Osmosis and Transport Quiz

What would happen to a plant cell if it were in any other type of tonicity?

The plant cell would lose water and shrink/shrivel.

Hypertonic

Hypertonic solution has a higher concentration than the solute its being compared to. If solution is a cell, then the water will move across the membrane to the solute to balance the concentration. This causes the cell to shrink as water leaves the cell

What would happen to an animal cell if it were in any other type of tonicity?

If an animal cell were placed in a hypertonic environment, the cell would shrink due to the diffusion of water. In a hypotonic environment, the cell would swell up and explode since animal cells lack cell walls which plant cells have, which prevents the cells from bursting.

Describe two different processes of endocytosis.

Phagocytosis and Pinocytosis

Turgor Pressure

The pressure exerted on a plant cell by water passing into the cell by osmosis.

Osmotic Pressure

The minimum pressure which needs to be applied to a solution to prevent the inward flow of its pure solvent across a semipermeable membrane.

Solute

A substance that can be dissolved by a solvent to create a solution. The solvent (substance that dissolves the solute) breaks the solute apart and equally distributes the solute molecules. Solutes are measured by concentration. Solute to dissolve in a solvent is solubility.

Equilibrium

All acting influences are balanced or cancelled out by equal opposing forces, resulting in a stable system.

Hypotonic

Hypotonic solution has a lower concentration of solute than the solution it's being compared to. If solution is a cell, the water will move across the membrane to balance the concentration. This causes the cell to swell up due to water entering the cell.

Plant cells need to be in which type of tonicity? Why?

Hypotonic, because it needs to maintain its structure and allow it to take on water.

Isotonic

Isotonic solutions are solutions that have the same concentration of solute. If solution is a cell, water will diffuse both in and out of the cell, having no effect on the cell. The two solutions have the same osmotic pressure across a semipermeable membrane. This allows water to move freely across a membrane without changing the concentration of solutes on either side.

Animal cells have to be in which type of tonicity? Why?

Isotonic, because in an isotonic environment, water diffuses both in and out of the cell, leaving no effect on the cell which is best for the animal cell.

What is osmosis?

Osmosis is the diffusion of a solvent through a semipermeable membrane from a region of low solute concentration to a region of high solute concentration.

When would you want to use a sodium-potassium pump? Channel proteins? Pump proteins?

Sodium and potassium ions are pumped in opposite directions across the membrane. Produces ATP, allows ions to bind.

Concentration Gradient

The concentration of something changes over a certain distance.

Homeostasis

The tendency of an organism or a cell to regulate its internal conditions, usually by a system of feedback controls, to stabilize health and functioning regardless of the outside changing conditions.