Question

Which of the following substances would have the most trouble crossing a biological membrane by diffusing through the lipid bilayer?
a. CO2
b. H2O
c. a small, nonpolar molecule such as butane (C4H10)
d. Na+
e. O2

Answer 1

Answer;

d. Na+

Explanation;

• The cell membrane's main trait is its selective permeability, which means that it allows some substances to cross it easily, but not others.
• Small molecules that are non-polar (have no charge) can cross the membrane easily through diffusion, but ions (charged molecules) and larger molecules typically cannot.
• Charged ions  such as N+ and K+ Cannot permeate the cell membrane for the since uncharged molecules repel uncharged molecules present in the membrane structure.