Surface-area-to-volume ratios indicate
A) cells must exceed a certain minimum size.
B) as cells get larger, their surface area actually decreases.
C) that the largest cells have a less proportionate need for food intake and waste removal.
D) a chicken egg is one cell which demonstrates the upper limit for metabolizing cell size.
E) as cells get larger, their surface area gets larger but at a slower rate than the volume increases.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

As cells get larger, their volume increases at a faster rate than their surface area, resulting in a smaller surface-area-to-volume ratio. This means that larger cells have a proportionally smaller surface area available for nutrient and waste exchange per unit of volume, making it more difficult for them to maintain their metabolic needs. This limits the maximum size a cell can reach before it becomes unable to sustain itself.

Surface-Area-To-Volume Ratios Indicate