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An example would be when red blood cells burst because they have been placed in a solution that has a lower concentration of salts than blood plasma.
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∙ 11y ago
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Why can a transfusion of 5 percent salt solution be fatal?
This is due to osmosis. Osmosis is the process by which molecules of a solvent (in this case water) tend to pass through a semipermeable membrane from a less concentrated solution into a more concentrated solution until it is of equal concentration.If you have an isotonic saline solution of 0.9% (used in hospitals) the dissolved salt concentration in the saline is the same as the dissolved solute concentration in human blood. Therefore, the water molecules are able to pass through the semipermeable membrane of a red blood cell at the same rate. Remember semipermeable means some molecules can pass through but others cannot. The charged ions of salt cannot pass through the red blood cells membrane.If you had a hypotonic saline solution of 0.1%, the water molecules would try to equalise the concentration by moving across the red blood cell membrane into the cell until it ruptured.If you had a hypertonic saline solution of 5%, the water molecules would try to equalise the concentration by moving across the red blood cell membrane out of the cell until it completely shriveled up.Shriveled up red blood cells cannot function properly to transport oxygen abound your body, which would be fatal.
