# Cytolysis

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> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cytolysis
> Source revision: 1326347884
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{{Short description|Bursting of cells}}
{{Infobox medical condition 
 |name            = 
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 |image           = Blausen 0684 OsmoticFlow Hypotonic.png
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 |caption         = A red blood cell in a hypotonic solution, causing water to move into the cell.
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 |specialty       = [Cell biology](/source/Cell_biology)
 |symptoms        = 
 |complications   = 
 |onset           = 
 |duration        = 
 |types           = 
 |causes          = [Osmosis](/source/Osmosis)
 |risks           = 
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}}
{{one source|date=June 2008}}
thumb|230px|right|Blood cells in solutions with different osmotic pressure. Cytolysis would result in the image on the far right.
thumb|250px|Micrographs of osmotic pressure on red blood cells
thumb|A human white blood cell (upper right) in water swells until it bursts (at ~14 seconds)
'''Cytolysis''', or '''osmotic lysis''', occurs when a cell [bursts](/source/lysis) due to an [osmotic imbalance](/source/osmosis) that has caused excess water to diffuse into the cell. Water can enter the cell by diffusion through the cell membrane or through selective membrane channels called aquaporins, which greatly facilitate the flow of water.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Alberts|first1=Bruce|title=Essential Cell Biology|date=2014|publisher=Garland Science|location=New York, NY|isbn=978-0-8153-4454-4|page=388|edition=4th}}</ref> It occurs in a [hypotonic](/source/Tonicity) environment, where water moves into the cell by [osmosis](/source/osmosis) and causes its volume to increase to the point where the volume exceeds the membrane's capacity and the cell bursts. The presence of a [cell wall](/source/cell_wall) prevents the membrane from bursting, so cytolysis only occurs in [animal](/source/animal) and [protozoa](/source/protozoa) cells which do not have cell walls. The reverse process is  [plasmolysis](/source/plasmolysis).

==In bacteria==
Osmotic lysis would be expected to occur when bacterial cells are treated with a hypotonic solution with added [lysozyme](/source/lysozyme), which destroys the bacteria's cell walls.{{fact|date=May 2025}}

==Prevention==
Different cells and organisms have adapted different ways of preventing cytolysis from occurring. For example, the [paramecium](/source/paramecium) uses a [contractile vacuole](/source/contractile_vacuole), which rapidly pumps out excessive water to prevent the build-up of water and the otherwise subsequent lysis.<ref>{{Cite book|
title=Biology|
last1=Campbell|
last2=Reece|
last3=Urry|
last4=Cain|
last5=Wasserman|
last6=Minorsky|
last7=Jackson|
first1=Neil A.|
first2=Jane B.|
first3=Lisa A.|
first4=Michael L.|
first5=Steven A.|
first6=Peter V.|
first7=Robert B.|
edition=9th|
isbn=9780321558237|
page=[https://archive.org/details/campbellbiologyj00reec/page/134 134]|
year=2009|
publisher=Benjamin Cummings / Pearson|
url-access=registration|
url=https://archive.org/details/campbellbiologyj00reec/page/134}}</ref>

==See also==
* [Cell disruption](/source/Cell_disruption)
* [Crenation](/source/Crenation)
* [Lysis](/source/Lysis)
* [Osmotic pressure](/source/Osmotic_pressure)
* [Plasmolysis](/source/Plasmolysis)
* [Water intoxication](/source/Water_intoxication)

==References==
===General references===
*{{cite book|last =McClendon|first =Jesse Francis|title =Physical Chemistry of Vital Phenomena| publisher =Princeton University Press|year =1917|location =University of California|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_BZUaAAAAIAAJ  | doi=|page =[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_BZUaAAAAIAAJ/page/n243 240] }}

===Inline citations===
{{reflist}}

Category:Cell biology
Category:Membrane biology
Category:Articles containing video clips

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Cytolysis](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cytolysis) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cytolysis?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.