Tonicity

Tonicity is a measure of the effective osmotic pressure gradient (as defined by the water potential of the two solutions) of two solutions separated by a semipermeable membrane. In other words, tonicity is the relative concentration of solutions that determine the direction and extent of diffusion. It is commonly used when describing the response of cells immersed in an external solution. Unlike osmotic pressure, tonicity is influenced only by solutes that cannot cross the membrane, as only these exert an effective osmotic pressure. Solutes able to freely cross the membrane do not affect tonicity because they will always be in equal concentrations on both sides of the membrane.

There are three classifications of tonicity that one solution can have relative to another. The three are hypertonic, hypotonic, and isotonic.

Hypertonicity

Hypertonic refers to a greater concentration. In biology, a hypertonic solution is one with a higher concentration of solutes outside the cell than inside the cell. When a cell is immersed into a hypertonic solution, the tendency is for water to flow out of the cell in order to balance the concentration of the solutes. Likewise, the cytosol of the cell is conversely categorized as hypotonic, opposite of the outer solution.