Lipid bilayer: Difference between revisions

From The School of Biomedical Sciences Wiki
Jump to navigation Jump to search
Newer edit →
Created page with 'When lipids are together they spontaneously form a lipid bilayer due to their amphiphatic nature. Lipids consist of a 'head' and a 'tail' section. The 'tail' is […'
 
No edit summary
Line 1: Line 1:
When lipids are together they spontaneously form a lipid bilayer due to their [[amphiphatic|amphiphatic]] nature. Lipids consist of a 'head' and a 'tail' section. The 'tail' is [[Hydrophobic|hydrophobic]] and will group together in the center of the bilayer and the [[hydrophilic|hydrophilic]] heads will form&nbsp;the&nbsp;edges of the bilayer protecting the 'tails' from contact with water.&nbsp;&nbsp;There are&nbsp;3 main classes of lipids used in the forming of a lipid bilayer for function a s a membrane: phospholipids; [[glycolipids|glycolipids]] and [[cholestral|cholestral]]<ref>Berg, JM. (2006) "Biochemistry" 6th Ed. p239, New York, W.H. Freeman</ref>.&nbsp;The lipid mostly used for membranes is the phospholipid.&nbsp;In all lipids the&nbsp;'tail' is formed from [[hydrocarbon|hydrocarbon]] chains, varying in length and saturation. In phospholipids the 'head' is formed from a phosphate attached to an alcohol and a 'platform' either glycerol or sphingosine, giving the lipid it's hydrophillic properties.
When lipids are together they spontaneously form a lipid bilayer due to their [[Amphiphatic|amphiphatic]] nature. Lipids consist of a 'head' and a 'tail' section. The 'tail' is [[Hydrophobic|hydrophobic]] and will group together in the center of the bilayer and the [[Hydrophilic|hydrophilic]] heads will form&nbsp;the&nbsp;edges of the bilayer protecting the 'tails' from contact with water.&nbsp;&nbsp;There are&nbsp;3 main classes of lipids used in the forming of a lipid bilayer for function a s a membrane: phospholipids; [[Glycolipids|glycolipids]] and [[Cholestral|cholestral]]<ref>Berg, JM. (2006) "Biochemistry" 6th Ed. p239, New York, W.H. Freeman</ref>.&nbsp;The lipid mostly used for membranes is the phospholipid.&nbsp;In all lipids the&nbsp;'tail' is formed from [[Hydrocarbon|hydrocarbon]] chains, varying in length and saturation. In phospholipids the 'head' is formed from a phosphate attached to an alcohol and a 'platform' either glycerol or sphingosine, giving the lipid it's hydrophillic properties.  
 
 
 
<references />

Revision as of 14:37, 29 November 2010

When lipids are together they spontaneously form a lipid bilayer due to their amphiphatic nature. Lipids consist of a 'head' and a 'tail' section. The 'tail' is hydrophobic and will group together in the center of the bilayer and the hydrophilic heads will form the edges of the bilayer protecting the 'tails' from contact with water.  There are 3 main classes of lipids used in the forming of a lipid bilayer for function a s a membrane: phospholipids; glycolipids and cholestral[1]. The lipid mostly used for membranes is the phospholipid. In all lipids the 'tail' is formed from hydrocarbon chains, varying in length and saturation. In phospholipids the 'head' is formed from a phosphate attached to an alcohol and a 'platform' either glycerol or sphingosine, giving the lipid it's hydrophillic properties.


  1. ↑ Berg, JM. (2006) "Biochemistry" 6th Ed. p239, New York, W.H. Freeman
Retrieved from "https://teaching.ncl.ac.uk/bms/wiki//index.php?title=Lipid_bilayer&oldid=1977"