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Updated: Aug 15, 2026

A Fluorescence-based Assay of Phospholipid Scramblase Activity
Published on: September 20, 2016
Lipid phase fatty acid flip-flop, is it fast enough for cellular transport?
1Torrey Pines Institute for Molecular Studies, 3550 General Atomics Court, San Diego, CA 92121, USA.
Abstract:
The mechanism by which fatty acids are transported across cell membranes is controversial. The essence of the controversy is whether transport requires membrane protein mediation or whether the membrane's lipid phase provides a pathway so rapid that a protein is not needed. This review focuses on the mechanisms of fatty acid transport across lipid bilayer membranes. These results for lipid membranes are used to help evaluate transport across cell membranes. Within the context of this analysis, a lipid phase mediated process is consistent with results for the transport of fatty acids across erythrocytes but provides a less adequate explanation for fatty acid transport across more complex cells.
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