Anomalous phase transition in dipalmitoylphosphatidylethanolamine/palmitoylphosphatidylcholine/water system.
An anomalous phase transition with a marked rise in specific heat, the isobaric thermal expansion coefficient, and the compressibility coefficient at 62.5 degrees C for an equimolar mixture of 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine (DPPE) and 1-palmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (PLPC), in water (34 wt.%) has been shown by differential scanning calorimetry, scanning dilatometry and isothermal compressibility measurements. This transition occurs 15 degrees C above a first-order transition observed in the same system. (31)P and (2)H nuclear magnetic resonance results are consistent with the occurrence of 'defects' in the bilayer in the temperature range between the first and the anomalous phase transitions. It is proposed that conically, PLPC molecules prefer regions with high curvature in the defective bilayer, while DPPE molecules are mostly confined to the flat regions of the bilayers.
La Rosa
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Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche, Università di Catania, V. le A. Doria 6, 95125 Catania, Italy.
Grasso
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D
Checchetti
A
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Golemme
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A
Chidichimo
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G
Westerman
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P