Speaker
Ole Mouritsen
Description
The physical properties of the lamellar lipid-bilayer
component of biological membranes is controlled by a host of
thermodynamic forces leading to overall tensionless bilayers
with a conspicuous lateral pressure profile and build-in
curvature-stress instabilities that may be released locally
or globally in terms morphological changes. In particular,
the average molecular shape and the propensity of the
different lipid and protein species for forming non-lamellar
and curved structures are a source of structural transitions
and control of biological function. I will discuss the
effects of different lipids, sterols, and proteins on
membrane structure and show how one can take advantage of
the curvature-stress modulations brought about by specific
molecular agents, such as fatty acids, lysolipids, and other
amphiphilic solutes, to construct intelligent drug-delivery
systems that function by enzymatic triggering of curvature.
