Chain length monoethers

Shinzawa-Itoh, K., Ueda, H., Yoshikawa, S., Aoyama, H., Yamashita, E., and Tsukihara, T., 1995, Effects of Ethylene glycol chain length of dodecyl polyethyleneglycol monoether on the crystallization of bovine heart cytochrome c oxidase, J. Mol. Biol. 246 572n575. 

It is unknown how the fatty chain carbonic acids of the lipids originally formed. It is noteworthy that fatty acids with up to six and seven C-atoms were detectable in the Murchison meteorite. Thus, it might be possible that membranes that were even more primitive existed in the past. However, dicarboxylic acids of chain lengths up to 17 were detectable after hydrothermal treatment. It is also remarkable that isoprenoid derivatives - more precisely, phytanyl and biphytanyl, that is CIO and C20 chains - linked to each other by monoether or diether bridges are part of membranes of the Archaea (Fig. 6.2, bottom structure). 

FIGURE 4 Plots of In cmc versus hydrocarbon chain length at 25°C, unless otherwise stated A, alkyl hexaoxyethylene glycol monoethers B, alkyl sulfinyl alcohols C, alkyl glucosides D, alkyl trimethylammonium bromides in 0.5 M NaBr E, A/-alkyl betaines and F, alkyl sulfates in the absence of added salt at 40°C. [Composite from Tanford, C. (1980). The Hydrophobic Effect Formation of Micelles and Biological Membranes, Wiley, New York.]... 

Fig. 4. Variation of In(cmc) versus hydrocarbon chain length at 25 °C for various surfactants in aqueous media (A) n-alkyl hexa-oxyethylene glycol monoethers [19]. (B) n-alkylsulfinyl alcohols [20], (C) n-alkyl glycosides [19], (D) n-alkyltrimethylammoniurn bromides in 0.5 M NaBr [17,21], (E) n-alkyl betaines [221, (F) alkyl sulfates in pure water [2]. (Redrawn with changes)...

---