Consider molecule #1. How would these molecules arrange themselves when added to water? A. Would dissolve in water B. Would form a micelle C. Would form a bilayer
Consider molecule #1. How would these molecules arrange themselves when added to water?
A. Would dissolve in water
B. Would form a micelle
C. Would form a bilayer
Lipids are a collection of molecules which are made up of an extensive carbon skeleton and are insoluble in water. Lipids being insoluble in water doesn't necessarily mean that the entire composition of that lipid is hydrophobic or non-polar. Most lipids are composed of both hydrophobic and hydrophilic parts. The major fraction of lipids are hydrophobic and hence they are insoluble in water. In-order to increase their solubility in water, individual lipid molecules aggregate with each other in a particular fashion to form highly ordered structures like micelles , bilayers, etc. The total hydrophobic surface exposed to water when lipids aggregate and form these ordered structures is less than the total hydrophobic surface exposed to water when lipids exist individually.
For non-cyclic lipid molecules like free fatty acids , glycerophospholipids, sphingolipids etc , the hydrophilic part of the lipid is called the 'head' and the hydrophobic part of the lipid is called the 'tail'.
It is the relative cross-sectional area of the hydrophilic head and hydrophobic tail of these non-cyclic lipids that determine whether their aggregation would favor the formation of micelle or bilayer.
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