Lipids in Cell Membrane

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Lipids in cell membrane


What are Lipids?

A lipid is a class of organic compound which is a fatty acid or its derivative. They are insoluble in water but soluble in organic solvent.

Major lipids in cell membrane are:
  • Phospholipids 
  • Cholesterol
1) Phospholipids:
The lipid substances containing phosphorous and fatty acids are called phospholipids. There are different types of phospholipids present in cell membrane, they are as follows:
  1. Aminophospholipids
  2. Phosphatidylinositol
  3. Sphingomyelin
  4. Phosphatidylserine
  5. Phosphatidylcholine
  6. Phosphatidylglycerol
  7. Phosphatidylethanolamine
The phospholipid molecules are arranged in two layers in cell membrane. A phospholipid molecule consist of two parts: head portion and tail portion. The head portion is made up of phosphate group and a glycerol atom and tail portion is made up of two fatty acid chains. Head portion is polar and hydrophilic (Strong affinity for water). The tail portion is non polar and hydrophobic (repelled by water/water fearing).


Structure of Phospholipid

The two layers of phospholipids are arranged in such a way that the hydrophilic portion of outer layer face the extracellular fluid (ECF) and hydrophilic portion of inner layer face the intracellular fluid (ICF). The tails of two layers meet in the centre of the membrane.



Arrangement of phospholipid in cell membrane


2) Cholesterol:
Cholesterol is another type of lipid found in the cell membrane,. Your body needs cholesterol to work properly. The molecules of cholesterol are embedded in between the phospholipid molecules. Cholesterol is responsible for structural integrity of lipid layer of membrane.
It is a 27 carbon compound with a hydrocarbon tail, a central sterol nucleus (made up of four hydrocarbon rings) and a hydroxyl group.






Related Articles:
  1. Biomembranes: https://anaszoology.blogspot.com/2022/08/biomembranes.html
  2. Lamellar model of Plasma Membrane: https://anaszoology.blogspot.com/2022/08/lamellar-model-of-plasma-membrane.html
  3. Fluid Mosaic model of Cell Membrane/Plasma Membrane: https://anaszoology.blogspot.com/2022/08/fluid-mosaic-model-of-cell.html


























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