ISSN:
0091-7419
Keywords:
membrane structure
;
phospholipid
;
electron microscopy
;
electron diffraction
;
Life Sciences
;
Molecular Cell Biology
Source:
Wiley InterScience Backfile Collection 1832-2000
Topics:
Biology
,
Chemistry and Pharmacology
,
Medicine
Notes:
Electron microscope and electron diffraction observations on microcrystals of pure lipids (a phosphatidylethanolamine, two phosphatidylcholines, a phosphatidic acid, and a galactocerebroside) reveal an extreme flexibility of lipid layers when the acyl chains are hexagonally packed (d100 = 4.17 Å). This is corroborated by similar observations on wet bilayers of a lecithin. It is shown that more “crystalline” polymethylene packings do not impart such plasticity to lipid layers and are therefore an unsuitable structural matrix for dynamic biological membranes.
Additional Material:
14 Ill.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/jss.400050102
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