The key difference between crenation and plasmolysis is that crenation is the shrinkage and acquiring of a notched appearance by red blood cells when exposed to a hypertonic solution while plasmolysis is the shrinkage of plant cells when immersed in a hypertonic solution.
The cell membrane is permeable to water. When a cell is immersed in a solution which has low water potential and high solute potential, the cell loses its water by osmosis. The solution is considered to be a “hypertonic solution”. Since plant cells differ from animal cells due to the presence of a rigid cell wall, the changes are different when they are immersed in a hypertonic solution. Crenation is the term used to explain the changes occurring in red blood cells when they are immersed in a hypertonic solution. It is the state of becoming shrunken with a notched edge. Plasmolysis is the term that describes the changes occurring in plant cells when they are immersed in a hypertonic solution.
