Lipid-protein interactions in frog rod outer segment disc membranes. Characterization by spin labels

Freely-diffusing phospholipid spin labels have been employed to study rhodopsin-lipid interactions in frog rod outer segment disc membranes. Examination of the ESR spectra leads us to the conclusion that there are two motionally distinguishable populations of lipid existing in frog rod outer segment membranes over a wide physiological temperature range. Each of the spin probes used shows a two-component electron spin resonance (ESR) spectrum, one component of which is motionally restricted on the ESR timescale, and represents between 33 and 40% of the total integrated spectral intensity. The second spectral component which accounts for the remainder of the spectral intensity possesses a lineshape characteristic of anisotropic motion in a lipid bilayer, very similar in shape to that observed from the same spin labels in dispersions of whole extracted frog rod outer segment lipid. The motionally restricted spectral component is attributed to those spin labels in contact with the surface of rhodospin, while the major component is believed to originate from spin labels in the fluid lipid bilayer region of the membranes. Calculations indicate that the motionally restricted lipid is sufficient to cover the protein surface. This population of lipids is shown here and elsewhere (Watts, A., Volotovski, I.D. and Marsh, D. (1979) Biochemistry 18, 5006-5013) to be by no means rigidly immobilized, having motion in the 20 ns time regime as opposed to motions in the one nanosecond time regime found in the fluid bilayer. Little selectivity for the motionally restricted population is observed between the different spin-labelled phospholipid classes nor with a spin-labelled fatty acid or sterol.     

Spin-labeling of Escherichia coli membrane by enzymatic synthesis of phosphatidylglycerol and divalent cation-induced interaction of phosphatidylglycerol with membrane proteins.

Escherichia coli membrane particulate fraction has been spin-labeled by incubating with sn-glycerol-3-phosphate, CTP, palmitoyl CoA and 12-nitroxide stearoyl CoA. Incorporation of the spin-labeled acyl chain into phosphatidyl-glycerol was confirmed. ESR spectrum of the spin-labeled phosphatidylglycerol in E. coli membrane consisted at least of two components; one due to the labels undergoing rapid anisotropic motions and the other due to strongly immobilized labels (the overall splitting value, approx. 58 G). The relative intensity of the two components was dependent on the concentration of divalent cations. The immobilized component decreased on treatment of the membrane with EDTA and increased on addition of Mg2+ or Ca2+. The spectrum at 1 mM Mg2+ or Ca2+ consisted almost only of the immobilized component. Spin-labeled phosphatidylglycerol in total lipid membrane showed ESR spectrum due to mobile labels and the spectrum was not affected appreciably by the divalent cations. The results suggest the divalent cation-mediated interaction of phosphatidylglycerol with proteins in E. coli membrane. Phosphoenolpyruvate-dependent uptake of methyl-alpha-D-glucoside was markedly accelerated by Mg2+. Ca2+ was not effective for the enhancement. The divalent cation-induced interaction of phosphatidylglycerol with proteins was discussed in relation to the sugar transport.     

Distinct states of lipid mobility in bovine rod outer segment membranes. Resolution of spin label results

Freely diffusable lipid spin labels in bovine rod outer segment disc membranes display an apparent two-component ESR spectrum. One component is markedly more immobilized than that found in fluid lipid bilayers, and is attributed to lipid interacting directly with rhodopsin. For the 14-doxyl stearic acid spin label this more immobilized component has an outer splitting of 59 G at 0 degrees C, with a considerable temperature dependence, the effective outer splitting decreasing to 54 G at 24 degrees C. Spin label lipid chains covalently attached to rhodopsin can also display a two-component spectrum in rod outer segment membranes. In unbleached, non-delipidated membranes the 16-doxyl stearoyl maleimide label shows an immobilized component which has an outer splitting of 59 G at 0 degrees C and a considerable temperature dependence. This component which is not resolved at high temperatures (24--35 degrees C), is attributed to the lipid chains interacting directly with the monomeric protein, as with the diffusable labels. In contrast, in rod outer segment membranes which have been either delipidated or extensively bleached, a strongly immobilized component is observed with the 16-doxyl maleimide label at all temperatures. This immobilized component has an outer splitting of 62--64 G at 0 degrees C, with very little temperature dependence (61--62 G at 35 degrees C), and is attributed to protein aggregation.     

Distinct states of lipid mobility in bovine rod outer segment membranes Resolution of spin label results

Freely diffusable lipid spin labels in bovine rod outer segment disc membranes display an apparent two-component ESR spectrum. One component is markedly more immobilized than that found in fluid lipid bilayers, and is attributed to lipid interacting directly with rhodopsin. For the 14-doxyl stearic acid spin label this more immobilized component has an outer splitting of 59 G at 0°C, with a considerable temperature dependence, the effective outer splitting decreasing to 54 G at 24°C. Spin label lipid chains covalently attached to rhodopsin can also display a two-component spectrum in rod outer segment membranes. In unbleached, non-delipidated membranes the 16-doxyl stearoyl maleimide label shows an immobilized component which has an outer splitting of 59 G at 0°C and a considerable temperature dependence. This component which is not resolved at high temperatures (24–35°C), is attributed to the lipid chains interacting directly with the monomeric protein, as with the diffusable labels. In contrast, in rod outer segment membranes which have been either delipidated or extensively bleached, a strongly immobilized component is observed with the 16-doxyl maleimide label at all temperatures. This immobilized component has an outer splitting of 62–64 G at 0°C, with very little temperature dependence (61–62 G at 35°C), and is attributed to protein aggregation.     

An electron spin resonance spin-label study of lipophilin in oriented phospholipid bilayers

Model membranes consisting of dimyristoyl phosphatidylcholine and a hydrophobic protein from bovine myelin, lipophilin, were studied using the cholesterol-resembling cholestane ESR spin label. Orientation of the membranes made it possible to deconvolute the spectra into two fractions, one of oriented spin labels reflecting phospholipid bilayer of high order, and one of isotropically tumbling spin labels ascribed to the lipid fraction surrounding the protein molecule (boundary lipid). This isotropic tumbling is different from the behavior of phospholipid molecules near the protein, which retain some degree of order, and indicates that the boundary lipid fraction in our model system forms a rather fluid environment for the protein. A nonlinear relation was found between protein concentration and amount of boundary spin labels. Addition of cholesterol decreases the amount of boundary spin labels. Both findings form evidence for a preferential binding of cholesterol by the membrane protein.     

Electron spin resonance investigation of the interaction of the anion and glucose transport inhibitor, p-azidobenzylphlorizin, with the human red cell membrane

The membrane perturbations caused by the interaction of p-azidobenzylphlorizin (p-AzBPhz), a potential photoaffinity labeling agent of the anion and D-glucose transporters in the human erythrocyte, have been studied using electron spin resonance (ESR) spectrometry. Two lipid-specific spin labels have been employed; one of these agents, a hexadecyl-quarternary amine with the nitroxide reporter group covalently attached to the cationic nitrogen, (CAT-16), has been used to monitor changes in the physical state of the membrane's extracellular phospholipid/water interface. The other spin label, 5-doxylstearic acid (5-NS), is designed to examine the order and motion of the lipid bilayer near the cell surface. In separate experiments, intact human red cells labeled with these lipid-specific spin labels were exposed to small amounts of the phlorizin azide. A dose-dependent alteration in CAT-16 motion was observed, but the p-AzBPhz interaction with the membrane had no effect on the spectrum of 5-NS. The half-maximal effect of the phlorizin derivative on the CAT-16 spectrum occurred when about 2 million molecules were bound to each cell. This is also the combined amount of band 3 and band 4.5 present in the red cell membrane and represents the concentration necessary to inhibit both anion and glucose transport. Our results suggest that the first p-AzBPhz molecules binding to the red cell membrane interact with the anion and sugar transporters, and not with the bulk lipid bilayer.     

Phospholipid chain immobilization and steroid rotational immobilization in acetylcholine receptor-rich membranes from Torpedo marmorata

1. The ESR spectra of both phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine spin labels reveal an immobilized lipid component (tau R greater than or equal to 50 ns), in addition to a fluid component (tau R approximately 1 ns), in acetylcholine receptor-rich membranes prepared from Torpedo marmorata electroplax according to the method of Cohen et al. (Cohen, J.B., Weber, M., Huchet, M. and Changeux, J.-P. (1972) FEBS Lett. 26, 43--27). 2. The ESR spectra of the androstanol spin label display a component corresponding to molecules which are immobilized with respect to rotation about the long molecular axis (tau R greater than or equal to 50 ns), in addition to the fluid lipid bilayer component in which the molecules are rotating rapidly about their long axes (tau R approximately 1 ns). This immobilized component is observed throughout the temperature range 2--22 degrees C, at an approximately constant relative intensity of approx. 45% of the total, which is quantitatively the same as previously observed with fatty acid spin labels.     

Alpha-synuclein association with phosphatidylglycerol probed by lipid spin labels

Alpha-synuclein is a small presynaptic protein, which is linked to the development of Parkinson's disease. Alpha-synuclein partitions between cytosolic and vesicle-bound states, where membrane binding is accompanied by the formation of an amphipathic helix in the N-terminal section of the otherwise unstructured protein. The impact on alpha-synuclein of binding to vesicle-like liposomes has been studied extensively, but far less is known about the impact of alpha-synuclein on the membrane. The interactions of alpha-synuclein with phosphatidylglycerol membranes are studied here by using spin-labeled lipid species and electron spin resonance (ESR) spectroscopy to allow a detailed analysis of the effect on the membrane lipids. Membrane association of alpha-synuclein perturbs the ESR spectra of spin-labeled lipids in bilayers of phosphatidylglycerol but not of phosphatidylcholine. The interaction is inhibited at high ionic strength. The segmental motion is hindered at all positions of spin labeling in the phosphatidylglycerol sn-2 chain, while still preserving the chain flexibility gradient characteristic of fluid phospholipid membranes. Direct motional restriction of the lipid chains, resulting from penetration of the protein into the hydrophobic interior of the membrane, is not observed. Saturation occurs at a protein/lipid ratio corresponding to approximately 36 lipids/protein added. Alpha-synuclein exhibits a selectivity of interaction with different phospholipid spin labels when bound to phosphatidylglycerol membranes in the following order: stearic acid > cardiolipin > phosphatidylcholine > phosphatidylglycerol approximately phosphatidylethanolamine > phosphatidic acid approximately phosphatidylserine > N-acyl phosphatidylethanolamine > diglyceride. Accordingly, membrane-bound alpha-synuclein associates at the interfacial region of the bilayer where it may favor a local concentration of certain phospholipids.     

Membrane structure of the hepatitis B virus surface antigen particle

Expression of S protein, an envelope protein of hepatitis B virus, in the absence of other viral proteins, leads to the secretion of hepatitis B virus surface antigen (HBsAg) particles that are formed by budding from the endoplasmic reticulum membranes. The HBsAg particles produced by mouse fibroblast cells show a unique lipid composition, with 1,2-diacyl glycerophosphocholine being the dominant component. The lipid organization of the HBsAg particles was studied by measuring electron spin resonance (ESR) using various spin-labeled fatty acids, and the results were compared with a parallel study on HVJ (Sendai virus) and vesicles reconstituted with total lipids of the HBsAg particles (HBs-lipid vesicles). HVJ and the HBs-lipid vesicles showed typical ESR spectra of lipids arranged in a lipid bilayer structure. In contrast, the ESR spectra obtained with the HBsAg particles showed that the movement of lipids in the particle is severely restricted and a typical immobilized signal characteristic of tight lipid-protein interactions was also evident. Phosphatidylcholine (PC) in the HBsAg particles was not exchangeable by a PC-specific exchange protein purified from bovine liver, while phospholipase A(2) from Naja naja vemon was able to hydrolyze all the PC in the particles. These analyses suggest that the lipids in the HBsAg particles are not organized in a typical lipid bilayer structure, but are located at the surface of the particles and are in a highly immobilized state. Based on these observations we propose a unique lipid assembly and membrane structure model for HBsAg particles.     

ESR spin-label studies of lipid-protein interactions in membranes

Lipid spin labels have been used to study lipid-protein interactions in bovine and frog rod outer segment disc membranes, in (Na+, K+)-ATPase membranes from shark rectal gland, and in yeast cytochrome oxidase-dimyristoyl phosphatidylcholine complexes. These systems all display a two component ESR spectrum from 14-doxyl lipid spin-labels. One component corresponds to the normal fluid bilayer lipids. The second component has a greater degree of motional restriction and arises from lipids interacting with the protein. For the phosphatidylcholine spin label there are effectively 55 +/- 5 lipids/200,000-dalton cytochrome oxidase, 58 +/- 4 mol lipid/265,000 dalton (Na+, K+)-ATPase, and 24 +/- 3 and 22 +/- 2 mol lipid/37,000 dalton rhodopsin for the bovine and frog preparations, respectively. These values correlate roughly with the intramembrane protein perimeter and scale with the square root of the molecular weight of the protein. For cytochrome oxidase the motionally restricted component bears a fixed stoichiometry to the protein at high lipid:protein ratios, and is reduced at low lipid:protein ratios to an extent which can be quantitatively accounted for by random protein-protein contacts. Experiments with spin labels of different headgroups indicate a marked selectivity of cytochrome oxidase and the (Na+, K+)-ATPase for stearic acid and for cardiolipin, relative to phosphatidylcholine. The motionally restricted component from the cardiolipin spin label is 80% greater than from the phosphatidylcholine spin label for cytochrome oxidase (at lipid:protein = 90.1), and 160% greater for the (Na+, K+)-ATPase. The corresponding increases for the stearic acid label are 20% for cytochrome oxidase and 40% for (Na+, K+)-ATPase. The effective association constant for cardiolipin is approximately 4.5 times greater than for phosphatidylcholine, and that for stearic acid is 1.5 times greater, in both systems. Almost no specificity is found in the interaction of spin-labeled lipids (including cardiolipin) with rhodopsin in the rod outer segment disc membrane. The linewidths of the fluid spin-label component in bovine rod outer segment membranes are consistently higher than those in bilayers of the extracted membrane lipids and provide valuable information on the rate of exchange between the two lipid components, which is suggested to be in the range of 10(6)-10(7) s-1.     

Effect of phospholipid substitution on the mobility of protein-bound spin labels in sarcoplasmic reticulum

The influence of phospholipid environment upon the mobility of spin labels covalently bound to the Ca2+-transport ATPase (ATP phosphohydrolase [EC 3.6.1.3]) was studied by electron spin resonance spectroscopy in native and reconstituted sarcoplasmic reticulum membranes. Fragmented sarcoplasmic reticulum of rabbit skeletal muscle was covalently labeled with maleimide spin-labels of different chain length or with 4-(2-iodoacetamido)-2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidinooxyl, and the phospholipids were exchanged for dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine or dioleoylphosphatidylcholine. With short-chain maleimide or iodoacetamide spin labels, the spectrum of the protein-bound label reflected the change in microenvironment caused by replacement of endogenous phospholipids with dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine as a decrease in mobility. In contrast, after labeling with long-chain maleimide derivatives, there were no noticeable differences in the spectra before and after substitution with dipalmitophatidylcholine. Replacement of endogenous phospholipids with dioleoylphosphatidylcholine did not affect the spectra. The data indicate that increased viscosity in the environment of Ca2+-transport ATPase produced by replacement of sarcoplasmic reticulum lipids with dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine reduces the mobility of short-chain maleimide spin labels covalently attached to the Ca2+-transport ATPase polypeptide.     

Lipid protein interactions in mitochondria. VIII. Effect of general anesthetics on the mobility of spin labels in lipid vesticles and mitochondrial membranes

We have studied the effect of general anesthetics on the mobility of two stearic acid spin labels (5-doxyl stearic acid and 16-doxyl stearic acid) in bovine heart mitochondria and in phospholipid vesicles made from either mitochondrial lipids or commercial soybean phospholipids. The general anesthetics used include nonpolar compounds (alcohols, halothane, pentrane, diethyl ether, chloroform) and the amphipathic compound, ketamine. All anesthetics tested increase the mobility of the spin labels in phospholipid vesicles to a limited extent up to a concentration where the ESR spectra become those of free spin labels. On the other hand, anesthetics have a pronounced effect on mitochondrial membranes at concentrations as low as those known to produce general anesthesia; the effect is lower near the bilayer surface (5-doxyl stearic acid) and very strong in the bilayer core (16-doxyl stearic acid). The effects of anesthetics are mimicked by the detergent, Triton X-100. We suggest that the discrepancy between the action of anesthetics in mobilizing the spin labels in lipid vesicles and in membranes results from labilization of lipid protein interactions.     

Lipid-protein interactions in model membranes from bovine brain white matter. An ESR spin label and electron microscopy study.

Lipid-protein model membranes, prepared from bovine brain white matter and containing all the lipids and Folch-Lees proteolipids, have been studied in macroscopically oriented multibilayers. To examine the lipid environment the membranes were spin labeled with the cholestane spin label (3'-spiro(2'=(N-oxyl-4',4'-dimethyl-oxazolidine))5alpha-cholestane) and a fatty acid spin label (4',4'-dimethyloxazolidine-N-oxyl derivative of 5-ketostearic acid). The ESR spectra exhibit two components arising from fairly well oriented and completely unoriented lipids. Up to a temperature of 55 degrees C the amount of oriented lipids is almost constant, being about 35%. At higher temperatures this percentage drops rapidly to zero. It is shown that the presence of unoriented lipids arises mainly from disrupted areas in the lipid bilayer structure. This is confirmed by electron miccroscopy and from an analysis of the temperature dependence of the order parameters of the spin labels. The presence of locally disrupted lipid parts in the bilayer is discussed in relation to the interaction of the brain white matter lipids with Folch-Lees protein.     

Heterogeneity in the fluidity of intact erythrocyte membrane and its homogenization upon hemolysis.

Intact erythrocytes were spin-labeled with various classes of phospholipid label. The ESR spectrum for phosphatidylcholine spin label was distinctly different from those for phosphatidylserine, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol and phosphatidic acid spin labels. The overall splitting for the former (52.5 G) was markedly larger than those for the others (approx. 47 G), suggesting a more rigid phosphatidylcholine bilayer phase and more fluid phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylserine phases in the erythrocyte membrane. Evidence for asymmetric distribution of phospholipids in the membrane was obtained. Spin-labeled phosphatidylcholine incorporated into erythrocytes was reduced immediately by cystein and Fe3+, while the reduction of spin-labeled phosphatidylserine was very slow. The present results therefore suggest asymmetric fluidity in erythrocyte membrane; a more rigid outer layer and a more fluid inner layer. The heterogeneity in the lipid structure was also manifested in the temperature dependence of the fluidity. The overall splitting for phosphatidylcholine spin label showed two inflection points at 18 and 33 degrees C, while that for phosphatidylserine spin label had only one transition at 30 degrees C. When the spin-labeled erythrocytes were hemolyzed, the marked difference in the ESR spectra disappeared, indicating homogenization of the heterogenous fluidity. Mg2+ or Mg2+ + ATP prevented the hemolysis-induced spectral changed. Ca2+ did not prevent the homogenization and acted antagonistically to Mg2+. The heterogeneity preservation by Mg2+ was nullified by trypsin, pronase or N-ethylmaleimide added inside the cell. Some inner proteins may therefore be involved in maintaining the heterogeneous structure. The protecting action of Mg2+ was dependent on hemolysis temperature, starting to decrease at 18 degrees C and vanishing at 40 degrees C. The present study suggests that the heterogeneity in the fluidity of intact erythrocyte membranes arises from interactions between lipids and proteins in the membrane and also from interactions between the membrane constituents and the inner proteins. Concentration of cholesterol in the outer layer may also partly contribute to the heterogeneity.     

The tryptic digestion of spin-labelled heavy meromyosin

The S₁ thiol groups of heavy meromyosin (HMM) have been selectively spin labeled with a paramagnetic analog of iodoacetamide (10) and the effects of tryptic digestion on the ESR spectrum and ATPase activity have been studied. The loss of ATPase activity on tryptic digestion occurs at the same rate with spin-labeled or unlabeled HMM suggesting that spin labeling produces no major change in the conformation of HMM. ESR spectra indicate that spin labels bound to S₁ groups of HMM are strongly immobilized; spectra of subfragment-1 isolated from tryptic digests of spin-labeled HMM are the same as those of labeled HMM. ESR spectra of S₁-spin-labeled peptides produced by tryptic digestion of HMM indicate essentially no immobilization of labels, the spectra being similar to that of a solution of free labels. The ESR spectrum of an unfractionated digest of HMM exhibits a peak attributable to strongly immobilized labels on HMM and subfragment-1 and a peak attributable to weakly immobilized labels bound to peptides. The rate at which spin-labeled peptides are released on tryptic digestion can be measured on the unfractionated digest by the decrease in the ESR peak corresponding to HMM and subfragment-1. The appearance of peptides containing spin-labeled S₁ groups parallels the loss of ATPase activity. No evidence has been found for the existence of an enzymatically active subfragment-1 lacking S₁ thiol groups.     

Bilayer structure in phospholipid-cytochrome c model membranes.

Lipid protein interactions in biological membranes differ markedly depending on whether the protein is intrinsic or extrinsic. These interactions are studied using lipid spin labels diffused into model systems consisting of phospholipid bilayers and a specific protein. Recently, an intrinsic protein complex, cytochrome oxidase, was examined and the data suggest there is a boundary layer of immobilized lipid between the hydrophobic protein surfaces and adjacent fluid bilayer regions. In the present study, a typical extrinsic protein, cytochrome c, was complexed with a cardiolipin/lecithin (1:4 by weight) mixture. The phospholipids in the presence and absence of cytochrome c exhibit typical bilayer behavior as jedged by four spin-labeling criteria: fluidity gradient, spectral anisotropy of oriented bilayers, response to hydration and the polarity profile. Any effects of cytochrome c on the ESR spectra of lipid spin labels are small, in contrast to the effects of intrinsic proteins. These data are consistent with electrostatic binding of cytochrome c to the charged groups of the phospholipids, and indicate that the presence of extrinsic proteins will not interfere with measurements of boundary lipid in intact biological membranes.     

A spin label study of perturbation effects of N-(1-methyldodecyl)-N, N, N-trimethylammonium bromide and N-(1-methyldodecyl)-N, N-dimethylamine oxide on model membranes prepared from Escherichia coli-isolated lipids

Interaction of bactericidal surfactants N-(1-methyldodecyl)-N, N, N-trimethylammonium bromide (2-ATDBr) and N-(1-methyldodecyl)-N, N-dimethylamine oxide (2-ATDNO) with phospholipid membranes prepared from Escherichia coli -- isolated lipids was studied by ESR spectroscopy using m-doxyl stearic acid (m-DSA, m = 5, 12, 16) and N-cetyl-N, N-dimethyl-N-tempoylammonium bromide spin labels located in different membrane depths. 2-ATDBr was found to be a more potent membrane perturbant than 2-ATDNO both at equal membrane and sample concentrations; this is in compliance with the respective antimicrobial activities of these agents. Using the statistical model of hydrocarbon chains in lipid bilayers, the probabilities of the formation of gauche conformations and the effective energy differences between the trans and gauche conformations were calculated from m-DSA order parameters for two different bilayer regions. Based on these parameters, a molecular model of the location of surfactant molecules in bilayer has been formulated. It has been suggested that at low concentrations the surfactant molecules are located in structural defects between lipid clusters in the bilayer. After filling up these defects, the surfactant molecules penetrate into the clusters between lipid molecules, expand the bilayer laterally and increase the amount of gauche conformations in the hydrocarbon chains in the hydrophobic core of the bilayer.     

DMPG gel-fluid thermal transition monitored by a phospholipid spin labeled at the acyl chain end

Low ionic strength aqueous dispersion of dimyristoyl phosphatidylglycerol (DMPG) presents a rather peculiar gel-fluid thermal transition behavior. The lipid main phase transition occurs over a large temperature interval (ca. 17 degrees C), along which several calorimetric peaks are observed. Using lipids spin labeled at the acyl chain end, a two-peak electron spin resonance (ESR) spectrum is observed along that temperature transition region (named intermediate phase), at three different microwave frequencies: L-, X- and Q-bands. The intermediate phase ESR spectra are analyzed, and shown to be most likely due to spin labels probing two distinct types of lipid organization in the DMPG bilayer. Based on the ESR spectra parameters, a model for the DMPG intermediate phase is proposed, where rather fluid and hydrated domains, possibly high curvature regions, coexist with patches that are more rigid and hydrophobic.     

Spin label and 2H-NMR studies on the interaction of melanotropic peptides with lipid bilayers

The interaction of the cationic tridecapeptide -melanocyte stimulating hormone (-MSH) and the biologically more active analog [Nle⁴, DPhe⁷]--MSH with lipid membranes was investigated by means of ESR of spin probes incorporated in the bilayer, and NMR of deuterated lipids. All spin labels used here, stearic acid and phospholipid derivatives labeled at the 5^th and 12^th position of the hydrocarbon chain, and the cholestane label, incorporated into anionic vesicles of DMPG (1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoglycerol) in the liquid-crystalline phase, indicated that both peptides decrease the motional freedom of the acyl chains. No peptide effect was detected with neutral lipid bilayers. Changes in the -deuteron quadrupolar splittings and spin lattice relaxation time of DMPG deuterated at the glycerol headgroup paralleled the results obtained with ESR, showing that the peptides cause a better packing both at the headgroup and at the acyl chain bilayer regions. The stronger effect caused by the more potent analog in the membrane structure, when compared to the native hormone, is discussed in terms of its larger lipid association constant and/or its deeper penetration into the bilayer.     

Phospholipid chain immobilization and steriod rotational immobilization in acetylcholine receptor-rich membranes from torpedo marmorata

1. The ESR spectra of both phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine spin labels reveal an immobilized lipid component (τ_R ? 50 ns), in addition to a fluid component (τ_R ～ 1 ns), in acetylcholine receptorrich membranes prepared from Torpedo marmorata electroplax according to the method of Cohen et al. (Cohen, J.B., Weber, M., Huchet, M. and Changeux, J.P. (1972) FEBS Lett. 26, 43–47). 2. The ESR spectra of the androstanol spin label display a component corresponding to molecules which are immobilized with respect to rotation about the long molecular axis (

), in addition to the fluid lipid bilayer component in which the molecules are rotating rapidly about their long axes (

). This immobilized component is observed throughout the temperature range 2–22°C, at an approximately constant relative intensity of approx. 45% of the total, which is quantitatively the same as previously observed with fatty acid spin labels.