Mr. Miller has been hospitalized for the flu. The flu virus increases membrane permeability to potassium. You would expect his cells toa. depolarize.b. repolarize.c. isopolarize.d. hyperpolarize.e. hypopolarize.
hyperpolarize.
The correct answer is a. depolarize.
The flu virus increases the permeability of membranes to potassium ions. Potassium ions play a critical role in balancing the membrane potential of cells. When the permeability of the membrane to potassium ions increases, it leads to an outflow of potassium ions from inside the cell to the extracellular space. This outflow of the positively charged potassium ions makes the inside of the cell more negative, which is known as hyperpolarization.
The hyperpolarization of cells causes a decreased excitability of certain cells, such as the cells in the nervous system. On the other hand, the depolarization of cells makes them more excitable and may lead to phenomena such as the generation of action potentials. Therefore in the given scenario, since the flu virus increases membrane permeability to potassium, we would expect his cells to depolarize.
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