Effect of Temperature

The phospholipids in the membrane are constantly moving laterally and are stabilised by cholesterol within the membrane.An increase in temperature increases the lateral movement and therefore the fluidity of the membrane.If the membrane becomes too fluid it will become permeable to many substances and will be unable to control the entry of substances in and out of the cell.Cholesterol reduces the chances of the membrane losing its structure by binding the hydrophobic tails and pulling them closer together.At high enough temperatures the membrane breaks down completely and membrane proteins such as carrier and channel proteins are denatured.