5. Factors affecting membrane permeability

Solvents:

• some solvents dissolve in the lipids, so the membrane loses its structure
• some solvents increase membrane permeability more than others [e.g. ethanol increases the membrane permeability more than ethanol]
• increasing the concentration of the substance also increases the membrane permeability.

Temperature:

• below 0 degrees C
  
  • phospholipids dont have much energy, so can't move much
  • closely packed…