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Sodium-Potassium Pump

Na/K-ATPase exports 3 Na, imports 2 K per ATP, sustaining the membrane potential and ionic homeostasis.

A free, animated sodium-potassium pump you can read here or embed on any website, from Scrollchart.

Sodium-Potassium Pump

Sodium-Potassium Pump CycleNa/K-ATPase exports 3 Na+ and imports 2 K+ per ATP hydrolysed, sustaining the -70 mV resting potential

Six-state cycle: 3 Na binding cytoplasmic site, ATP-driven phosphorylation, conformational change exposing Na to outside, dephosphorylation, 2 K binding extracellular site, K release to cytoplasm.

Good for

  • Cell physiology and membrane transport lectures
  • Drug mechanism explainers for cardiac glycosides (digoxin)
  • Hypertension and fluid balance patient education

Source & accuracy

This sodium-potassium pump is an editorial illustration built to represent the concept accurately. Where it shows figures, they are typical or representative values chosen to make the relationship clear, not a single underlying dataset. The diagram and its explainer are reviewed and maintained centrally, and updated over time as understanding improves.

Three out, two in, per ATP

The sodium-potassium pump is a membrane enzyme that moves ions against their gradients. In each cycle it exports three sodium ions and imports two potassium ions, powered by the hydrolysis of one ATP molecule. Phosphorylation and dephosphorylation of the pump switch its shape between an outward-facing and an inward-facing state.

Because it moves three positive charges out for every two it brings in, the pump is electrogenic, contributing a small amount directly to the negative interior of the cell.

A large share of the body's energy budget

By constantly resetting the sodium and potassium gradients, the pump maintains the resting membrane potential and keeps cell volume stable. Those gradients also power secondary active transport, such as the uptake of glucose and amino acids that piggyback on sodium re-entry.

This housekeeping is costly. Running the pump accounts for a substantial portion of resting energy expenditure, with estimates often cited around a fifth to a third of basal metabolism, varying by tissue. Cardiac glycoside drugs act by inhibiting this pump in heart muscle.

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Reference

What this is
A free, embeddable, animated sodium-potassium pump for any website.
Who uses it
Medical educators, Biology educators.
How to embed
Copy one line of HTML. No signup. No watermark. Works in WordPress, Webflow, Ghost, Substack, plain HTML.
File size
iframe embed, ~80 KB gzipped (loads on demand, does not block your page paint).
License
Free forever. Editorial explainer text included; updated centrally over time.
URL
scrollchart.com/diagram/na-k-atpase

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Frequently asked questions

Where can I get a free animated "Sodium-Potassium Pump" for my website?
Scrollchart provides "Sodium-Potassium Pump" as a free, embeddable animated diagram you can add to any website with one line of HTML. No signup is required and there is no watermark. The diagram and its explainer text are served from scrollchart.com, so the embed stays current without any maintenance on your end.
How do I embed a sodium-potassium pump diagram in a health or wellness blog?
Copy the HTML snippet from the Scrollchart diagram page and paste it into any post or page in your CMS. It works in WordPress, Webflow, Ghost, Substack, and plain HTML without any plugin or account. The diagram renders as animated SVG directly in your page, so search engines can index the accompanying explainer text.
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