Real-time characterization of phospholipid flip-flop by time- and temperature resolved SANS and NR
The lipid flip-flop is the process describing the internal movement of lipid molecules across a membrane. In nature, the process is known to promote compositional asymmetry in cell membranes. In living organisms, lipid flip-flop is of fundamental importance to ensure the correct functioning of cells since their asymmetric composition allows cells to recognize and respond to external stimuli. On the contrary, loss of asymmetry in human cell membranes is known to lead to cell apoptosis and therefore the understanding of flip-flop processes plays an essential role in engineering safer drug treatments. Despite its fundamental interest, the origins and characteristics of the process are still largely debated. We propose to provide the first-time direct characterization of the process by the exploitation of a new approach for SANS and NR techniques. This experiment will not only bridge the gap between the controversial results obtained so far in bulk and at interfaces, but also clarify once forever the features of such a debated process and open new research directions in the area of lipid bilayers.
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GERELLI YURI; BELGRADO Federica; Minnelli Cristina and PORCAR Lionel. (2018). Real-time characterization of phospholipid flip-flop by time- and temperature resolved SANS and NR. Institut Laue-Langevin (ILL) doi:10.5291/ILL-DATA.9-13-759