1. Magnifying the Structural Components of Biomembranes: A Prototype for the Study of the Self-Assembly of Giant Lipids
- Author
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Tianbo Liu, Jiancheng Luo, Wei Zhang, Ruimeng Zhang, Zebin Su, Xian-You Liu, Zhiwei Lin, Yuchu Liu, Shuailin Zhang, Rongchun Zhang, Tong Liu, Jiahao Huang, Stephen Z. D. Cheng, Xiao-Yun Yan, Hui Xu, and Qing-Yun Guo
- Subjects
010405 organic chemistry ,Solution state ,Chemistry ,Supramolecular chemistry ,General Medicine ,General Chemistry ,010402 general chemistry ,01 natural sciences ,Catalysis ,0104 chemical sciences ,Chemical science ,Amphiphile ,Biophysics ,Molecule - Abstract
How biomembranes are self-organized to perform their functions remains a pivotal issue in biological and chemical science. Understanding the self-assembly principles of lipid-like molecules hence becomes crucial. Herein, we report the mesostructural evolution of amphiphilic sphere-rod conjugates (giant lipids), and study the roles of geometric parameters (head-tail ratio and cross-sectional area) during this course. As a prototype system, giant lipids resemble natural lipidic molecules by capturing their essential features. The self-assembly behavior of two categories of giant lipids (I-shape and T-shape, a total of 8 molecules) is demonstrated. A rich variety of mesostructures is constructed in solution state and their molecular packing models are rationally understood. Giant lipids recast the phase behavior of natural lipids to a certain degree and the abundant self-assembled morphologies reveal distinct physiochemical behaviors when geometric parameters deviate from natural analogues.
- Published
- 2019