Circle the molecule in each pair that is more likely to diffuse through the lipid bilayer

A. amino acids or benzene
B. Cl– or ethanol
C. glycerol or RNA
D. H2O or O2
E. adenosine or ATP


The two basic properties governing the likelihood of whether a molecule will diffuse through a lipid bilayer are the size of the molecule and the charge of the molecule. A smaller molecule will be more likely to diffuse through the lipid bilayer than a larger molecule. A nonpolar (hydrophobic) molecule will be more likely to diffuse through the lipid bilayer than a polar molecule, which is more likely to diffuse through the lipid bilayer than a charged molecule.
A. benzene (small nonpolar versus larger uncharged)
B. ethanol (polar versus charged)
C. glycerol (small polar versus very large, highly charged)
D. O2 (nonpolar versus polar)
E. adenosine (polar versus highly charged)

Biology & Microbiology

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