Cell membrane phospholipids

In addition to phospholipids, cell membranes contain protein molecules that carry out special functions such as transporting ions and molecules through the membrane. 

Butyl ether has the ability to dissolve lipids. As a result, it may cause irritation and pain upon contact with eyes and nose mucosa. It also causes dermal irritation and dermatitis upon contact with the skin. Damage caused by butyl ether appears to be scattered loss of epithelial cells due to dissolution of phospholipid cell membranes. At the CNS level, butyl ether, like other volatile organic solvents, depresses the CNS by dissolving in the cell lipid membrane and disrupting the lipid matrix. These effects are known as membrane fluidization. At the molecular level, membrane fluidization disrupts solute gradient homeostasis that is essential for cell function. 

Lipids are a diverse class of nonpolar biological molecules used by organisms for longterm energy storage (fats, oils) and as elements of biological structures (phospholipids, cell membranes, waxes). 

When the induced membrane potential exceeds a certain threshold value, the dielectric breakdown occurs. The dielectric breakdown generates pores in the phospholipid cell membrane. These pores are generated reversibly, and they are sealed spontaneously with the self-assembly of phospholipid molecules. The amount of membrane potential required to initiate electroporation is known to be approximately 1 V. 

Membrane ion pumps consist of assemblies of large macromolecules that span the thickness of the phospholipid cell membrane, as illustrated in Fig. 17.2. The pumps for sodium and potassium ion are coupled and appear to be a single structure that acts somewhat like a turnstile. Their physical construction transports sodium and potassium in opposite directions in a 3 2 atomic ratio, respectively. 

The interaction between bacterial lipopolysaccharides (EPS) and phospholipid cell membranes was studied by various physical methods of deep rough mutant EPS (ReEPS) of Escherichia coH incorporated in phospholipid bilayers as simple models of cell membranes. SS P-NMR spectroscopic analysis suggested that a substantial part of ReEPS is incorporated into l,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DMPC) lipid bilayers when mixed multilamellar vesicles were prepared. Furthermore the lipid lateral diffusion coefficients measurements at various molar ratios of ReEPS/egg-PC/POPG indicated that the incorporated ReEPS reduces the diffusion coefficients of the phospholipids in the membrane. EUV formed by the ReEPS from Salmonella enterica, eventually in mixture with dilauroyl phosphatidylcholine (DEPC), have been prepared and characterized by DES, SANS and EPR. PFGSE NMR measurements have shown that water permeability through the lipid bilayer is low at room temperature. However, above a transition temperature centered at 30-35 °C, the water permeability increases. ... 

There has been a surge of research activity in the physical chemistry of membranes, bilayers, and vesicles. In addition to the fundamental interest in cell membranes and phospholipid bilayers, there is tremendous motivation for the design of supported membrane biosensors for medical and pharmaceutical applications (see the recent review by Sackmann [64]). This subject, in particular its biochemical aspects, is too vast for full development here we will only briefly discuss some of the more physical aspects of these systems. The reader is referred to the general references and some additional reviews [65-69]. 

Section 26 4 Phospholipids are intermediates in the biosynthesis of triacylglycerols from fatty acids and are the principal constituents of the lipid bilayer component of cell membranes... 

Lipid bilayer (Section 26 4) Arrangement of two layers of phospholipids that constitutes cell membranes The polar termini are located at the inner and outer membrane-water interfaces and the lipophilic hydrocarbon tails cluster on the inside... 

Phospholipids. Phospholipids, components of every cell membrane, are active determinants of membrane permeabiUty. They are sources of energy, components of certain enzyme systems, and involved in Hpid transport in plasma. Because of their polar nature, phosphoUpids can act as emulsifying agents (42). The stmcture of most phosphoUpids resembles that of triglycerides except that one fatty acid radical has been replaced by a radical derived from phosphoric acid and a nitrogen base, eg, choline or serine. 

Choline, a component of the phospholipids in cell membranes, can be prepared by Sn2 reaction of trimethylamine with ethylene oxide. Show the structure of choline, and propose a mechanism for the reaction. 

Phospholipids are found widely in both plant and animal tissues and make up approximately 50% to 60% of cell membranes. Because they are like soaps in having a long, nonpolar hydrocarbon tail bound to a polar ionic head, phospholipids in the cell membrane organize into a lipid bilayer about 5.0 nm (50 A) thick. As shown in Figure 27.2, the nonpolar tails aggregate in the center of the bilayer in much the same way that soap tails aggregate in the center of a micelle. This bilayer serves as an effective barrier to the passage of water, ions, and other components into and out of cells. 

Phospholipids are important constituents of cell membranes and are of two kinds. Glycerophospholipids, such as phosphatidylcholine and phos-phatidylethanolamine, are closely related to fats in that they have a glycerol backbone esterified to two fatty acids (one saturated and one unsaturaled) and to one phosphate ester. Sphingomyelins have the amino alcohol sphingo-sine for their backbone. 

Phosphatidylinositol (abbreviated Ptdlns, or PI) is a minor class of phospholipids composed of glycerol, fatty acids and inositol. Pis are found in the cytosolic side of eukaryotic cell membranes. They are substrates fora large number of enzymes which are involved in cell signalling. 

Griseofulvin (Grisactin) exerts its effect by being deposited in keratin precursor cells, which are then gradually lost (due to the constant shedding of top skin cells), and replaced by new, noninfected cells. The mode of action of flucytosine (Ancobon) is not clearly understood. Clotrimazole (Lotrimin, Mycelex) binds with phospholipids in the fungal cell membrane,... 

Lecithin is a phospholipid, a class of compounds that make up cell membranes throughout the body. It is produced in the liver if the diet contains enough of the raw ingredients. 

A large number of combinations are theoretically possible and a lot of these structures are actually used in practice. We know that nature makes use of this variety, e.g., to form cell membranes by phospholipids. However, in daily practice the pool of hydrophobic raw material for the production of anionic phosphorus-containing surfactants is survey able. 

Phosphate also plays a central role in the transmission and control of chemical energy within the cells primarily via the hydrolysis of the terminal phosphate ester bond of the adenosine triphosphate (ATP) molecule (Fig. 14-3b). In addition, phosphate is a necessary constituent of phospholipids, which are important components in cell membranes, and as mentioned before, of apatite, which forms structural body parts such as teeth and bones. It is not surprising, therefore, that the cycling of P is closely linked with biological processes. This connection is, in fact, inseparable as organisms cannot exist without P, and their existence controls, to a large extent, the natural distribution of P. 

Cholesterol is found in many biological membrane and is the main sterol of animal organisms. It is eqnimolar with phospholipids in membranes of liver cell, erythrocytes, and myelin, whereas in human stratum comeum it lies in the outermost layer of the epidermis... 

The nonpolar lipid core consists of mainly triacylglycerol and cholesteryl ester and is surrounded by a single surface layer of amphipathic phospholipid and cholesterol molecules (Figure 25-1). These are oriented so that their polar groups face outward to the aqueous medium, as in the cell membrane (Chapter 14). The protein moiety of a lipoprotein is known as an apo-lipoprotein or apoprotein, constituting nearly 70% of some HDL and as litde as 1% of chylomicrons. Some apolipoproteins are integral and cannot be removed, whereas others are free to transfer to other hpoproteins. 

Each eukaryotic cell membrane has a somewhat different hpid composition, though phospholipids are the major class in all. 

The lipid bilayer of a cell membrane contains two layers of a phospholipid such as lecithin, arranged tail-to-tail. 

For cells to carry out their functions, glucose and other nutrients must be brought in, and urea and other waste products must be expelled. This would be an impossible task if cell membranes were composed only of phospholipids. Farge protein molecules act as molecular gates through the membranes (see Chapter 13 for the structures of proteins). These proteins are embedded in the bilayers but protrude into the surrounding water and/or into the cell interiors, as Figure 12-19 indicates. 

All enveloped human vimses acquire their phospholipid coating by budding through cellular membranes. The maturation and release of enveloped influenza particles is illustrated in Fig. 3.8. The capsid protein subunits are transported flom the ribosomes to the nucleus, where they combine with new viral RNA molecules and are assembled into the helical capsids. The haemagglutinin and neuraminidase proteins that project fiom the envelope of the normal particles migrate to the cytoplasmic membrane where they displace the normal cell membrane proteins. The assembled nucleocapsids finally pass out from the nucleus, and as they impinge on the altered cytoplasmic membrane they cause it to bulge and bud off completed enveloped particles flxm the cell. Vims particles are released in this way over a period of hours before the cell eventually dies. 

Phospholipases are produced by organisms such as CL perfringens (cc-toxin). These kill tissue cells by hydrolysing phospholipids present in cell membranes. 

Like other cells, a neuron has a nucleus with genetic DNA, although nerve cells cannot divide (replicate) after maturity, and a prominent nucleolus for ribosome synthesis. There are also mitochondria for energy supply as well as a smooth and a rough endoplasmic reticulum for lipid and protein synthesis, and a Golgi apparatus. These are all in a fluid cytosol (cytoplasm), containing enzymes for cell metabolism and NT synthesis and which is surrounded by a phospholipid plasma membrane, impermeable to ions and water-soluble substances. In order to cross the membrane, substances either have to be very lipid soluble or transported by special carrier proteins. It is also the site for NT receptors and the various ion channels important in the control of neuronal excitability. 

Myo-inositol is one of the most biologically active forms of inositol. It exists in several isomeric forms, the most common being the constituent of phospholipids in biological cell membranes. It also occurs as free inositol and as inositol hexaphosphate (IP6) also known as phytate which is a major source from food. Rice bran is one of the richest sources of IP6 as well as free inositol. Inositol is considered to belong to the B-complex vitamins. It is released in the gastrointestinal tract of humans and animals by the dephosphorylation of IP6 (phytate) by the intestinal enzyme phytase. Phytase also releases intermediate products as inositol triphosphate and inositol pentaphosphate. Inositol triphosphate in cellular membrane functions as an important intra- and intercellular messenger, that merits its value as a nutritional therapy for cancer. 

Liposomes — These are synthetic lipid vesicles consisting of one or more phospholipid bilayers they resemble cell membranes and can incorporate various active molecules. Liposomes are spherical, range in size from 0.1 to 500 pm, and are thermodynamically unstable. They are built from hydrated thin lipid films that become fluid and form spontaneously multilameUar vesicles (MLVs). Using soni-cation, freeze-thaw cycles, or mechanical energy (extrusion), MLVs are converted to small unilamellar vesicles (SUVs) with diameters in the range of 15 to 50 nm. ... 

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