what is the structure of a cell membrane?
by

Your answer

Your name to display (optional):
Privacy: Your email address will only be used for sending these notifications.
Anti-spam verification:
To avoid this verification in future, please log in or register.

2 Answers

It's not always the same.

For a common description, it will contain cholesterol, proteins, carbohydrates, and phospholipids. However, when carbohydrates are attached to proteins or phospholipds, the proteins are called glycoproteins and the phospholipids are called glycolipids.

There's also something called the bilayer, wich has phospholipids with hydrophilic ends and hydrophobic ends. You could say there are two sets of the phospholipids when it comes to the bilayer. The hydrophobic ends of the phospholipids point towards each other, and the hydrophilic ends point away from each other (picture two fish facing opposite directions. The fins of the fish are pointing towards each other, but their front ends are facing opposite directions).
by Level 2 User (2.9k points)
edited by
how does it govern transport
by
The cell membrane is semi-permeable which means that only certain things are allowed in and out.  Transport is the process by which ions or other materials enter and exit the cell. This can happen in several ways. The most common forms of transport are through the use of protein channels which are like tunnels through the membrane.  They can be opened and closed at different times to allow materials in and out. The other means of transport is endocytosis and exocitosis in which a part of the membrane carrying material will break off from the cell membrane or merge with the cell membrane.  This is another way that materials are transported.

Related questions

1,290 questions
1,126 answers
30 comments
9,786 users