Gus is performing an experiment on cells. First he places the cells in a container of water and salt. When he checks some of the cells under a microscope, he sees that they are beginning to shrivel.

Question

What would most likely stop the cells in the liquid from shriveling?

adding more water to the container
adding more salt to the container
increasing the number of cells in the container
decreasing the number of cells in the container

Answer 1

The cells are shriveling likely due to osmosis, as they are in a hypertonic solution (higher concentration of salt outside the cells). To stop the cells from shriveling, the best option would be:

adding more water to the container

This would dilute the salt concentration outside the cells, making the solution more isotonic relative to the inside of the cells, which would help prevent further water loss from the cells and allow them to regain their normal shape.