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They avoid water. (The word "hydrophobic" literally means "water-fearing" :D )

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Q: Do hydrophobic tails on phospholipids try to aviod water or be near water?
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What are tails of phospholipids that dont like water?

Hydrophobic


Tails of phospholipids that dont like water?

Phospholipids have a lipid tail. This is non-polar and therefore hydrophobic (water hating). The phosphate head is polar and hydrophilic (water-loving).


What has a hydrophilic head which are stable in water and hydrophobic tails that keep water away?

Phospholipids


Where are the water in-soluble hydrophobic tails of the phospholipids bilayer located?

Cytoplasm of the cell


Cell membranes form because the hydrophobic tails on phospholipids try to be near water?

be near water


Why phospholipids form a thin layer on the surface of aqueous solution?

Phospholipids have a hydrophilic head and two hydrophobic tails each. When phospholipids are exposed to water, they arrange themselves in a bi-layer sheet with the tails facing towards the center of the sheet, and away from the water.


When mixed with water phospholipids spontaneously form membranes. what properties of phospholipids cause this to happen?

Hydrophilic phosphate groups that are attracted to water and hydrophobic fatty acid tails that avoid water.


Why are proteins amphipathic?

Because the heads of the phospholipids are hydrophilic (water loving) and the tails of the phospholipids are hydrophobic (water hating). The tails are pointing towards each other and the heads are facing the membranes.


Do phospholipids of the plasma membrane have hydrophobic heads and tails?

Hydrophobic means water fearing tails and hydrophilic means water loving heads First of all, these terms are involved when you are looking at the cell membrane. The structure of the cell membrane is called a phospholipid bilayer. Which means that the cell membrane is actually made to two layers and not one. If you take a look at the image, you will see that the little white sphere shaped objects are the hydrophilic heads, and the two little string-like objects attached to the hydophilic heads are the hydrophobic tails. All of the other stuff in the image is all of the extracellular proteins and such. But yes, as the previous answerer said. The hydrophilic heads are on the outer part of the bilayer because they are "water loving". Whereas the hydrophobic tails are on the inner part of the bilayer for two reasons. First, they are hydrophobic or "water fearing" so they will repel water. An example of hydrophobic is oil in water. The oil will form blob-like shapes in the water. Second, the hydrophobic tails also have a somewhat attraction to each other.


How do the hydrophobic and hydrophilic properties of phospholipids help in maintaining the structure of the cell membrane?

Hydrophilic molecules are attracted to water. Hydrophobic molecules are not attracted to water, but they are attracted to each other. Phospholipid molecules are unusual because they are partly hydrophilic and partly hydrophobic. The phosphate head is hydrophilic and the two hydrocarbon tails are hydrophobic. In water, phospholipids form double layer with the hydrophilic heads in contact with water on both sides and the hydrophilic tails away from water in the centre. This arrangement is found in biological membranes. The attraction between the hydrophobic tails in the centre and between the hydrophilic heads and the surrounding water makes membranes veery stable.


Which molecules have heads and tails in the plasma membrane?

phospholipid molecules....they have polar hydrophillic head(like water-as there is phosphate group attached on it..phosphate group has oxygen molecules with all their pairs of unshared electrons.) and hydrophobic tails(scare water)


Are phospholipids both hydrophilic and hydrophobic in nature?

Yes they are. The two fatty acid tails of the molecule are hydrophobic(repel water) but the phosphate head(negatively charged) is hydrophilic (attached to water)thus making it amphipathic. In biological system phospholipids often occur with other molecules(e.g.,proteins,glycolipids,cholesterol) in a bilayer such as cell membrane.Lipid bilayer occur when hydrophobic tails line up against one another,forming a membrane with hydrophilic heads on both sides facing the water