Osmosis

Question 1

Definition of osmosis

Answer 1

the movement of water molecules from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration through a partially permeable membrane this occurs until a dynamic equilibrium

Question 2

osmosis in cells

Answer 2

• water is a small molecule allowing it to pass through the cell membrane without the cell being able to control how much comes in or out
• this means it is important for cells to be surrounded by the same water potential as their cytoplasm or vacuole so that they don’t gain or lose too much water

Question 3

osmosis in plant cells

Answer 3

if surrounded by a solution with a lower water potential the the plant cell will lose water from the cytoplasm and vacuole
if it loses too much water the cell membrane can become pulled away from the cell wall. if the cell is in this state we call it plasmolyzed
if surrounded by a solution with a higher water potential water will move into the cytoplasm and vacuole
this will cause the cell membrane to push against the cell wall
if the cell is in this state we call it turgid
if surrounded by a solution of the same water potential then the water will move in and out at the same rate. so cell membrane will not shrink away from the well and and nor will it push against it. we call a cell in this state plasmolyzed