Hydrophobicity
Hydrophobicity
Hydrophobicity (pronunciation: /ˌhaɪdrəʊfəˈbɪsɪti/) is a property of substances that repel water. It is derived from the Greek words 'hydro' meaning water and 'phobos' meaning fear.
Etymology
The term Hydrophobicity originates from the Greek words 'hydro' (ὕδωρ) meaning water and 'phobos' (φόβος) meaning fear. Thus, it literally translates to 'fear of water'.
Definition
Hydrophobicity refers to the physical property of a molecule that is seemingly repelled from a mass of water. In the context of cell biology, it usually refers to the property of proteins or biochemical compounds that are repelled by water and prefer to interact with lipids.
Related Terms
- Hydrophilicity: The property of attracting water molecules.
- Amphiphilicity: The property of a molecule having both hydrophilic (water-attracting) and hydrophobic (water-repelling) regions.
- Lipophilicity: The affinity of a molecule or a substance to dissolve in fats, oils, lipids, and non-polar solvents such as hexane or toluene.
- Hydrophobic effect: The observed tendency of nonpolar substances to aggregate in an aqueous solution and exclude water molecules.
See Also
References
External links
- Medical encyclopedia article on Hydrophobicity
- Wikipedia's article - Hydrophobicity
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