Question

The Coronavirus has a double-layered membrane with two bands of hydrophobic tails sandwiched between two rings of hydrophilic heads (similar to the structure of animal cell membranes and the blood brain barrier). Soap is made of pin-shaped molecules, each of which has a hydrophilic head and a hydrophobic tail. Using this info, answer:

• How can washing your hands with soap and water, eliminate the spread of this virus?

Answer 1

Soap is also an amphiphile meaning it has two types of molecules :

1. One part of the molecule is attracted to water and repelled by fats and proteins
2. Other part of the molecule is attracted to fats and is repelled by water.

Being similar in structure soap molecules and viruses gets attracted to each other that is a hydrophilic side of soap gets attached to the hydrophobic tail of the virus. This chemical attachment is not very strong, it gets washed away easily with water.

Since Coronavirus is an enveloped virus it easier to kill them.