Jenifer Thewalt

TL;DR: Two mono-cis-unsaturated phosphatidylcholine (PC) lipid molecules, having very different gel-liquid crystalline phase transition temperatures as a consequence of the relative positions of the double bond, exhibit PC:cholesterol phase diagrams that lead to the conjecture that PC: cholesterol membrane phase diagrams have a universal form which is relatively independent of the precise chemical structure of the PC molecule.

TL;DR: The relationship between membrane hydrophobic thickness and elastic properties is explored and it is demonstrated that membrane properties are affected to different degrees by these structurally distinct sterols, yet nonetheless exhibit universal behavior.

TL;DR: Cryogenic transmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM) and X-ray evidence is provided that the complexes formed between siRNA and ionizable lipid at pH 4 correspond to tightly packed bilayer structures with siRNA sandwiched between closely apposed monolayers.

TL;DR: It is demonstrated that the evolution in the molecular chemistry from lanosterol to cholesterol is manifested in the model lipid-sterol membranes by an increase in the ability of the sterols to promote and stabilize a particular membrane phase, the liquid-ordered phase, and to induce collective order in the acyl-chain conformations of lipid molecules.

TL;DR: The present paper reviews the phase properties of phosphatidylcholine-sphingomyelin-cholesterol mixtures, that are often used as models for membrane "raft" microdomains, and critically evaluated and rationalized in terms of triangular phase diagrams.