Membrane lipids

About: Membrane lipids is a(n) research topic. Over the lifetime, 6910 publication(s) have been published within this topic receiving 409561 citation(s).

Microsomal lipid peroxidation.

Abstract: Publisher Summary This chapter discusses microsomal lipid peroxidation Lipid peroxidation is a complex process known to occur in both plants and animals It involves the formation and propagation of lipid radicals, the uptake of oxygen, a rearrangement of the double bonds in unsaturated lipids, and the eventual destruction of membrane lipids, producing a variety of breakdown products, including alcohols, ketones, aldehydes, and ethers Biological membranes are often rich in unsaturated fatty acids and bathed in an oxygen-rich, metal-containing fluid Lipid peroxidation begins with the abstraction of a hydrogen atom from an unsaturated fatty acid, resulting in the formation of a lipid radical The formation of lipid endoperoxides in unsaturated fatty acids containing at least 3 methylene interrupted double bonds can lead to the formation of malondialdehyde as a breakdown product Nonenzymic peroxidation of microsomal membranes also occurs and is probably mediated in part by endogenous hemoproteins and transition metals The direct measurement of lipid hydroperoxides has an advantage over the thiobarbituric acid assay in that it permits a more accurate comparison of lipid peroxide levels in dissimilar lipid membranes

Functional rafts in cell membranes

Abstract: A new aspect of cell membrane structure is presented, based on the dynamic clustering of sphingolipids and cholesterol to form rafts that move within the fluid bilayer. It is proposed that these rafts function as platforms for the attachment of proteins when membranes are moved around inside the cell and during signal transduction.

Membrane lipids: where they are and how they behave.

Abstract: Throughout the biological world, a 30 A hydrophobic film typically delimits the environments that serve as the margin between life and death for individual cells. Biochemical and biophysical findings have provided a detailed model of the composition and structure of membranes, which includes levels of dynamic organization both across the lipid bilayer (lipid asymmetry) and in the lateral dimension (lipid domains) of membranes. How do cells apply anabolic and catabolic enzymes, translocases and transporters, plus the intrinsic physical phase behaviour of lipids and their interactions with membrane proteins, to create the unique compositions and multiple functionalities of their individual membranes?

Functions of lipid rafts in biological membranes.

Abstract: ▪ Abstract Recent studies showing that detergent-resistant membrane fragments can be isolated from cells suggest that biological membranes are not always in a liquid-crystalline phase. Instead, sph...

Glycosphingolipids in Cellular Interaction, Differentiation, and Oncogenesis

Abstract: The idea that glycosphingolipids (or, briefly, glycolipids) are ubiquitous components of plasma membrane and display cell type-specific patterns perhaps stemmed from the classical studies on glycolipids of erythrocyte membranes.(1,2) Subsequently, plasma membranes of various animal cells were successfully isolated and analyzed; all were characterized by their much higher content of glycolipid than was found in intracellular membranes.(3–8) It is generally assumed that glycolipids are present at the outer leaflet of the plasma membrane bilayer, although this assumption is based only on experiments with surface-labeling by galactose oxidase-NaB[3H]4 of intact and lysed erythrocyte membranes and inside-out vesicles.(9,10) Obviously, further extensive studies of the organization of glycolipid in other eukaryotic cell membranes are necessary. Interestingly, the majority of neutral glycolipids present in plasma membranes are cryptic (see Section 4.2.1).