On membrane transport and internal entropy production

Abstract

A plausible thermodynamic model for lysis of living cells has been proposed by correlating membrane fluidity and transport properties across biological membranes. The analysis presented here suggests that when the rate of internal entropy production exceeds a certain value, the regulatory mechanism involved in the transport of solutes across the membrane breaks down. Conditions describing the stability of the membrane structure and the role of leakage factors have been analysed.