Biochemistry 6th Edition by Reginald Garrett,Charles Grisham

Exercise 4

Understanding diffusion of phospholipids in membranes
Phospholipid lateral motion in membranes is characterized by a diffusion coefficient of about 1 x 10 - 8 cm 2 /sec. The distance traveled in two dimensions (in the membrane) in a given time is r = (4Dt) 1/2 , where r is the distance traveled in centimeters, D is the diffusion coefficient, and t is the time during which diffusion occurs. Calculate the distance traveled by a phospholipid in a bilayer in 10 msec (milliseconds).