Explain how the term "fluid mosaic" describes the plasma membrane
What will be an ideal response?
A eukaryotic or bacterial cell membrane is described as a fluid mosaic because it behaves like a two-dimensional liquid of mixed composition.
The "mosaic" part of the name comes from the many different types of molecules in the membrane.
A cell membrane is "fluid" because its phospholipids are not chemically bonded to one another; they stay organized in a bilayer as a result of collective hydrophobic and hydrophilic attractions. These interactions are, on an individual basis, relatively weak. Thus, individual phospholipids in the bilayer drift sideways and spin around their long axis, and their tails wiggle.
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a. cytoplasmic extension b. nucleus c. neuroglial extension d. plasma membrane e. interneuron
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Down syndrome results from the inheritance of
a. only one copy of chromosome 21. b. no copies of chromosome 21. c. an extra copy of chromosome 21. d. two copies of chromosome 21.