OSMOSIS LAB

Biology 1005
2 March 2017
Oil, Ramita Chalearmchutidath

INTRODUCTION

All cells are surrounded by a cell membrane. According to

Membrane Structure and Function, Cell membrane is arranged in
phospholipid bilayer with embedded proteins (line 3). Most of the
membrane structure composed of phospholipids and proteins.
Phospholipids contain the hydrophilic head which means it like water
and hydrophobic tail which mean it hates water so the head will face
toward the water and the tail will face away from the water which
forms bilayer that acts as the barrier (Bailey, n.d.). In cell
membrane, some proteins are found inside lipid bilayer while other
proteins are outside of lipid bilayer. The cell membrane is selectively
permeable which mean it allows specific things to go in and out of
the cell (Diffusion and passive transport, 2016). This characteristic
of cell membrane plays a big role in membrane transport. There are
two types of membrane transport, which are active transport and
passive transport. Active transport is the movement of substances
against the concentration gradient, which mean the substances
move from lower to the higher concentration; therefore, it required
energy (Active transport, n.d.). There are two types of protein that
involved in active transport that is channel protein and a carrier
protein. On the other hand, Passive transport is the movement of
substances along the concentration gradient, which mean the
substances move from higher to lower concentration without using
the energy (Passive transport, 2009).Only one type of protein is
involved in passive transport which is carrier protein. Diffusion,
facilitated diffusion, and Osmosis are 3 types of passive transport.
The simplest type of passive transport is diffusion, which is the
process in which the molecules spread from a zone of high
concentration to a zone of low concentration. Facilitated diffusion is
the process in which the substances move across the cell membrane
through the membrane proteins, which are called carrier protein
(Ungos, 2011). The diffusion of water through a selectively
permeable membrane from an area of higher water intensity to an
area of lower water intensity is called osmosis (Osmosis, 2014). In
other words, water moves from low solute intensity to high solute
intensity. Osmosis depends on 3 types of solution, which are
isotonic, hypotonic and hypertonic solution, as it makes different for
the net movement of water. An isotonic solution is a state in which
the concentration of solute and water are equal so osmosis occurs
but the cells shape still be the same. Hypotonic solution is the state
in which there is less solute concentration compared to a cell, which
means the water move into the cell causing the cell to be bigger in
shape and size. A Hypertonic solution is a state that there is more
solute concentration compare to a cell, which means the water
inside the cell move out causing the cell to be smaller in shape and
size (Hypotonic, Isotonic, Hypertonic. , n.d.)
In the experiment, potatoes and jellies are used to represent the
cells. There are three beakers provided for each cell, which is a
beaker with distilled water that is a hypotonic solution, a beaker
with the concentrated salt water that is a hypertonic solution and an
empty beaker that uses for the control variable. Potatoes and jellies
are put into those beakers in order to observe the water movement
and how the shape, mass, and volume of potato and jelly change or
react to the hypotonic and hypertonic solutions. The purpose of this
experiment is to observe the process of osmosis in term of different
solute concentration by comparing the effects of placing jelly and
potato in different solutions.

REFERENCES
Chapter 5 - Membrane Structure and Function. (n.d.).
Retrieved March 07, 2017, from
https://www.biologycorner.com/APbiology/cellular/notes_cell_m
embrane.html
Bailey, R. (n.d.). Cell Membranes Function, Structure and
Composition. Retrieved March 07, 2017, from
https://www.thoughtco.com/cell-membrane-373364
Diffusion and passive transport. (2016). Retrieved March 05,
2017, from
https://www.khanacademy.org/science/biology/membranes-
and-transport/passive-transport/a/diffusion-and-passive-
transport
BBC - GCSE Bitesize: Active transport - Higher. (n.d.).
Retrieved March 08, 2017, from
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/science/add_ocr_pr
e_2011/homeostasis/importancerev6.shtml
Passive transport. (2009, July 13). Retrieved March 05, 2017,
from http://www.biology-
online.org/dictionary/Passive_transport
Animation: How Diffusion Works. (2017). Retrieved March 05,
2017, from
http://highered.mheducation.com/sites/0072495855/student_v
iew0/chapter2/animation__how_diffusion_works.html
BBC - GCSE Bitesize: Osmosis. (2014). Retrieved March 05,
2017, from
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/science/add_aqa_pr
e_2011/cells/cells4.shtml
Ungos, D. (2011, November 26). Types of movement across
the cell membrane. Retrieved March 08, 2017, from
https://www.slideshare.net/lizza919/types-of-movement-
across-the-cell-membrane
"Hypotonic, Isotonic, Hypertonic." Hypotonic, Isotonic,
Hypertonic Flashcards | Quizlet. N.p., n.d. Retrieved March 09,
2017, from https://quizlet.com/14580668/hypotonic-isotonic-
hypertonic-flash-cards/