What is the difference between tonicity and osmolarity?
The key difference between tonicity and osmolarity is that the tonicity measures only the concentration of non-penetrating solutes through a semipermeable membrane while the osmolarity measures the total concentration of penetrating and non-penetrating solutes.
What is difference between osmolarity and osmolality?
Osmolarity and osmolality are frequently confused and incorrectly interchanged. Osmolarity refers to the number of solute particles per 1 L of solvent, whereas osmolality is the number of solute particles in 1 kg of solvent. For dilute solutions, the difference between osmolarity and osmolality is insignificant.
What determines tonicity?
Tonicity depends on the relative concentration of selectively membrane permeable solutes across a cell membrane which determine the direction and extent of osmotic flux. Unlike osmotic pressure, tonicity is influenced only by solutes that cannot cross the membrane, as only these exert an effective osmotic pressure.
What is tonicity relative to?
Tonicity is a measure of the relative concentration of solute particles on either side of a semi-permeable membrane (e.g. inside a cell versus outside the cell). The higher the tonicity the greater the difference in the concentration of solutes (dissolved substances) and therefore the concentration of water.
What is meant by tonicity?
Tonicity is the concentration of a solution as compared to another solution. Isotonic solutions contain the same concentration of solutes. In biology, the tonicity of the environment compared to the cell determines how water moves across the semipermeable membrane.
Does tonicity affect osmolarity?
Tonicity is the effective osmolality and is equal to the sum of the concentrations of the solutes which have the capacity to exert an osmotic force across the membrane. The key parts are effective and capacity to exert. The implication is that tonicity is less then osmolality.
What will happen to Rbcs If urine is hypertonic?
Physiology of Body Fluids A hypotonic solution causes a cell to swell, whereas a hypertonic solution causes a cell to shrink. The differential effect of these solutions on red cell volume is related to the permeability of the plasma membrane to sucrose and urea.
How does tonicity affect the function of the cell?
The tonicity of a solution is related to its effect on the volume of a cell. A hypotonic solution causes a cell to swell, whereas a hypertonic solution causes a cell to shrink. Although it is related to osmolality, tonicity also takes into consideration the ability of the solute to cross the cell membrane.