What is Hydrophilic Head:7 Facts You Must Know!

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This article illustrates all the information on “what is hydrophilic head” with some facts in detail

The Word hydrophilic means “hydro”-water and “philic”- loving or attract towards the water and other polar compounds to make them dissolve or soluble.

Now take a look at this in a detailed way:

Hydrophilic head structure

The word Hydrophilic means the part which has an affinity toward water or that part is water-loving or one polar compound that can able to react with water and due to its hydrophilicity, it requires a special membrane protein to pass through a lipid bilayer.

The head group of hydrophilic consists of a phosphate-containing group that is attached to a glycerol molecule. A typical membrane lipid molecule has a hydrophilic head and hydrophobic tails in which the part of the hydrophilic head are towards the outer side of the cells which are surrounded by water with the anterior cell having cytosol.

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what is hydrophilic head example
Image from Wikipedia

For example, The folding of lipids entirely depends on the structure and environment it is in. the outer part of the cell contains a plasma membrane that consists of the phospholipid bilayer. This bilayer contains hydrophobic hydrocarbon and hydrophilic phosphate.

Another example is that if the droplets spread and wet a large area of the surface, and the contact angle is less than 90 degrees that mean the surface is considered water-loving or hydrophilic

Where is the hydrophilic head?

In the plasma membrane of the cells, The glycerol-phospholipids contain a hydrophilic head that faces both the exterior of the cell and the water-based cytoplasm.

The heads are towards the water and towards both the outer side because the environment is polar and also inside of the cells. The water can do electrostatic interactions with the head of phospholipids.

Hydrophilic heads function

The head is the side that attracts water or bonds that freely with water making the molecule soluble in water.

It allows the passage of water, protein, and many other molecules to go in and out of the cell.

It allows some substances to be dispersed throughout a cell or organism

Is hydrophilic head Polar?

Yes, The hydrophilic molecule has a negative and positive edge and acts like a polar, and dissolves in water easily. The polar hydrophilic head explains the solute-solvent behavior and interaction.

 for example, water is a polar molecule and it can able to dissolve itself or dissolve other polar substances or molecules. while the other nonpolar molecules cannot dissolve or have no overall charge while the polar molecules can be attracted by water because they have some electromagnetic charges.

 They have a region of high polarity and separation and it can make substances solubleThus, the polar molecules are hydrophilic.

Why is the hydrophilic head Polar?

The head is the side that attracts water or bonds and has a negative and positive edge that makes the molecule soluble in water.

The head group of hydrophilic consists of a phosphate-containing group that is attached to a glycerol molecule, and acts as one polar compound that part is water-loving, that’s why it can able to react with and make them soluble or dissolve them.

What are phospholipid heads made of?

The phospholipid bilayer consists of the region of both the head and tail. This bilayer contains hydrophobic hydrocarbon and hydrophilic phosphate.

The head region of such kind of having a phosphate-containing group that is attached or connected with glycerol which is composed of choline and looks like a structure. The heads part of this lipid forms the inner and outer linings that are polar which towards the outer side of the cells which are surrounded by water with the anterior cell having cytosol.

Conclusion

The hydrophilic head of the phospholipid bilayer is mainly responsible to attract the water and make soluble other polar compounds only.

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