The effect of cholesterol on short- and long-chain monounsaturated lipid bilayers as determined by molecular dynamics simulations and X-ray scattering.

ABSTRACT: We investigate the structure of cholesterol-containing membranes composed of either short-chain (diC14:1PC) or long-chain (diC22:1PC) monounsaturated phospholipids. Bilayer structural information is derived from all-atom molecular dynamics simulations, which are validated via direct comparison to x-ray scattering experiments. We show that the addition of 40 mol % cholesterol results in a nearly identical increase in the thickness of the two different bilayers. In both cases, the chain ordering dominates over the hydrophobic matching between the length of the cholesterol molecule and the hydrocarbon thickness of the bilayer, which one would expect to cause a thinning of the diC22:1PC bilayer. For both bilayers there is substantial headgroup rearrangement for lipids directly in contact with

SUBMITTER: Kucerka N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2527263 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature