February 19, 2021
The Science
The cell membrane is the wall-like outer layer that separates the inside of a cell from its surrounding environment. The membrane mainly consists of lipids and proteins. Lipids are molecules that form the membrane’s fundamental structure. Proteins carry out important cellular functions. Scientists have now developed a disc-shaped artificial membrane that shows how proteins can exhibit different properties when embedded in membranes with different lipid compositions. The researchers used X-ray and neutron scattering techniques to confirm the synthetic membrane’s structure.
The Impact
Membrane proteins represent about one third of all human proteins, but they are hard to study. Studying the structure of membrane proteins in their realistic environment is essential to better understand their function and the role they play in diseases. The new synthetic membrane provides a novel platform to appropriately vary the types of lipids in a membrane. This ability helps researchers to better understand different membrane proteins in a realistic environment.
Read more at energy.gov.
Related Publication: Hutchison, J. M. et. al. (2020). Bicelles Rich in Both Sphingolipids and Cholesterol and their Use in Studies of Membrane Proteins. Journal of American Chemical Society, 142, 29. doi.org/10.1021/jacs.0c04669