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Osmosis

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Investigating Osmosis in Potatoe Tissue

To find out how the concentration of sucrose solution affects the rate of osmosis in a potato and what happens to the length and mass of the potato. What is osmosis?

Osmosis is the movement of the water molecules across a partially permeable from a region of high water concentration to a region of low water concentration.

Osmosis is a special case of diffusion

The biochemical process in living cells always takes place in a solution. A solution is made up of a solvent (the dissolving fluid) and solute (the particles dissolved in the solvent). In living organisms, the solvent is water and the solution is called aqueous solution. Living cells are separated from their surroundings by the partially permeable cell surface membrane. The contents of the cell, the cytoplasm, are one aqueous solution and the surroundings of the cell, for example pond water, is another aqueous solution. If the two solutions do not have the same concentration of various substances, molecules may move away from one to the other by diffusion, if the membrane is permeable these substances. To summarise osmosis:

The diffusion of water molecules, down a water potential gradiant across a partially permeable membrane.

Cells and osmosis

A cell is surrounded by a partially permeable membrane, and water may cross the membrane easily. If cell is placed in a solution of lower water potential, water leaves the cell by osmosis. If the cell is placed in a solution of higher water potential, water enters by osmosis. Plant cells and osmosis

When water enters a plant cell by osmosis the cytoplasm will swell, but only until it pushes against the cellulose cell wall, as shown below. The strong wall stops the cells from bursting. We say that the cell is turgid. A plant cell will not be permanently damaged by the entry of water. If water leaves a plant cell by osmosis the cytoplasm will shrink, but the cellulose cell wall will continue to give some support. Plant cells rarely suffer permanent damage by the loss of water. Picture of Animal Cell

[IMAGE]

Animal cells and osmosis

Animal cells have no cell wall, just a membrane. The are likely to suffer damage as a result of osmosis.

Osmosis is potentially damaging to animal cells, and animals have mechanisms to keep the blood plasma and the body fluids at the same water potential as the cytoplasm of cells. In mammals the kidney plays a vital part in the process of osmoregulation.

Picture of an animal cell

[IMAGE]

Active transport requires energy to move materials

Molecules and ions can move from one place to another by diffusion, but only until equilibrium has been reached. If no concentration gradient exists between the two places, no diffusion can occur- this means that if equilibrium has been reached, useful particles cannot be absorbed by diffusion. Active transport is a method by which particles can cross membrane even against a concentration gradient. In active transport, protein molecules in the cell surface membrane pick up and carry particles across the membrane. Theses protein molecules are called carriers, and when they work they use energy supplied by the cell. To summarise active transport:

Can move molecules against a concentration gradient but requires energy and involves protein carriers in membranes.

Plasmolysis and Haemolysis

When cells are placed in a strong solution plasmolysis happens.
Plasmolysis: when cells are placed in a strong solution and water passes out of cells by osmosis- the vacuole starts to shrink. These cells are no longer form, they are limp we say they are flaccid. As more water leaves the cells cytoplasm peels away from the cell wall.
These cells are now plasmolsed.

When animals cells are placed in a strong solution - what happens? The water passes into the cells by osmosis. When red blood cells are placed in the distilled water, animal cells do not have a cell wall to stop when swelling too much. So they burst. We can theses haemolysis.

Prediction:

I predict in pure distilled water the potato tubes swell because water enters the cells by osmosis. Also I predict the potatoes in the rich sugar solution will shrink because water leaves their cells due to
osmosis.

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