A Financial IdeaAs we discuss osmosis and how it channels water into and out of the cell going to the higher solute areas, we find ourselves in a difficult situation. A question arises that really makes us wonder. Why don't freshwater fish explode and saltwater fish shrivel? That's a great question to ask because if osmosis worked properly this would happen, wouldn't it? Through careful research, we find that fish actually use osmosis and osmoregulation. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get Original Essay We know that in osmosis water moves from lower to higher areas of solutes and water will always have a net movement towards the higher osmosis solution pressure until it reaches its equilibrium. But we also know that fish may not always be in isotonic environments, so they need osmoregulation. This brings us to the most important information. Osmoregulation does what it says in the name: it regulates osmosis, controlling the balance of water/salt concentrations so that fish adapt to their environments. In freshwater, fish are hypertonic to the aquatic environment and therefore have a gill membrane that diffuses water into the blood. Freshwater fish require energy to regulate ion loss and fluid uptake to keep the water moving. As the water moves toward the higher osmotic pressure of the blood, sodium and chloride diffuse out of the fish. This will shift their concentration gradients in the external environment. To counteract the effects of osmosis, the kidneys of freshwater fish will continually produce large amounts of urine. So fish use the bathroom a lot. The kidneys will also lose all the salts in the urine. If the kidneys are damaged by a freshwater fish, it will certainly lead to death. The reason is that they have lost the ability to osmoregulate. More or less the same thing happens to saltwater fish. They will excrete excess salts to maintain balance in their hypertonic environment. Marine fish produce gills made up of Na+/K+ ATPases. This is an enzyme that helps them get rid of excess salt. Salt accumulates when they drink sea water. Like freshwater fish, they need energy. For them, it serves to pump out all the excess sodium from the gills. Furthermore, like freshwater fish, their kidneys are used for the purpose of selecting, filtering, filtering the divalent ions to be expelled. Please note: this is just a sample. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Thankfully fish have been able to adapt and mutate to better suit their environment, otherwise we wouldn't be able to enjoy delicious sushi. Without osmoregulation, the world would eat a lot of meat, but fortunately the ability to do so is given to fish to help them live in their watery home.