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Updated: Jul 25, 2026

Assembly of Cell Mimicking Supported and Suspended Lipid Bilayer Models for the Study of Molecular Interactions
Published on: August 3, 2021
Molecular umbrella-assisted transport of an oligonucleotide across cholesterol-rich phospholipid bilayers
Vaclav Janout1, Bingwen Jing, Steven L Regen
1Department of Chemistry, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 18015, USA.
Abstract:
A series of molecular umbrella conjugates, derived from cholic acid, deoxycholic acid, spermidine, lysine, and 5-mercapto-2-nitrobenzoic acid, have been synthesized and found capable of transporting an attached 16-mer oligonucleotide (S-dT16) across liposomal membranes made from 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (POPC), 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphatidyldglycerol (POPG), and cholesterol [POPC/POPG/cholesterol (65/5/30; mol/mol/mol, v/v/v)] at 37 degrees C. Those molecular umbrellas containing four choloyl (or deoxycholoyl) groups resulted in significantly faster rates of transport as compared to those containing only two such moieties. A model that accounts for these membrane transport processes is proposed.
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