Biology / Unit 2 Bio 0329 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Membrane Fluidity
Captions available
The idea
A membrane's fluidity depends on how tightly its phospholipid tails pack, and unsaturated tails, kinked by double bonds, pack more loosely than saturated ones.
In practice
A cold environment compresses membranes rich in saturated fatty acids toward rigidity; unsaturated tails hold space open to stay fluid.
Where people slip
Fluidity is a property of the whole membrane's packing, not one phospholipid molecule alone.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
Something wrong in this lesson? Flag it · Sources for Biology