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Online Assignment B- Chapters 7 and 8

Online Assignment B- Chapters 7 and 8

Q 1. In your own words, describe what would happen to the phospholipids of the plasma membrane in animal cells if cholesterol was not present and the cell was exposed to extremely low temperatures?2. There are six functions of membrane proteins listed in the book. In the table below, give a brief description of each in your own words and give an example for two (you can’t use the examples in the book). The example should be specific on the membrane proteins function.3. Would any of the above functions in question 4 apply to how Covid-19 and HIV infects cells? Explain your answer.

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The plasma membrane is made up of phospholipid and protein subunits, the phospholipids by their amphipathic character render the membrane the quality of selective permeability (Reece et al., 2014). Additionally, the lipid molecules are not rigid rather they are continuously moving, which enables a living cell to adjust in its environment. The membrane fluidity is affected ted according to the temperature it is subjected, normally the phospholipids vary in their saturated or unsaturated hydrocarbon tails to modulate the fluidity and adapt to a particular temperature. Certain types of organisms also carry other molecules like steroid cholesterol that prevent the membrane from getting entirely solidified.