Osmosis and Diffusion Research
research regarding water movement in different structures
Osmosis and Diffusion in Plant and Animal Cells
Osmosis, in animals, links together with osmoregulation. Osmoregulation is defined as "the means by which cells keep the concentration of cell cytoplasm or blood at a suitable concentration." An example of osmoregulation is an amoeba living in fresh water. An amoeba living in fresh water uses a contractile vacuole to rid excess from the cytoplasm. Another example of osmoregulation is a paramecium, also gets rid of the excess in the cytoplasm through a vacuole. An important example of osmoregulation in the human body is in the kidneys. "The kidney's maintain the blood at the correct concentration." Therefore, osmoregulation plays a major rule in the function of animal cells.
water potential relating to osmosis and diffusion
Water potential measures the tendency of water to move from an area of high to low concentration, and the the energy of water. Diffusion is the movement of the particles dissolved in fluid from high to low concentration, but water potential is caused by osmosis because osmosis is the diffusion of water. Water potential is affected by pressure and the amount of solute and is defined by its chemical activity. For example: bound water has less chemical activity than free water so, therefore, it has a negative water potential.
http://agron-www.agron.iastate.edu/courses/Agron541/classes/review/water/1.6.html
osmoregulation in the human body
how does osmosis and diffusion relate to hypertonic, hypotonic, and isotonic?
Osmosis is the diffusion of water through a semi-permeable membrane and there are three situations in which the liquid surrounding cells move. In an isotonic environment the solution concentration inside cell and the solution concentration outside the cell is the same. In a hypotonic environment, the solution inside the cell is greater than the concentration outside the cell, therefore water will rush inside the cell. In a hypertonic environment the solution concentration outside the cell is greater and in this case water will rush outside the cell. In these three situations diffusion is present through the movement of the substances dissolved in the fluid. Osmosis and diffusion are important to both plant and animal cells. For example: plant cells prefer a hypotonic environment so that they can stay turgid, but without osmosis and diffusion, that environment would not be obtainable.