A Theoretical Model for the Association Probabilities of Saturated Phospholipids from Two-Component Bilayer Lipid Membranes

The non-random mixing of biomembrane components, especially saturated phospholipids, exhibits important consequences in molecular biology. Particularly, the distribution of lipids within natural and model membranes is strongly determined by the selective association processes. These processes of phospholipids take place due to the cooperative modes in multiparticle systems as well as the specific lipid-lipid interactions both in the hydrophobic core and in the region of the polar headgroups. We demonstrated that the investigation of the selective association processes of saturated phospholipids might contribute to the insight of the lipid domains appearance inside the bilayer membranes. The association probabilities of like-pairs and cross-pairs from a binary mixture of saturated phospholipids were tested for both parallel and anti-parallel alignments of the polar headgroups. The present model confirms the experimental evidence for saturated phospholipids to have a high tendency for association in parallel configuration of the electric dipole moments of the polar headgroups whether the cross-sectional area of the polar headgroup is in an usual range of 25-55 2. There are three major lipid domains in a binary mixture of saturated phospholipids: (i) lipid domains in non-mixed phase of the first mixture component, in parallel alignment of the polar headgroups; (ii) lipid domains in non-mixed phase of the second mixture component, in anti-parallel alignment of the polar headgroups; (iii) lipid domains in mixed phase. We think that the selective association processes of phospholipids are neither exclusively, nor only involved in promoting the lipid domains appearance through bilayer phospholipid membranes.     

Transbilayer (flip-flop) lipid motion and lipid scrambling in membranes

This paper reviews the current knowledge on the various mechanisms for transbilayer, or flip-flop, lipid motion in model and cell membranes, enzyme-assisted lipid transfer by flippases, floppases and scramblases is briefly discussed, while non-catalyzed lipid flip-flop is reviewed in more detail. Transbilayer lipid motion may occur as a result of the insertion of foreign molecules (detergents, lipids, or even proteins) in one of the membrane leaflets. It may also be the result of the enzymatic generation of lipids, e.g. diacylglycerol or ceramide, at one side of the membrane. Transbilayer motion rates decrease in the order diacylglycerol ? ceramide ? phospholipids. Ceramide, but not diacylglycerol, can induce transbilayer motion of other lipids, and bilayer scrambling. Transbilayer lipid diffusion and bilayer scrambling are defined as two conceptually and mechanistically different processes. The mechanism of scrambling appears to be related to local instabilities caused by the non-lamellar ceramide molecule, or by other molecules that exhibit a relatively slow flip-flop rate, when asymmetrically inserted or generated in one of the monolayers in a cell or model membrane.     

Phospholipid flip-out controls the cell cycle of Escherichia coli

Phospholipids are the principal constituents of biological membranes. In Escherichia coli, phospholipids are involved in the metabolism of other envelope constituents such as lipoprotein, lipopolysaccharide, certain envelope proteins and peptidoglycan. They are also involved in the regulation of the cell cycle. DNAA, the key protein in the initiation of chromosome replication, is activated by acidic phospholipids only when these are in fluid bilayers, whilst interruptions of phospholipid synthesis inhibit both the initiation of chromosome replication and cell division. The transmembrane movement or flip-flop of phospholipids from one monolayer to the other requires the passage of the polar head group through the hydrophobic core of the bilayer. Hence, in many systems, flip-flop is a slow process with half-time of days. Flip-flop accompanies the formation of non-bilayer structure. Such structures form under certain conditions of packing density and composition and have been observed both in vitro and in vivo. In bacteria, flip-flop appears to be extremely rapid, with half-times as fast as 3 min being observed. However, such rapid flip-flop may not be characteristic of all phospholipids. The asymmetrical distribution of phosphatidylethanolamine in the plasma membrane of Bacillus megaterium has been attributed to the existence of two classes of this phospholipid. In E. coli, studies of the metabolic turnover of phosphatidylserine, phosphatidylglycerol and phosphatidic acid also reveal the existence of distinct classes of these phospholipids. In this article I propose that, in E. coli, a class of phospholipids does indeed escape the rapid flip-flop mechanism; this class probably includes a subpopulation of the acidic phospholipids. Therefore during the cell cycle these phospholipids accumulate in the inner monolayer of the cytoplasmic membrane and so cause an increase in its packing density; at a critical density, phospholipids "flip out" from the inner to the outer monolayer. This flip-out occurs once per cycle and initiates cell cycle events.     

Regulation of transbilayer plasma membrane phospholipid asymmetry

Lipids in biological membranes are asymmetrically distributed across the bilayer; the amine-containing phospholipids are enriched on the cytoplasmic surface of the plasma membrane, while the choline-containing and sphingolipids are enriched on the outer surface. The maintenance of transbilayer lipid asymmetry is essential for normal membrane function, and disruption of this asymmetry is associated with cell activation or pathologic conditions. Lipid asymmetry is generated primarily by selective synthesis of lipids on one side of the membrane. Because passive lipid transbilayer diffusion is slow, a number of proteins have evolved to either dissipate or maintain this lipid gradient. These proteins fall into three classes: 1) cytofacially-directed, ATP-dependent transporters ("flippases"); 2) exofacially-directed, ATP-dependent transporters ("floppases"); and 3) bidirectional, ATP-independent transporters ("scramblases"). The flippase is highly selective for phosphatidylserine and functions to keep this lipid sequestered from the cell surface. Floppase activity has been associated with the ABC class of transmembrane transporters. Although they are primarily nonspecific, at least two members of this class display selectivity for their substrate lipid. Scramblases are inherently nonspecific and function to randomize the distribution of newly synthesized lipids in the endoplasmic reticulum or plasma membrane lipids in activated cells. It is the combined action of these proteins and the physical properties of the membrane bilayer that generate and maintain transbilayer lipid asymmetry.     

Domain registration in raft-mimicking lipid mixtures studied using polymer-tethered lipid bilayers

The degree of domain registration in a liquid-ordered/liquid-disordered phase-separating lipid mixture consisting of 1-stearoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-3-phosphocholine, egg sphingomyelin, and cholesterol (molar mixing ratio of 1:1:1) was studied using three different planar lipid bilayer architectures distinguished by their bilayer-substrate distance d using epifluorescence microscopy. The bilayer systems, which were built layer by layer using Langmuir-Blodgett/Schaefer film depositions, included a solid-supported bilayer (d approximately 15 A) and two polymer-supported bilayers with d approximately 30 A and d approximately 58 A, respectively. Complete domain registration between Langmuir-Blodgett and Schaefer monolayer domains was observed for d approximately 58 A but not in the cases when d approximately 15 A and d approximately 30 A. Building the bilayer layer by layer guaranteed that any preexisting domains were not in registration initially; our data show that the domain registration observed was not caused by lipid flip-flop or by lateral rearrangement of preexisting large-scale domains. Instead, additional studies on bilayer systems with asymmetric lipid composition indicate that preexisting domains in the Langmuir-Blodgett monolayer induce the formation of completely registered domains in the opposite Schaefer monolayer. This study provides insight into possible biophysical mechanisms of transbilayer domain coupling. Our findings support the concept that the formation of transbilayer signaling platforms based on registered raft domains may occur without the active involvement of membrane-spanning proteins.     

Flippase activity detected with unlabeled lipids by shape changes of giant unilamellar vesicles

Transbilayer movement of phospholipids in biological membranes is mediated by energy-dependent and energy-independent flippases. Available methods for detection of flippase mediated transversal flip-flop are essentially based on spin-labeled or fluorescent lipid analogues. Here we demonstrate that shape change of giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs) can be used as a new tool to study the occurrence and time scale of flippase-mediated transbilayer movement of unlabeled phospholipids. Insertion of lipids into the external leaflet created an area difference between the two leaflets that caused the formation of a bud-like structure. Under conditions of negligible flip-flop, the bud was stable. Upon reconstitution of the energy-independent flippase activity of the yeast endoplasmic reticulum into GUVs, the initial bud formation was reversible, and the shapes were recovered. This can be ascribed to a rapid flip-flop leading to relaxation of the monolayer area difference. Theoretical analysis of kinetics of shape changes provides self-consistent determination of the flip-flop rate and further kinetic parameters. Based on that analysis, the half-time of phospholipid flip-flop in the presence of endoplasmic reticulum proteins was found to be on the order of few minutes. In contrast, GUVs reconstituted with influenza virus protein formed stable buds. The results argue for the presence of specific membrane proteins mediating rapid flip-flop.     

ATP-dependent transport of phosphatidylserine analogues in human erythrocytes

The plasma membrane of most cells contains a number of lipid transporters that catalyze the ATP-dependent movement of phospholipids across the membrane and assist in the maintenance of lipid asymmetry. The most well-characterized of these transporters is the erythrocyte aminophospholipid flippase, which selectively transports phosphatidylserine (PS) from the outer to the inner monolayer. Previous work has demonstrated that PS and to a lesser extent phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) are substrates for the flippase and that other phospholipids move across the membrane only by passive flip-flop. The present study re-evaluates these results. The incorporation and transbilayer movement of a number of short-chain (dilauroyl) phospholipid analogues in human erythrocytes was measured by observing lipid-induced changes in cell morphology, and the effect of an ATPase inhibitor (vanadate) and a sulfyhdryl reagent (N-ethylmaleimide) was determined. Incubation of cells with these lipids causes the rapid formation of echinocytes, because of the accumulation of the lipid in the outer monolayer. While dilauroylphosphatidylcholine-treated cells retained this shape, cells treated with sn-1,2-DLP-l-S, sn-1,2-DLP-d-S, or N-methyl-DLPS rapidly changed morphology to stomatocytes, which is consistent with the transport and accumulation of the lipid in the inner monolayer. A similar, although slower, stomatocytic shape change was induced by sn-2,3-DLP-l-S. Other lipids that were tested (dilauroylphosphatidylhydroxypropionate, dilauroylphosphatidylhomoserine, DLPS-methyl ester, or sn-2,3-DLP-d-S) reverted to discocytes only. In all cases, pretreatment with vanadate or N-ethylmaleimide inhibited the conversion of echinocytes to discocytes or stomatocytes. This is the first report of a protein- and energy-dependent pathway for the inwardly directed transbilayer movement of lipids other than PS and PE in the erythrocyte membrane and suggests that the flippase has broader specificity for substrates or that other lipid transporters are present.     

Transbilayer lipid diffusion promoted by Bax: implications for apoptosis

It is known that the proapoptotic protein Bax facilitates the formation of pores in bilayers, resulting in the release of proteins from the intermitochondrial space. We demonstrate that another consequence of the interaction of Bax with membranes is an increase in the rate of lipid transbilayer diffusion. We use two independent assays for transbilayer diffusion, one involving the formation of asymmetric liposomes by placing a pyrene-labeled lipid into the outer monolayer of preformed vesicles and another assay based on the initial preparation of liposomes having an asymmetric transbilayer distribution of lipids. With both methods we find that oligomeric BaxDeltaC or full-length Bax in the presence of tBid, but not monomeric full-length Bax, strongly promotes the rate of transbilayer diffusion. Although biological membranes exhibit rates of lipid transbilayer diffusion of minutes or less, they are able to maintain an asymmetric distribution of lipids across the bilayer. In the case of mitochondria, cardiolipin is sequestered on the inner leaflet of the inner mitochondrial membrane. However, during apoptosis this lipid translocates to the outer surface of the outer mitochondrial membrane. This phenomenon must involve an increase in the rate of transbilayer diffusion. The results of the present paper demonstrate that an activated form of Bax can cause this increased rate.     

Interactions of pyrethroids with phosphatidylcholine liposomal membranes

Interactions of several pyrethroids with membrane lipids in the form of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) liposomes have been studied using fluorescent membrane probes. Fluorescence anisotropy values and lifetimes (determined by phase-shift and demodulation techniques) of the fluorescent probe, 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene, were decreased in gel phase liposomes by pyrethroids at concentrations on the order of 10 microM. The pyrethroids containing a cyano substituent were also observed to cause collisional quenching of diphenylhexatriene fluorescence. Pyrethroids differed in their effectiveness at lowering the phase transition temperature of DPPC, and in their ability to broaden the temperature range of this transition. The fluorescence intensity of DPPC-incorporated chlorophyll a was used to monitor the pretransition of DPPC and the lateral diffusion of a membrane component located in the polar headgroup region. Permethrin did not affect chlorophyll a fluorescence intensity at any temperature. It may be concluded from these results that pyrethroids are preferentially located in the interior hydrophobic regions of the lipid bilayer, and that these compounds can disorder hydrocarbon packing in the bilayer core. However, polar headgroups were not disordered, and diffusion of membrane components in the polar headgroup region was not altered.     

Biophysics (and sociology) of ceramides

In the past decade, the long-neglected ceramides (N-acylsphingosines) have become one of the most attractive lipid molecules in molecular cell biology, because of their involvement in essential structures (stratum corneum) and processes (cell signalling). Most natural ceramides have a long (16-24 C atoms) N-acyl chain, but short N-acyl chain ceramides (two to six C atoms) also exist in Nature, apart from being extensively used in experimentation, because they can be dispersed easily in water. Long-chain ceramides are among the most hydrophobic molecules in Nature, they are totally insoluble in water and they hardly mix with phospholipids in membranes, giving rise to ceramide-enriched domains. In situ enzymic generation, or external addition, of long-chain ceramides in membranes has at least three important effects: (i) the lipid monolayer tendency to adopt a negative curvature, e.g. through a transition to an inverted hexagonal structure, is increased, (ii) bilayer permeability to aqueous solutes is notoriously enhanced, and (iii) transbilayer (flip-flop) lipid motion is promoted. Short-chain ceramides mix much better with phospholipids, promote a positive curvature in lipid monolayers, and their capacities to increase bilayer permeability or transbilayer motion are very low or non-existent.     

Solute-induced acceleration of transbilayer movement and its implications on models of blood-brain barrier

Hexylglycerol accelerates the transbilayer (flip-flop) movement of phospholipids, lysophospholipids and peptides. For example, lysophosphatidylcholine added to dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine vesicles activates the action of pig pancreatic phospholipase A2 (Jain and DeHaas (1983) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 736, 157-162) This activating effect is dissipated slowly after mixing, and no activation is observed when the lysophospholipid molecules are equally distributed on both sides of the bilayer. The half time for transbilayer movement of lysophosphatidylcholine is about 7 h, and it is accelerated over 100-fold in the presence of n-hexylglycerol, as well as by a variety of other amphipathic solutes including n-alkanols, ketamine, and flufenamic acid. Hexylglycerol also accelerates the rate of transbilayer movement of an amphipathic hexapeptide bocLALALW, as well as of the phosphatidylcholine molecules in erythrocyte membrane. These effects are observed without any change in the gross bilayer organization as judged by 31P-NMR. Biophysical significance of such solute induced acceleration of transbilayer movement of amphipathic solutes is discussed to account for the effect of alkylglycerols on blood brain barrier.     

Synthesis of phospholipids containing photoactivatable carbene precursors in the headgroups and their crosslinking with membrane proteins

Many integral membrane enzymes require for their activity interactions with the polar headgroups of phospholipids, in addition to the hydrophobic interactions within the lipid bilayer. The interactions with the polar headgroups may have preferential or absolute specificity. To study such interactions, phospholipids have been synthesized which carry photoactivable moieties in their headgroups. Three types of phospholipids, PL-I, PL-II and PL-III, were synthesized. The synthetic phospholipids, PL-I and PL-II were able to reconstitute enzymatic activity of the membrane proteins which were studied. Covalent crosslinking between these phospholipids and the membrane proteins was demonstrated after photolysis of the reconstituted phospholipid-protein complexes.     

Constant-pressure molecular dynamics investigation of cholesterol effects in a dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine bilayer.

We report a 1.4-ns constant-pressure molecular dynamics simulation of cholesterol at 12.5 mol% in a dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) bilayer at 50 degrees C and compare the results to our previous simulation of a pure DPPC bilayer. The interlamellar spacing was increased by 2.5 A in the cholesterol-containing bilayer, consistent with x-ray diffraction results, whereas the bilayer thickness was increased by only 1 A. The bilayer/water interface was more abrupt because the lipid headgroups lie flatter to fill spaces left by the cholesterol molecules. This leads to less compensation by the lipid headgroups of the oriented water contribution to the membrane dipole potential and could explain the experimentally observed increase in the magnitude of the dipole potential by cholesterol. Our calculations suggested that 12.5 mol% cholesterol does not significantly affect the conformations and packing of the hydrocarbon chains and produces only a slight reduction in the empty free volume. However, cholesterol has a significant influence on the subnanosecond time scale lipid dynamics: the diffusion constant for the center-of-mass "rattling" motion was reduced by a factor of 3, and the reorientational motion of the methylene groups was slowed along the entire length of the hydrocarbon chains.     

Theory of cation-phospholipid-induced shape changes in a lipid bilayer couple

A quantitative model of ion binding and molecular interactions in the lipid bilayer membrane is proposed and found to be useful in examining the factors underlying such membrane characteristics as shape, sidedness, stability and vesicle size at various cation concentrations. The lipid membrane behaves as a bilayer couple whose preferential radius of curvature depends on the expansion or contraction of one monolayer relative to the other. It is proposed that molecular packing may be altered by electrostatic repulsion of adjacent like-charged phospholipid headgroups, or by bringing two headgroups closer together by divalent cation crossbridging. The surface concentrations of each type of cation-phospholipid complex can be described by simple binding equilibria and the Gouy-Chapman-Stern formulation for the surface potential in a diffuse double layer. The asymmetric distribution of acidic phospholipids in most biological membranes can account for the differential effects of identical ionic environments on either side of the bilayer. The fraction of vesicle material which tends to have a right-side-out orientation may be approximated by a normal distribution about the mean curvature. The theory generates vesicle sidedness distributions that, when fitted to experimental results from human erythrocyte membranes, provide an alternative method of estimating intrinsic cationphospholipid dissociation constants and other molecular parameters of the bilayer. The results also corroborate earlier suggestions that the Gouy-Chapman theory tends to overestimate free counter-ion concentrations at the surface under large surface potentials.     

Transmembrane cholesterol migration in planar lipid membranes measured with Vibrio cholerae cytolysin as molecular tool

The rate of transbilayer movement (flip-flop) of cholesterol was estimated using planar bilayers with defined initial asymmetry, formed by the opposing monolayers technique. Vibrio cholerae cytolysin (VCC) was utilized as a molecular tool for measuring the cholesterol concentration in the cis leaflet of asymmetric bilayers. To quantify cholesterol flip-flop in planar lipid bilayers, a mathematical model was developed. It considers both the lateral diffusion rate of cholesterol within each monolayer and the flip-flop rate. The difference in initial and steady-state cholesterol contents in bilayer leaflets was used as a start point. Assuming the lateral diffusion coefficient to be of 1 × 10⁻⁸ cm² s⁻¹, the characteristic time of cholesterol flip-flop at 25 ± 2 °C was estimated as <10 s.     

Effect of transbilayer phospholipid distribution on erythrocyte fusion

Phospholipid packing has been suggested as a relevant variable in the control of membrane fusion events. To test this possibility in a model system, a comparison was made of the fusability of erythrocytes with a normal asymmetric transbilayer distribution of plasma membrane phospholipids (tightly packed exterior lipids) and erythrocytes with a symmetric transbilayer distribution of phospholipids (more loosely packed exterior lipids), using polyethylene glycol as fusogen. Not only were lipid-symmetric cells more readily fused, but fusions of mixtures of lipid-symmetric and lipid-asymmetric cells indicated that both fusing partners must have a symmetric distribution for fusion to be enhanced. Lipid-symmetric cells may fuse more readily because loose packing of the exterior lipids enhances hydrophobic interactions between cells. Alternatively, enhanced membrane fluidity may facilitate intramembranous particle clustering, previously implicated as a potentiator of fusion. Finally, exposure of phosphatidylserine on the surface of lipid-symmetric erythrocytes may be responsible for their enhanced fusion.     

Rapid transbilayer movement of phospholipids induced by an asymmetrical perturbation of the bilayer

Phospholipase D is used to convert egg phosphatidylcholine to phosphatidic acid in unilamellar vesicles. The transbilayer distribution of both lipids is determined by 31P NMR using paramagnetic ions. Phosphatidic acid formed in the outer monolayer is translocated to the inner monolayer with a halftime of 30-40 min or less. This is accompanied by an equally fast movement of part of the phosphatidylcholine from the inner to the outer monolayer. During these fast transbilayer movements the barrier properties of the vesicle bilayer are maintained.     

Molecular origin of the internal dipole potential in lipid bilayers: calculation of the electrostatic potential.

The finite difference linearized Poisson-Boltzmann equation was solved for a segment of bilayer for two lipids (phosphatidylcholine dihydrate and phosphatidylethanolamine-acetic acid) in order to obtain the transbilayer electrostatic potential. Atomic coordinates derived from the crystal structures of these lipids were used, and partial changes were assigned to all atoms in the polar parts of the molecules. These calculations confirmed that a dipole potential exists in the uncharged hydrophobic interior of a bilayer. The phosphocholine and phosphoethanolamine groups make negative contributions to the internal potential, and the glycerol acyl esters make positive contributions, but the sum of these terms is negative. The water of hydration in phosphatidylcholine, and the acetic acid which is present in the phosphatidylethanolamine crystal structure, make positive contributions to the internal potential. It is concluded that the water of hydration in fully hydrated lipid bilayers is mainly responsible for the experimentally inferred positive sign of the internal potential.     

Membrane perturbation by the antimicrobial peptide PMAP-23: A fluorescence and molecular dynamics study

Several bioactive peptides exert their biological function by interacting with cellular membranes. Structural data on their location inside lipid bilayers are thus essential for a detailed understanding of their mechanism of action. We propose here a combined approach in which fluorescence spectroscopy and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were applied to investigate the mechanism of membrane perturbation by the antimicrobial peptide PMAP-23. Fluorescence spectra, depth-dependent quenching experiments, and peptide-translocation assays were employed to determine the location of the peptide inside the membrane. MD simulations were performed starting from a random mixture of water, lipids and peptide, and following the spontaneous self-assembly of the bilayer. Both experimental and theoretical data indicated a peptide location just below the polar headgroups of the membrane, with an orientation essentially parallel to the bilayer plane. These findings, together with experimental results on peptide-induced leakage from large and giant vesicles, lipid flip-flop and peptide exchange between vesicles, support a mechanism of action consistent with the “carpet” model. Furthermore, the atomic detail provided by the simulations suggested the occurrence of an additional, more specific and novel mechanism of bilayer destabilization by PMAP-23, involving the unusual insertion of charged side chains into the hydrophobic core of the membrane.