Phase behavior of lipid bilayers under tension.
Given the proposed importance of membrane tension in regulating cellular functions, we explore the effects of a finite surface tension on phase equilibrium using a molecular theory that captures the quantitative structure of the phase diagram of the tensionless DPPC/DOPC/Cholesterol lipid bilayer. We find that an increase in the surface tension decreases the temperature of the transition from liquid to gel in a pure DPPC system by ∼1.0 K/(mN/m), and decreases the liquid-disordered to liquid-ordered transition at constant chemical potentials by approximately the same amount. Our results quantitatively isolate the role of tension in comparison to other thermodynamic factors, such as pressure, in determining the phase behavior of lipid bilayers.
Department of Chemical Engineering, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, USA. uline@cec.sc.edu
Mark J
MJ
Uline
M
M
Schick
Igal
I
Szleifer
D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000737:chemistry; D008051:Lipid Bilayers / Q000737:chemistry*; D013500:Surface Tension; D013696:Temperature; D013816:Thermodynamics
D008051:Lipid Bilayers