hypertonic

Examples of hypertonic in the following topics:

• Tonicity

  • Three terms—hypotonic, isotonic, and hypertonic—are used to relate the osmolarity of a cell to the osmolarity of the extracellular fluid that contains the cells .
  • As for a hypertonic solution, the prefix hyper- refers to the extracellular fluid having a higher osmolarity than the cell's cytoplasm; therefore, the fluid contains less water than the cell does.
  • Blood cells and plant cells in hypertonic, isotonic, and hypotonic solutions take on characteristic appearances.
  • Cells in a hypertonic solution shrink as water exits the cell, becoming shriveled.
  • Osmotic pressure changes the shape of red blood cells in hypertonic, isotonic, and hypotonic solutions.

• Osmoregulators and Osmoconformers

  • Persons lost at sea without any fresh water to drink are at risk of severe dehydration because the human body cannot adapt to drinking seawater, which is hypertonic (having higher osmotic pressure) in comparison to body fluids.
  • When they move to a hypertonic marine environment, the salmon lose water, excreting the excess salts through their gills and urine (see [b] in ).

• Osmoregulation

  • There are three types of tonicity: hypotonic, hypertonic, and isotonic.
  • In a hypertonic solution, water leaves a cell and the cell shrinks.
  • Conversely, if the plant is not watered, the extracellular fluid will become hypertonic, causing water to leave the cell .
  • Saltwater fish live in the reverse environment, which is hypertonic to their cells, and they secrete salt through their gills and excrete highly concentrated urine.

• Contractile Vacuoles in Microorganisms

  • Species that possess a CV always use it, even in very hypertonic (high concentration of solutes) environments, since the cell tends to adjust its cytoplasm to become even more hyperosmotic (hypertonic) than the environment.

• Introduction to Osmoregulation

  • The cell loses water, which moves outside to the hypertonic or "high salt" environment.
  • Response of red blood cells in hypertonic, hypotonic, and isotonic solutions
  • Cells placed in a hypertonic environment tend to shrink due to loss of water.

• The Plasma Membrane and the Cytoplasm

  • The solution that has the higher concentration of solutes is said to be hypertonic and the solution that has the lower concentration of solutes is said to be hypotonic.
  • Water molecules will diffuse out of the hypotonic solution and into the hypertonic solution (unless acted upon by hydrostatic forces).
  • In the beaker on the left, the solution on the right side of the membrane is hypertonic.