Which one of the following is NOT a component of an animal c

Which one of the following is NOT a component of an animal cell\'s plasma membrane?

carbohydrate

nucleic acid

lipid

protein

Solution

Answer : The option B is not the component of animal cells plasmamembrane

Explanation : Nucleic acids are the components of the nucleus which are responsible for heredity and transferring information from one generation to next.

Chemical composition of animal cells plasmamembrane: Chemically plasmamembrane consists of proteins, lipids and carbohydrates.

1. lipids are the major components. There are four major classes of lipids are commonly present In the plasmamembrane which includes phospholipids (abundant), sphingolipids, glycolipids and sterols (cholesterol) all of them are amphipathic molecules consisting of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic domains. Phospholipids may be acidic such as sphingomyelin or neutral phospholipids such as phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylserine. Cholesterol is especially present in plasmamembrane of mammalian cells.

2. Proteins : The amount and types of proteins are highly variable. According to their position, proteins are classified as intrinsic proteins/integral proteins which are associated firmly with the membrane while external proteins have weaker association and are bound to lipids by electrostatic interactions.

3. Carbohydrates: Carbohydrates are present only in the plasma membrane. They are present as short branched or branched chains of sugars attached either to extrinsic proteins or to the polar heads of phospholipids and no carbohydrates are present in the cytoplasmic or inner side of plasma membrane.