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Amphiphile
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<p>In <a href="/facts/Chemistry/SrNqkGVm">chemistry</a>, an amphiphile , or amphipath, is a <a href="/facts/Chemical_compound/37FXqqtv">chemical compound</a> possessing both <a href="/facts/Hydrophilic/k8p95WYu">hydrophilic</a> (<i>water-loving</i>, <a href="/facts/Chemical_polarity/KlIJ0zjB">polar</a>) and <a href="/facts/Lipophilic/AWpsR8Xe">lipophilic</a> (<i>fat-loving</i>, nonpolar) properties. Such a compound is called amphiphilic or amphipathic. Amphiphilic compounds include <a href="/facts/Surfactants/zgVX6g8o">surfactants</a> and <a href="/facts/Detergent/4FLKXR6p">detergents</a>. The <a href="/facts/Phospholipid/u6GhNCF5">phospholipid</a> amphiphiles are the major structural component of <a href="/facts/Cell_membrane/vAXSD0DT">cell membranes</a>. </p><p>Amphiphiles are the basis for a number of areas of research in chemistry and biochemistry, notably that of <a href="/facts/Lipid_polymorphism/GGcdAhuI">lipid polymorphism</a>. </p><p>Organic compounds containing hydrophilic groups at both ends of the molecule are called <a href="/facts/Bolaamphiphile/KXAeJgba">bolaamphiphilic</a>. The <a href="/facts/Micelle/eMG9whea">micelles</a> they form in the aggregate are <a href="/facts/Prolate/GJyyLxQ7">prolate</a>. </p>