Location of TEMPO-PC in Lipid Bilayers: Implications for Fluorescence Quenching

The characterization of the behavior of lipid-attached spin probes in a bilayer is of fundamental importance for correct interpretation of the results of both EPR and fluorescence studies of protein-membrane interactions. The knowledge of the immersion depth of TEMPO spin probe attached to lipid headgroup in TEMPO-PC is critical for the determination of the transverse location of fluorescence probes attached to proteins and peptides. The question of bilayer penetration of TEMPO moiety in TEMPO-PC has recently came into prominence in two studies of interfacial solvation (Cheng et al. in Biophys J 109:330-339, 2015; Lee et al. in Biophys J 111:2481-2491, 2016). Here, we re-examine the arguments on TEMPO penetration using the cross-validation of MD simulations and depth-dependent fluorescence-quenching experiments, which confirms that TEMPO in TEMPO-PC penetrates below the level of phosphate groups. The proper analysis of fluorescence quenching requires the use of Tempo position below the level of phosphate groups; and failure to do so will result in substantial systematic errors in determining the penetration of the labeled site on a membrane protein.