204k views
2 votes
When more water moves out of a cell than moves in, the cell will ___.

A) Expand
B) Divide
C) Shrink
D) Contract

User Sugunan
by
8.1k points

1 Answer

6 votes

Final answer:

When more water exits a cell than enters, the cell will shrink (option c) due to a hypertonic solution causing water to move out to balance solute concentrations, known as crenation in animal cells and plasmolysis in plant cells.

Step-by-step explanation:

When more water moves out of a cell than moves in, the cell will shrink. This is due to the osmotic balance being disrupted in a hypertonic solution, where the external environment has a higher solute concentration than the inside of the cell. As a result, water will move out of the cell to balance the solute concentrations, causing the cell to lose volume and shrink, a process known as crenation in animal cells and plasmolysis in plant cells.

For example, when a red blood cell is placed in seawater, which is hypertonic compared to the cell's cytoplasm, the cell will shrink as water leaves the cell. Similarly, plant cells in a hypertonic solution will undergo plasmolysis, where the cell membrane detaches from the cell wall and the cell shrinks, leading to a loss of turgor pressure. Therefore, please provide the correct option for the question: when more water moves out of a cell than moves in, the cell will shrink (Option C).

User GeoffM
by
8.5k points

No related questions found

Welcome to QAmmunity.org, where you can ask questions and receive answers from other members of our community.

9.4m questions

12.2m answers

Categories