What causes plant cells to change shape during movement?
Water content
Plants do not have muscles, so movements such as the opening of stomatal guard cells or the folding of the touch-me-not (Mimosa) leaflets depend on changes in the shape of specific cells.
These shape changes are driven by the movement of water into and out of the vacuoles of the cells. When water enters, the cell becomes turgid and swollen; when water leaves, the cell becomes flaccid and shrinks.
Light and temperature may act as stimuli that trigger the response, and cytoskeletal proteins matter more in animal cells, but the immediate cause of the shape change in plant cells is the gain or loss of water.
Hence, plant cells change shape during movement because of water content.
Similar Questions
What movement in plants causes a tendril to circle and cling to an object?
How do autotrophs fulfill their carbon and energy requirements?
A mutation disrupts the transportation system in a plant, causing accumulation of oxygen and waste products in leaf cells. Which two life processes are most directly hindered as a result?
Which molecule is immediately synthesized using energy released during cellular respiration in animal cells?
How does Paramecium ensure that food particles are directed to its intake spot?
Which product is commonly formed during anaerobic respiration in animals?
Which pair CORRECTLY matches the Greek root with its meaning?
What are the end products formed during anaerobic respiration in yeast cells?
Which statement correctly compares information conduction in plants and animals?
The amount of energy released during aerobic respiration in animals is _____ that released during anaerobic respiration.
Important Questions from Biology
Tooth decay starts when the pH of our mouth is_______.
Which hormone is secreted by the pituitary gland?
Gregor Johann Mendel came up with the theory of inheritance by studying:
Red algae are generally found in:
Amoeba, Paramecium and Bacteria undergo:
