Crenation and lysis are both cellular responses to changes in osmotic pressure ^{1 2}. Here are the key differences:

• Crenation occurs in animal cells when they are exposed to a hypertonic solution. The cells shrink and become distorted.
• Lysis occurs in both animal and plant cells when they are exposed to a hypotonic solution. The cells swell and burst.
• Plant cells undergo plasmolysis instead of crenation. In plasmolysis, water leaves the cytoplasm, but the cell wall does not collapse ³.