Interactions of sialic acid with phosphatidylcholine liposomes studied by 2D NMR spectroscopy

Biological membranes are complex systems which have attracted scientific interest for a long time and for various reasons. The sialic acid-liposome interactions at the molecular level depend on their hydro-lipophilic characteristics. The aim of the present study was to investigate the changes of conformation of the phospholipid (1,2-Diacyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine) and sialic acid (2,8-(N-acetylneuraminic acid)) molecules and the type of interactions induced by the sialic acid molecules on membrane-like systems (liposomes) by 2D NMR (TOCSY, HETCOR, ROESY). The nature of the interaction of sialic acid with the model membrane depends on the structure of the phospholipid headgroups and the hydration of membrane. In ROESY spectra was observed the absence of dipole-dipole couplings within the choline head, between headgroups and glycerol, and between glycerol and fatty acid chains. It indicates an increase of the membrane dynamics in the presence of sialic acid. Moreover, the conformation of sialic acid molecule is changed in the presence of liposomes, which depends on stereochemistry of the chemical groups of the carbon atoms C7 and C8, and oxygen O8. The observed differences between the ROESY spectra of free and liposome bound sialic acid may be a consequence of a changed orientation of the pyranose ring from trans to gauche in the presence of liposomes. The sialic acid penetrate into the phospholipid bilayer to a sufficient depth to allow the dipole interaction. The present result that the correlation signal was found only between the methyl protons from the acetyl group of sialic acid and the methylene tail of phospholipid molecule in the ROESY spectrum indicates that the opposite end of the sialic acid molecule stays in the aqueous phase without interacting with membrane molecules.