the role of osmosis in plant cells?

Question

-What is/are the role(s) of Osmosis in plant cells?

--What are the effects of turgor pressure on plant cells and what happens if this is not maintained?

---The importance of Osmosis to freshwater organisms (Paramecium)?

----How do contractile vacuoles to maintain osmotic balance with their environment?

It seems like I'm asking you for a lot when really this is just one big question I'm haveing trouble with. . I'm hopeing this is all related in some way but I'm not having any luck. Anything or any links will do. Thanks a lot :)

Answer 1

The human body has veins and capillaries to transport blood in the body. The plant has osmosis. Where lesser concentration flows into greater concentration through the semi-permeable membrane which envelopes the cell. This is to maintain the turgor pressure within the cell.

Answer 2

I don't like the comparison to the human body...veins and capillaries...not quite right.

Osmosis is the movement of something across a semi-permeable membrane. For example, if a membrane is permeable to water, but not salt, and salt concentration is high on one side of the membrane, then water will move through the membrane from the side of low salt concentration to the side of high concentration.

-so what does this have to do with plants?

Plants depend on turger pressure for various functions. When a plant pumps salts into a cell, water will move into that cell of high salt concentration (via osmosis), thus filling the cell with water; it becomes tight, or has turgor. This can be important in maintaining plant stature, opening or closing stomata, and other functions.

I'm afraid I cant help too much with the vacuole question...it has been a while.

Answer 3

A large central vacuole (enclosed by a membrane, the tonoplast), which maintains the cell's turgor and controls movement of molecules between the cytosol and sap. Answers.com states more clearly than I can. Basically Osmosis is,1. Diffusion of fluid through a semipermeable membrane from a solution with a low solute concentration to a solution with a higher solute concentration until there is an equal concentration of fluid on both sides of the membrane, 2. The tendency of fluids to diffuse in such a manner. This diffustion of fluid through the cell uses turger pressure. This is all I learned from my professor lately, and it's a good question. I hope this helps. Good Luck!

Answer 4

The higher the temperature, the more kinetic energy in a cell, the faster all the little bits move. ;)