Assume you are observing different types of cells under a microscope. If you wer

Question

Assume you are observing different types of cells under a microscope. If you were observing plant cells, bathed in a solution that is hypertonic to the interior of the cells, would you expect to see plant cells that are turgid, flaccid, or plasmolyzed? If you were observing animal cells, bathed in a solution that is hypotonic to the interior of the cells, would you expect to see animal cells that are swollen/lysed, normal, or shriveled? For the following two questions, describe the solution in terms of tonicity (hypotonic, hypertonic, or isotonic). Remember that tonicity is a relative description, you must describe the solutions tonicity relative to the other solution. If you were observing plant cells, and the cells were flaccid, what solution would you add to the cells to make them turgid? If you were observing animal cells, and the cells were shriveled, what steps should you take to make the cells physiologically normal, and then maintain them in this condition? [Think about this carefully, the question is more complicated than you might think at first.]

Explanation / Answer

Assume you are observing different types of cells under a microscope. If you were observing plant cells, bathed in a solution that is hypertonic to the interior of the cells, would you expect to see plant cells that are turgid, flaccid, or plasmolyzed?

When plant cells are exposed to hypertonic environments, water rushes out of the cell, and the cell shrinks away from the rigid wall, resulting in plasmolysis.

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If you were observing animal cells, bathed in a solution that is hypotonic to the interior of the cells, would you expect to see animal cells that are swollen/lysed, normal, or shriveled

When they are exposed to hypertonic environments, water rushes out of the cell, and the cell shrinks. The resulting cells are dehydrated and lose most or all physiological functions while in the shrivelled state.

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