Question

Describe what should happen to the red blood cells after they were placed into each of the solutions. Include in your answer the movement of water and any possible changes to the shape of the cell. Rank the cells from each solution in terms of their volume (starting with the largest cells to the smallest cells).

Answer 1

When red blood cells are placed in a hypertonic solution, the higher effective osmotic pressure of the bathing solution compared with the intracellular fluid results in water moving down its osmotic gradient and a net movement of water out of the cell via osmosis (10).