Name: Gamotlong, Shane Edralyn O.

Group: Two (2)

Rebuldela, Kinno A.
Course & Year: BS Biology 3-B Date: November 14, 2022

Activity # 6
OSMOSIS

Osmosis is a special kind of diffusion. In living cells, the cell membrane is selectively
permeable in that it contains pores that permit the passage of some molecules but prevent the
passage of others. In this laboratory activity, osmosis is demonstrated as the diffusion of water
through a deferentially selective permeable membrane.

Objective:
1. To demonstrate the entrance of water in cells and tissues.

Materials:
1 fresh hen’s egg
3 beaker (500 ml)
Pebbles
Thistle tube
cellophane
Rubber band

Procedure:
A. Osmosis in Cells
1. Tap the broad end of the egg to break and soften the shell. Then carefully remove from
the broad end about ¼ of its shell. What is the condition of the exposed egg membrane?
Ans: Since the egg membrane’s not protected by its shell anymore, the exposed membrane
can then be easily be broken when too much force in when touching is exerted. It is also
soft and somehow flexible.

2. Immerse the whole egg in a beaker of water. Support the egg in an upright position with
the membrane exposed, by adding pebbles to its side. Draw the set up.

3. After about an hour, lift the egg from the beaker. What happened to the exposed
membrane? Explain.

Ans: The exposed membrane appeared swollen or became plumper and larger. The
exposed membrane is a selectively permeable membrane, meaning, some molecules can
move through it and blocks other molecules. The water molecules can move through the
membrane easily and that is why the side of the semi-permeable membrane had increased
in size because some water have entered. More importantly, the egg has less water
concentration than that of the water. So, to equalize the concentration, the water
molecules moved into the egg instead of moving out of it. The result is an expanded egg.
 B. Diffusion through a Membrane
1. Cover the large end of the thistle tube with cellophane and tie using a rubber band.
2. Cap the stem of the thistle tube with finger and fill the bowl of the tube about 10cm
with 30% sugar solution.
3. Suspend the thistle tube in a 500ml beaker with distilled water. Draw the set up.
4. See to it that the level of sugar solution coincides with that of water outside the thistle
tube.
5. Measure with a ruler the level of the sugar solution at 30 minute interval for 2 hours.
Record the results.

Drawing:
Draw set up A and B. Set up B (no thistle tube)
ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION
1. Explain how osmosis takes place in the egg and the membrane.
Ans: The exposed egg membrane, like those of human cells, is selectively permeable.
Substances that can pass easily through the egg’s membrane will follow the principle of
diffusion: They will move from the side of the membrane where they are at higher
concentration to the side where they are at lower concentration. This exchange will
continue until the concentrations on both sides of the membrane are equal. The movement
of water across a membrane is a special version of diffusion called osmosis. When an egg
is soaked in a solution to which the concentration of water is higher than that inside the
egg, the water molecules move from the outside solution, across the membrane and into
the egg. As a result, the egg plumps up and grows larger.

2. How do the following affect the entrance of water into the root?

a. Transpiration
Transpiration can be defined as the loss of water from a plant in the form of water vapor.
In transpiration, The roots sometimes fail to keep up with the rate of transpiration that
results into the loss of turgor and closing of stroma. Transpiration makes water lost in
plant(dehydration) occur because the water is mostly pulled due to the driving force of
transpiration from leaves, thus causing the plants to wilts.

b. Root pressure
Root pressure is the lesser force compared and is important in small plants when
transpiration is not substantial. Also, it is the osmotic pressure within the cell that causes
sap to rise through a plant stem to the leaves. Root pressure restores xylem functionality
and re-hydrates the dormant buds. It is also interlinked and interdependence biological
process that leads to healthy growth and development of plants as root pressure has a
force that pushes water up the stem to a certain level.

c. Osmosis
Water enters the root by osmosis and moves along through the root cells in the same way
until it gets to the xylem vessels. These vessels carry water up the stem to the leaf. Water
is lost from the leaves of plants by evaporation.

Conclusion:
In the egg experiment, the egg expanded because water is hypotonic to egg which causes
osmosis to occur. Also, it was observed how solutions diffuse in different situations,
always from a high concentration to a low concentration, and how molar concentration
affect diffusion, as the molarity goes up, more solution is diffused. The concentration of
water outside the shriveled egg was greater than the water concentration inside the egg;
therefore, water moved into the egg. At that point, movement into and out of the egg
continued with no net movement of water molecules. Thus, both osmosis and diffusion
equalize the concentration of two solutions. In osmosis, a semipermeable membrane is
present, so only selected solvent molecules are free to move to equalize concentration,
whereas in diffusion, particles move from an area of higher concentration to one of lower
concentration until equilibrium is reached.