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Turgor pressure
 
 
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'Turgor pressure' or turgidity is the main pressure of the cell
Cell (biology)

The cell is the structural and functional unit of all known Life organisms. It is the smallest unit of an organism that is classified as living, and is often called the building bricks of life....
 contents against the cell wall
Cell wall

A cell wall is a tough, flexible and sometimes fairly rigid layer that surrounds some types of cell . It is located outside the cell membrane and provides these cells with structural support and protection, and also acts as a filtering mechanism....
 in plant cell
Plant cell

Plant cells are eukaryote cells that differ in several key respects from the cell of other eukaryote organisms. Their distinctive features include:...
s and bacteria cells, determined by the water content of the vacuole
Vacuole

A vacuole is a membrane organelle which is present in all eukaryotic cells. Vacuoles are essentially enclosed compartments which are filled with fluid such as water or various enzymes, though in certain cases they may contain solids which have been engulfed....
, resulting from osmotic pressure
Osmotic pressure

Osmotic pressure is the Fluid_statics#Hydrostatic_pressure produced by a difference in concentration between solutions on the two sides of a surface such as a differentially permeable membrane....
, i.e. the hydrostatic pressure produced by a solution in a space divided by a semipermeable membrane
Semipermeable membrane

A semipermeable membrane, also termed a selectively-permeable membrane, a partially-permeable membrane or a differentially-permeable membrane, is a membrane that will allow certain molecules or ions to pass through it by diffusion and occasionally specialized "facilitated diffusion." The rate of passage depends on the press...
 due to a differential in the concentration of solute. Turgid plant cells contain more water than flaccid cells and exert a greater osmotic pressure on its cell walls.

Turgor is a force exerted outward on a plant cell wall by the H2O contained in the cell.






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'Turgor pressure' or turgidity is the main pressure of the cell
Cell (biology)

The cell is the structural and functional unit of all known Life organisms. It is the smallest unit of an organism that is classified as living, and is often called the building bricks of life....
 contents against the cell wall
Cell wall

A cell wall is a tough, flexible and sometimes fairly rigid layer that surrounds some types of cell . It is located outside the cell membrane and provides these cells with structural support and protection, and also acts as a filtering mechanism....
 in plant cell
Plant cell

Plant cells are eukaryote cells that differ in several key respects from the cell of other eukaryote organisms. Their distinctive features include:...
s and bacteria cells, determined by the water content of the vacuole
Vacuole

A vacuole is a membrane organelle which is present in all eukaryotic cells. Vacuoles are essentially enclosed compartments which are filled with fluid such as water or various enzymes, though in certain cases they may contain solids which have been engulfed....
, resulting from osmotic pressure
Osmotic pressure

Osmotic pressure is the Fluid_statics#Hydrostatic_pressure produced by a difference in concentration between solutions on the two sides of a surface such as a differentially permeable membrane....
, i.e. the hydrostatic pressure produced by a solution in a space divided by a semipermeable membrane
Semipermeable membrane

A semipermeable membrane, also termed a selectively-permeable membrane, a partially-permeable membrane or a differentially-permeable membrane, is a membrane that will allow certain molecules or ions to pass through it by diffusion and occasionally specialized "facilitated diffusion." The rate of passage depends on the press...
 due to a differential in the concentration of solute. Turgid plant cells contain more water than flaccid cells and exert a greater osmotic pressure on its cell walls.

Turgor is a force exerted outward on a plant cell wall by the H2O contained in the cell. This force gives the plant rigidity, and may help to keep it erect. Turgor may also result in the bursting of a cell.

Wilting

"Plants wilt not only when they lose water through evaporation but also when they are surrounded by an aqueous solution of common salt, potassium chloride, magnesium chloride, sugar or other substance, if the solution is of higher osmotic pressure
Osmotic pressure

Osmotic pressure is the Fluid_statics#Hydrostatic_pressure produced by a difference in concentration between solutions on the two sides of a surface such as a differentially permeable membrane....
, whereas they do not wilt if the osmotic pressure is lower."

See also

  • Cell wall
    Cell wall

    A cell wall is a tough, flexible and sometimes fairly rigid layer that surrounds some types of cell . It is located outside the cell membrane and provides these cells with structural support and protection, and also acts as a filtering mechanism....
  • Osmotic pressure
    Osmotic pressure

    Osmotic pressure is the Fluid_statics#Hydrostatic_pressure produced by a difference in concentration between solutions on the two sides of a surface such as a differentially permeable membrane....
  • Osmosis
    Osmosis

    Osmosis is the diffusion of a solvent through a Semipermeable membrane, from a solution of low solute concentration to a solution with high solute concentration , up a solute concentration gradient....
  • Wilting
    Wilting

    Wilting refers to the loss of rigidity of non-woody parts of plants. This occurs when the turgor pressure in non-lignin plant plant cells falls towards zero, as a result of diminished water in the Cell ....


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