Question

What will happen if we put a plant and animal cell in the isotonic solution?
A. No change
B. Cell swells
C. Cell shrink
D. Cell bursts

Answer 1

Hint: An isotonic solution is a solution, which contains the same concentration of solute as in a cell. If animal and plant cells are kept in isotonic solution then cells will not swell or shrink. Hence, there will not be any change in cells.

Step by step answer:Water moves from a region of low osmolarity to a region of high osmolarity. In this case, since the extracellular fluid has low osmolarity, the water would rush into the cell. The cell would then expand and eventually burst.
Water will leave the cell since the cell has a lower osmolarity than the extracellular fluid. As a result, the cell would shrink is called plasmolysis.
The water moves from a region of low osmolarity (extracellular fluid) to a region of high osmolarity (inside the cell). The cell would then expand. Unlike an animal cell, the plant cell does not burst.
This is because plant cells have a rigid cell wall around the plasma membrane. Upon swelling with water they become turgid.
An isotonic solution contains an electrolyte balance similar to plasma in the bloodstream. When an isotonic solution is administered, the fluid volume of the patient is increased without a fluid shift.
Common examples of isotonic solutions are 0.9% normal saline and lactated ringers. These fluids are useful when the patient has lost fluid volume from blood loss, trauma, or dehydration due to excessive nausea/vomiting or diarrhea. When administering isotonic solutions, continue monitoring the patient to ensure the rehydration does not turn into fluid overload.
An isotonic solution is a solution in which the concentration of water is the same as that of the cell. So when an animal cell is placed in an isotonic solution, water will neither flow out nor in. No osmosis occurs. So nothing will happen to the animal cell.
Adding more solute particles to the ECF changes the osmotic gradient so that the osmotic pressure increases inside the cell and more water flows out across the membrane.
If not stopped, the cell will wrinkle and eventually shrivel up and die. Conversely, more solute particles in the ICF cause more water to rush into the cell which may cause it to burst.
Plant cells have a cell wall surrounding the plasma membrane. The effect of an isotonic solution is the same but not as obvious because of the rigid wall.
There are observable changes in hypertonic and hypotonic solutions, however, if there is a sufficient difference in the osmotic gradient.

Hence option A is correct.

Note: An isotonic solution will have an equal concentration of solutes to the solution inside the cell. Therefore an isotonic solution has an equal concentration of water to the solution within the cell. As a result, water moves in and out of the cell at an equal rate. There is no net movement of water.