I can't seem to figure out how this would effect the cell since sodium is not very permeable.
2
-
$\begingroup$ Welcome to Bio. What cell? A human neuron behaves very differently than a bacterium at the bottom of the sea. $\endgroup$– AliceD ♦Dec 4, 2015 at 5:48
-
$\begingroup$ Don't expect tags to provide question background; they are basically not more than search terms. The answer below is likely not what you are after, but it answers your question perfectly. Vote to close. $\endgroup$– AliceD ♦Dec 4, 2015 at 10:26
Add a comment
|
1 Answer
$\begingroup$
$\endgroup$
1
The membrane isn't sodium permeable but it is water permeable. Water will move from areas of high concentrations to low. So when you increase the extracellular concentration of sodium, water will move out of the cell and into the extracellular matrix. This causes the cell to shrink.
-
$\begingroup$ The question is closed, so answers can't be added, and existing answers generally should not be edited to add material. Welcome to Biology stackexchange Patricia; try adding an answer to an open question instead of this closed question. $\endgroup$– mgkrebbsDec 8, 2015 at 21:42