NEETBotanyCell - The Unit of Life
Given below are two statements: one is labelled as Assertion (A) and the other is labelled as Reason (R). Assertion (A): The cell membrane of human erythrocytes has approximately 52 % protein and 40 % lipids. Reason (R): The ratio of protein and lipid varies considerably in different cell types. In the light of the above statements, choose the most appropriate answer from the options given below:
Options
- ABoth (A) and (R) are correct and (R) is the correct explanation of (A).
- BBoth (A) and (R) are correct but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A).
- C(A) is correct but (R) is not correct.
- D(A) is not correct but (R) is correct.
Correct answer
B. Both (A) and (R) are correct but (R) is not the correct explanation of (A).
Step-by-step solution
Assertion (A) is correct. Chemical studies on human red blood cells (erythrocytes) show that their cell membrane consists of approximately 52 % protein and 40 % lipids. Reason (R) is also correct. The ratio of protein and lipid varies considerably in different cell types depending on their specific functions. However, Reason (R) is not the correct explanation for Assertion (A). The general fact that the ratio varies across different cells does not explain why human erythrocytes have the specific composition of 52 %