Interpretation:
The difference between the cell membrane composed of oleic acid and stearic acid needs to be explained.
Concept Introduction:
Phospholipid is a type of lipid that contains a phosphorus atom. They are mainly found in the cell membrane of plants and animals. They are also called as phosphoacylglycerol as two fatty acids with phosphate group and alcoholic group are bonded to the glycerol molecule through ester linkage.
The phospholipid molecule has two ends; polar end and non-polar end. Two long hydrocarbon chains of fatty acids form the non-polar end of the molecule and hydrophobic in nature whereas the phosphate group is polar and hydrophilic in nature. Due to this dual nature of phospholipid molecules, they form a lipid bilayer that can effectively involves in transfer of different hydrophobic and hydrophilic molecules across the cell membrane.
Want to see the full answer?
Check out a sample textbook solutionChapter 19 Solutions
General, Organic, and Biological Chemistry - 4th edition
- What portion or portions of the structure of a sphingophospholipid a. constitute its tails in the head and two tails model for its structure b. have hydrophilic propertiesarrow_forwardThe following is a block diagram for a glycerophospholipid where the building blocks are labeled with letters and the linkages between building blocks are labeled with numbers. a. Which building blocks are fatty acid residues? b. Which building blocks are alcohol residues? c. Which linkages are ester linkages? d. Which linkages involve a phosphate residue?arrow_forwardDraw structures of glyceryl tripalmitate and glyceryl trioleate. Which would you expect to have a higher melting point?arrow_forward
- 21-100 What are the functions of a cell membrane? To what extent is a bilayer that consists entirely of lipids able to carry out these functions?arrow_forward1 Hyaluronic acid acts as a lubricant in the synovial fluid of joints. In rheumatoid arthritis, inflammation breaks hyaluronic acid down to smaller molecules. Under these conditions, what happens to the lubricating power of the synovial fluid?arrow_forwardGive numerical answers to the following questions about the structure of a cholesterol molecule. a. How many six-membered rings arc present? b. How many amide linkages are present? c. How many hydroxyl substituents are present? d. How many total functional groups are present?arrow_forward
- Organic And Biological ChemistryChemistryISBN:9781305081079Author:STOKER, H. Stephen (howard Stephen)Publisher:Cengage Learning,General, Organic, and Biological ChemistryChemistryISBN:9781285853918Author:H. Stephen StokerPublisher:Cengage LearningIntroduction to General, Organic and BiochemistryChemistryISBN:9781285869759Author:Frederick A. Bettelheim, William H. Brown, Mary K. Campbell, Shawn O. Farrell, Omar TorresPublisher:Cengage Learning
- Chemistry: Matter and ChangeChemistryISBN:9780078746376Author:Dinah Zike, Laurel Dingrando, Nicholas Hainen, Cheryl WistromPublisher:Glencoe/McGraw-Hill School Pub CoChemistry for Today: General, Organic, and Bioche...ChemistryISBN:9781305960060Author:Spencer L. Seager, Michael R. Slabaugh, Maren S. HansenPublisher:Cengage Learning