What is the effect of distilled water on plant and animal cells?

Question

What is the effect of distilled water on plant and animal cells?

Answer 1

Distilled water has lower concentration of dissolved substances, or hypotonic, compared to the cytoplasm.

So, by osmosis, which is transfusion of water from an area of high concentration to an area of low concentration through a specific membrane, the water travels into the cell.

Eventually the cell receives too much water

In animal cells, red blood cells for example, the cells swell in size until the pressure is unbearable and the cell bursts. In plant cells, there is an additional structure contained in only plant cells that stop the cell from bursting. Insteaad, rigidness of the cell, or turgor pressure, slowly rises. This results in a rigid plant.

Answer 2

Distilled water is hypotonic to cell contents ie contains lower concentration of dissolved substances and hence more water.

Osmosis is the movement of water molecules across a cell membrane from an area of high water concentration to an area of lower water concentration.

Therefore water enters the cells by osmosis.

In animal cells,  the cell bursts (lysis).  Plant cells have a cell wall which prevents them from bursting and the cells swell and become turgid.

Hope this helps!