141k views
4 votes
Why do phospholipids form a bilayer in water?

User DIsoVi
by
7.7k points

2 Answers

4 votes
When phospholipids are mixed with water, they spontaneously rearrange themselves to form the lowest free-energy configuration.
User M Gholami
by
7.7k points
3 votes

Answer:

The hydrophobic tails aggregate to form a bi layer.

Step-by-step explanation:

Phospholipids are major constituents of the plasma membrane. These are triglycerides having lipid part and phosphate part. The phosphate portion is the water-loving/hydrophilic and the glycerol tail or lipid part is water hating/hydrophobic. Hence, it is an amphipathic molecule. The hydrophobic tail aggregate with each other to form a lipid bilayer in the water. Therefore, the lipid tails prevent water molecules to enter the bilayer.

User Bato Dor
by
7.9k points