Question

1. now lets look at an example in a plant cell from a leaf. use the slider to examine a plant cell before and after the plant was watered with very salty water. after watering with salt water, the plant wilted. propose an explanation as to why the plant wilted using evidence from the cell diagrams. type your answer here.

Explanation:

When salty water is added, the external environment has a higher solute concentration than the plant cell's interior. Through osmosis, water moves out of the plant cell from an area of lower solute - higher water concentration (inside the cell) to an area of higher solute - lower water concentration (outside the cell). This causes the cell to lose turgor pressure. Turgor pressure is what keeps the plant upright. As the cells lose water and turgor pressure, the plant wilts.

Answer:

The plant wilted because the salty water created a hypertonic environment outside the plant cells. Water moved out of the cells by osmosis, reducing turgor pressure and causing the plant to wilt.