In a hypertonic solution, what happens to a typical animal cell?

In a hypertonic solution, what happens to a typical animal cell?

• A. Water enters cell and cell swells
• B. Water leaves cell and cell shrinks
• C. No net water movement
• D. Cell divides rapidly

Answer: (B)

Osmosis is the movement of water across a cell membrane in response to differences in solute concentration. In a hypertonic solution, the outside has a higher solute concentration than the inside, so water moves out of the cell to balance the concentrations. As water exits, the cell loses volume and shrinks. Animal cells lack a rigid cell wall, so they simply become smaller rather than bursting. The other scenarios would occur with different surroundings: water entering and the cell swelling happens in a hypotonic environment, no net water movement occurs in an isotonic environment, and rapid cell division isn’t driven by osmotic conditions.

Osmosis is the movement of water across a cell membrane in response to differences in solute concentration. In a hypertonic solution, the outside has a higher solute concentration than the inside, so water moves out of the cell to balance the concentrations. As water exits, the cell loses volume and shrinks. Animal cells lack a rigid cell wall, so they simply become smaller rather than bursting. The other scenarios would occur with different surroundings: water entering and the cell swelling happens in a hypotonic environment, no net water movement occurs in an isotonic environment, and rapid cell division isn’t driven by osmotic conditions.