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Cell Water Balance Lab

This document provides instructions for a lab experiment on cell water balance. The objectives are to use terminology to describe cell water balance, predict water movement based on osmosis and osmolarity, describe how solutions affect plant cell water movement, and determine intracellular osmolarity experimentally. The introduction explains how maintaining cellular water balance is essential. The lab involves demonstrating Brownian movement, observing plant cell responses to different solutions, and determining potato cell osmolarity by measuring weight changes in sugar solutions.

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Ya'el Courtney
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324 views

Cell Water Balance Lab

This document provides instructions for a lab experiment on cell water balance. The objectives are to use terminology to describe cell water balance, predict water movement based on osmosis and osmolarity, describe how solutions affect plant cell water movement, and determine intracellular osmolarity experimentally. The introduction explains how maintaining cellular water balance is essential. The lab involves demonstrating Brownian movement, observing plant cell responses to different solutions, and determining potato cell osmolarity by measuring weight changes in sugar solutions.

Uploaded by

Ya'el Courtney
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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CELL WATER BALANCE

Objectives:
After completing this lab, students will be able to:

Use appropriate terminology to describe cell water balance.


Use their understanding of osmosis and osmolarity to predict water
movement into or out of cells.
Describe the effects of solutions of varying concentrations on water
movement in plant tissues.
Determine empirically (by using the results of experimental
procedures) the intracellular osmolarity of a sample.

Introduction
Maintaining cellular water balance is essential for cellular processes. Changes in
water balance have profound effects on such things as ion concentrations with
water imbalance leading to serious repercussions, including cell death.
Pre-lab questions:
1. Define the following terms
a.
Brownian Movement
b.

Diffusion

c.

Semi-permeable membrane

d.

Osmolarity

e.

Osmosis

f.

Hyperosmotic / Hypertonic

g.

Hypoosmotic / Hypotonic

h.

Isoosmotic / Isotonic

i.

Plasmolysis

2. Sketch a plant cell and label the following:


Central Vacuole, Nucleus, Chloroplasts, Cell Wall

Cell Membrane, Cytoplasm,

PART A: Demonstration of Brownian Movement


Atoms and molecules have kinetic energy and are constantly in motion, causing
them to collide with each other and move in new directions. The kinetic energy
(movement) of water can be seen in the movement of small particles suspended in
the water. A demonstration slide of dark particles in water is available in the lab for
you to view.
1.

Describe the movement of the particles as viewed under the microscope. Is


it random or ordered?

PART B: Water Relations of Plant Cells


Methods:
1.

Cut a piece of leaf of an elodea plant (a common freshwater aquatic plant).

2.

Place the leaf on a clean slide. Add one drop of pond water and cover with a
cover slip.
3. Examine the cells of a leaf under a microscope. Record your observations in
the chart below.
4. After you finish observing a normal cell of elodea, remove the cover slip and
blot away the pond water. Add one drop of 3 M sodium chloride (salt) solution.
Cover and examine the cells again. Record your observations in the chart
below.
5. Next, remove the cover slip and blot away the salt water. Add one drop of
distilled water. Cover and examine the cells again. Record your observations in
the chart below.
Solution

Appearance / Condition of Cells

Pond Water

Distilled Water

Salt Water

Questions:
1.

Which solution has the greatest osmolarity? How did you come to this
conclusion?

2.

In which solution(s) were the cells plasmolyzed?


PART C: Determining Osmolarity of Potato Cells
In this lab we will test samples of potato tissue to see how much water they
absorb or release in sugar solutions of varying concentrations. This gives us an
empirical method to measure the osmotic concentration within living cells.
Methods:
1. Use a cork borer to obtain seven potato cylinders that are at least 4 cm long.
Blot them to dry on a paper towel.
2. Weigh each cylinder to the nearest 0.1 grams. Record these initial values in
the chart below.
3. Assign one potato cylinder to each sugar solution. Incubate the cylinders in
the solutions for at least 90 minutes.
4. Remove the cylinders and blot them dry on a paper towel. Immediately, reweigh the cylinders. Record these final measurements in the data table below.
Results:
1. Record your actual results below:

Sugar Molarity

0.0

0.1M

0.2M

0.3M

0.4M

0.5M

0.6M

Initial Weight
Final Weight
** % Weight
Change
**

% Weight Change = (final weight initial weight) / initial weight x 100


2. What is your independent variable in this experiment? What is your
dependent variable?

3. Prepare a graph by plotting the percent weight change against sugar


molarity, with your independent variable on the x-axis and your dependent
variable on the y-axis. Use positive numbers to indicate weight increases
and negative numbers to indicate weight decreases. This means that one
axis of your graph will have a zero in the middle, with positive and negative
numbers on either side. All graphs must have the axes labeled with
proper units!
a. When completed, use a ruler to draw a straight line of best fit through your
seven data points.
b. You should notice that there is a point at which your line crosses the axis at 0%
weight gain. This means the potato would neither lose nor gain water. Determine
the osmolarity at which there is no weight loss or weight gain by the potato core.
Answer the following Questions:
1.

What is the estimated osmolarity of the potato? How did you come to this
conclusion?

2.

Why did some potato samples gain water and others lose water? Was there
any pattern?

3.

Why cant we use seawater to irrigate our crops?

4. Water intoxication occurs when an animal consumes a high volume of water


more quickly than the excess water can be removed by the kidneys. What effect
does having all of this water in the extracellular fluids have on cell volume?

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