In Fig. 5.2 we saw how the concentration of Ca2+

ions in an airway smooth muscle cell oscillates, and this oscillation is shown in detail in Fig. 5.17. From this second figure we calculated that the calcium concentration,

c, can be approximately described by the function Suppose that c has units of µM (which actually isn’t the case for this particular experiment, but it’s good enough for now)
and t has units of s.
The original data measured calcium fluorescence, which is basically a measure of the calcium concentration in the cytoplasm of the cell, so here we just assume that we know the actual calcium concentration. This is a reasonable approximation.

a. What is the period of the oscillation?

b. If the volume of the cell is 2000 (µm)
3 , convert the concentration c to an amount of calcium, in pmol.

c. How many pmol of calcium enter the cell cytoplasm during the first half of the oscillation?

d. How many pmol of calcium leave the cell cytoplasm during the second half of the oscillation?