Recall what you know about hypertonic, hypotonic, and isotonic solutions. What happens to the cell in a hypotonic solution?(1 point)

Question

Responses

The cell has less solute in its environment, so the cell membrane extends around the solute and takes it out of the cell.
The cell has less solute in its environment, so the cell membrane extends around the solute and takes it out of the cell.

The cell has less solute that its environment, so solvent moves from inside the cell to outside the cell, causing the cell to shrink.
The cell has less solute that its environment, so solvent moves from inside the cell to outside the cell, causing the cell to shrink.

The cell and the environment have an equal amount of solute, so there is no net movement of solvent in and out of the cell.
The cell and the environment have an equal amount of solute, so there is no net movement of solvent in and out of the cell.

The cell has more solute than its environment, so solvent moves from outside the cell to inside the cell, causing the cell to swell.

Answer 1

In a hypotonic solution, the cell has more solute than its environment. This means that the concentration of solute is lower outside the cell compared to the inside. As a result, solvent (usually water) moves from the area of lower solute concentration (the hypotonic solution outside the cell) to the area of higher solute concentration (inside the cell) in an attempt to equalize the solute concentrations.

This movement of water into the cell causes the cell to swell, and if the influx of water continues, it may eventually lead to the cell bursting (lysis).

From your provided options, the correct response would be:

The cell has more solute than its environment, so solvent moves from outside the cell to inside the cell, causing the cell to swell.