Question

"The street drug Ecstasy can lead to repetitive behavior such as drinking up to 20L of water over a two-hour time period. This can lead to brain edema and death. Explain what is happening at the level of the brain cells and include the role of osmosis in this process."

Answer 1

The street drug Ecstasy can lead to brain edema and death due to excessive water intake. This disrupts osmotic pressure and causes water to move into brain cells.

Step-by-step explanation:

When someone takes the street drug Ecstasy, it can lead to repetitive behavior such as drinking excessive amounts of water. This can cause brain edema, which is swelling of the brain due to an increase in fluid. The excessive water intake leads to a condition called water intoxication, where the levels of salts in the bloodstream become diluted. This disrupts the balance of osmotic pressure, which is the movement of water across cell membranes. Osmosis plays a role in this process because the excessive water intake causes water to move from the bloodstream into the brain cells, leading to brain edema and potentially death.