Why is the cell membrane fluid?
1 Answer
Jun 20, 2018
Here.
Explanation:
Cell membrane is fluid because individual phospholipid molecules and proteins can diffuse within their monolayer and thus move around.
The fluidity is affected by:
-
The length of the fatty acid chain. Here, the shorter the chain the more fluid is the membrane.
-
The saturation of the fatty acids. The more unsaturated fatty acids there are, the more fluid is the membrane, because it causes a kink which makes them fit more loosely.
-
Cholesterol. The more cholesterol there is the more fluid is the membrane.
