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Practical Work 3

Chapter 3 of the biology course discusses the processes of diffusion and osmosis, specifically using dialysis tubing to investigate osmosis. It explains how osmosis affects both plant and animal cells, detailing the conditions under which cells gain or lose water. The chapter emphasizes the importance of maintaining water potential in animal cells to prevent damage from osmotic pressure.

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5 views7 pages

Practical Work 3

Chapter 3 of the biology course discusses the processes of diffusion and osmosis, specifically using dialysis tubing to investigate osmosis. It explains how osmosis affects both plant and animal cells, detailing the conditions under which cells gain or lose water. The chapter emphasizes the importance of maintaining water potential in animal cells to prevent damage from osmotic pressure.

Uploaded by

andreloreseverini
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Practical work: Chapter 3: Movement into and out of cells

Teacher: Laura Ruiz

Course: 3rd Biology

A) DIFFUSION
B) OSMOSIS
Investigating osmosis using dialysis tubing (Visking tubing)

 Dialysis tubing (sometimes referred to as visking tubing) is a non-


living partially permeable membrane made from cellulose
 Pores in this membrane are small enough to prevent the passage of
large molecules (such as sucrose) but allow smaller molecules (such
as glucose and water) to pass through by diffusion and osmosis
 This can be demonstrated by:
o Filling a section of dialysis tubing with concentrated sucrose
solution
o Suspending the tubing in a boiling tube of water for a set period of
time
o Noting whether the water level outside the tubing decreases as
water moves into the tubing via osmosis
 Water moves from a region of higher water potential (dilute
solution) to a region of lower water potential (concentrated
solution), through a partially permeable membrane
An example setup of a dialysis tubing experiment

OSMOSIS IN PLANT CELLS

 You can do this experiment with potato or radish placing them


into distilled water and sucrose solutions of increasing concentration
 The cylinders are weighed before placing into the solutions
 They are left in the solutions for 20 - 30 minutes and then removed, dried
to remove excess liquid and reweighed
Potatoes are usually used in osmosis experiments to show how the
concentration of a solution affects the movement of water, but radishes
can be used too

 If the plant tissue gains mass:


o Water must have moved into the plant tissue from the solution
surrounding it by osmosis
o The solution surrounding the tissue is more dilute than the plant
tissue (which is more concentrated)
 If plant tissue loses mass:
o Water must have moved out of the plant tissue into the solution
surrounding it by osmosis
o The solution surrounding the tissue is more concentrated than the
plant tissue (which is more dilute)
 If there is no overall change in mass:
o There has been no net movement of water as the concentration in
both the plant tissue and the solution surrounding it must be equal
o Remember that water will still be moving into and out of the plant
tissue, but there wouldn’t be any net movement in this case

OSMOSIS IN ANIMAL CELLS

 Like plant cells, animal cells can also lose and gain water as a result
of osmosis
 As animal cells do not have a supporting cell wall (unlike plant cells),
the results of this loss or gain of water on the cell are more severe
 For example, if an animal cell is placed in a solution with a lower water
potential than the cell (such as a concentrated sucrose solution), water
will leave the cell through its partially permeable cell surface membrane
by osmosis and the cell will shrink and shrivel up
 This occurs when the cell is in a hypertonic environment (the solution
outside of the cell has a higher solute concentration than the inside of
the cell)

 Conversely, if an animal cell is placed in pure water or a dilute


solution, water will enter the cell through its partially permeable cell
surface membrane by osmosis, as the pure water or dilute solution has
a higher water potential. The cell will continue to gain water by
osmosis until the cell membrane is stretched too far and the cell bursts
(cytolysis), as it has no cell wall to withstand the increased pressure
created
 This occurs when the cell is in a hypotonic environment (the solution
outside of the cell has a lower solute concentration than the inside of
the cell)
 This is why a constant water potential must be maintained inside the
bodies of animals
 If an animal cell is in an isotonic environment (the solution outside of
the cell has the same solute concentration as the inside of the cell), the
movement of water molecules into and out of the cell occurs at the same
rate (no net movement of water) and there is no change to the cells
Effect of osmosis on animal cells

References:

 Jones & Jones. Biology for Cambridge IGCSETM Coursebook. 4th edition.
2021.Chapter 3: Movement into and out of cells. Pages 53- 61.

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