concentration of protein in it. He advanced the theory that decreased osmotic pressure in the serum was responsible for the deposition of water in the tissues. Disagreeing with Starling, Martin Fischer (3) claimed that edema resulted from alteration of the hydrogen ion concentration of blood...

DNA solutions and gels exhibit a wide range of phenomena, many of which have not yet been fully understood. In the presence of multivalent counterions, attraction between charged DNA strands occurs. Increasing the concentration of multivalent ions leads to a decrease of the osmotic pressure, and a sufficiently high ion concentration results in the precipitation of the polymer. Replacing the mon...

INTRODUCTION: Articular cartilage, the load bearing material of synovial joints, can normally withstand loads reaching several times body weight. The presence of proteoglycans in cartilage causes it to swell and enhances its ability to bear compressive load. Previo us studies have measured the osmotic pressure of chondroitin sulfate (CS), the most abundant glycosaminoglycan (GAG) found in carti...