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Neutron Spin Echo Spectroscopy as a Unique Probe for Lipid Membrane Dynamics and Membrane-Protein Interactions

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Critical fluctuations in plasma membrane vesicles.

Sarah L Veatch, Pietro Cicuta, Prabuddha Sengupta

ACS Chemical Biology

|May 20, 2008

Summary

Giant plasma membrane vesicles (GPMVs) exhibit critical behavior, showing phase transitions near physiological temperatures. This suggests cell membranes are finely tuned near a miscibility critical point, impacting cellular function.

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Area of Science:

Biophysics
Cell Biology
Materials Science

Background:

Giant plasma membrane vesicles (GPMVs) isolated from living cells display distinct liquid phases dependent on temperature.
These vesicles exhibit transition temperatures between 15-25°C, with tunable line tensions in the two-phase region.

Discussion:

Critical fluctuations, characterized by increasing size and duration as temperature approaches the transition point, were observed in the one-phase region.
These fluctuations are consistent with theoretical predictions for systems near a critical point, indicating a miscibility critical point.

Key Insights:

Mammalian plasma membranes are likely tuned to operate near a miscibility critical point.
Significant membrane heterogeneity, with compositional fluctuations under 50 nm, exists even at physiological temperatures.

Outlook:

These findings offer novel perspectives on plasma membrane heterogeneity.
The observed critical fluctuations may be intrinsically linked to the formation and function of lipid raft domains in live cells.