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Chapter 32: Problem 29

An organism is excreting ions in its urine. What is likely the current tonicity of the organism鈥檚 cells, and why? a. hypotonicity due to too much solute in its body fluids b. hypertonicity due to less solute in its body fluids c. hypertonicity due to too much solute in its body fluids d. hypotonicity due to less solute in its body fluids

Short Answer

Expert verified
d. hypotonicity due to less solute in its body fluids

Step by step solution

01

- Understand the Terms

Tonicity refers to the relative concentration of solutes in the fluid inside and outside of cells. Hypotonicity means a lower concentration of solutes outside the cell, causing water to enter the cell. Hypertonicity means a higher concentration of solutes outside the cell, causing water to leave the cell.
02

- Identify the Scenario

The organism is excreting ions in its urine. When ions are excreted, they are being removed from the body fluids, decreasing the overall solute concentration in the body fluids.
03

- Analyze the Impact

Removing ions (solutes) from the body fluids decreases the solute concentration in these fluids. This can make the external environment of the cells relatively less concentrated compared to the inside, resulting in hypotonicity.
04

- Select the Correct Answer

Based on the analysis, the cells are likely to experience hypotonicity due to having less solute in the body fluids. Therefore, the correct answer is (d) hypotonicity due to less solute in its body fluids.

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Key Concepts

These are the key concepts you need to understand to accurately answer the question.

hypotonicity
Hypotonicity describes a condition where the concentration of solutes outside a cell is lower than inside it. This causes water to enter the cell by osmosis. Imagine a cell sitting in a freshwater pond. The water outside has fewer solutes. Water moves into the cell to try to equalize solute concentrations. This influx can make the cell swell and potentially burst if the water intake is too much.
It's like adding more water to a balloon until it's about to pop.
hypertonicity
Hypertonicity occurs when the concentration of solutes outside a cell is higher than inside. This condition results in water leaving the cell to balance the solute levels. Think of a cell in the ocean where the seawater has high salt content. Water from the cell moves out to the salty surroundings. This causes the cell to shrink and become dehydrated. So, if an organism has high solute levels in its body fluids, it will likely experience hypertonicity, leading to water loss from cells.
Imagine if you put a raisin in salty water; it would shrink even more.
solute concentration
Solute concentration is the amount of solutes (like salts, sugars, etc.) dissolved in a solution. In cells, maintaining solute concentration balance both inside and outside is vital for homeostasis. Changes in solute concentrations can affect tonicity. If you remove solutes from body fluids by excreting ions, for instance, the solute concentration outside the cells drops. As a result, the external environment becomes hypotonic compared to the inside of the cells.
This leads to water entering the cells in hopes of balancing the solute concentration, which we saw in the initial exercise where the organism鈥檚 cells experience hypotonicity.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

What do humans excrete, and how soluble is it compared to uric acid? a. urea, which is less soluble than uric acid b. urea, which is more soluble than uric acid c. ammonia, which is more soluble than uric acid d. ammonia, which is less soluble than uric acid

Planaria are flatworms that live in fresh water. Their excretory system, or protonephridia, consists of two tubules connected to a highly branched tube system. The intake end of the tubes contain cilia that propel waste matter down the tubules and out of the body through excretory pores that open on the body surface. Cilia also draw water from the interstitial fluid, allowing for filtration. Any valuable metabolites are recovered by reabsorption. What structure in the human kidneys most closely resembles the cilia of the protonephridia, and why? a. The renal artery, because it facilitates the exchange of nutrients with the blood b. The convoluted tubule, because it facilitates the exchange of nutrients with the blood c. The glomerulus, because it facilitates filtering of the blood d. The ureter, because it facilitates filtering of the blood

What is the structure of the nephron? a. The nephron consists of three parts: the glomerulus, the renal tubule, and the associated capillary network originating from the cortical radiate arteries. b. The nephron consists of three parts: the renal corpuscle, the Bowman鈥檚 capsule, and the associated capillary network originating from the cortical radiate arteries. c. The nephron consists of three parts: the renal corpuscle, the renal tubule, and the associated capillary network originating from the segmental renal artery. d. The nephron consists of three parts: the renal corpuscle, the renal tubule, and the associated capillary network originating from the cortical radiate arteries.

Describe the urea cycle. a. The urea cycle is the mechanism of conversion of urea to ammonia involving five intermediate steps catalyzed by five different enzymes. Of the five steps, the first two occur in the mitochondria and the last three in the cytosol. b. The urea cycle is the mechanism of conversion of ammonia to urea involving five intermediate steps catalyzed by five different enzymes. Of the five steps, the first two occur in the mitochondria and the last three in the cytosol. c. The urea cycle is the mechanism of conversion of ammonia to urea involving five intermediate steps catalyzed by five different enzymes. Of the five steps, the first two occur in the cytosol and the last three in the mitochondria. d. The urea cycle is the mechanism of conversion of ammonia to urea involving five intermediate steps all catalyzed by one enzyme. Of the five steps, the first two occur in the mitochondria and the last three in the cytosol.

Why is excretion important in order to achieve osmotic balance? a. The body accumulates water within itself when excretion does not occur, which can have dire consequences. b. Excretion regulates the movement of water within the membranes, which ultimately maintains osmotic balance. c. In the absence of excretion, there is a shift in the concentrations, which disrupts osmotic balance. d. The body builds up many chemical compounds that need to be excreted to maintain homeostasis and osmotic balance.
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