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Related Concept Videos

What are Lipids?01:38

What are Lipids?

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Overview
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Phosphoinositides and PIPs01:42

Phosphoinositides and PIPs

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Phosphoinositides are a group of phospholipids containing a glycerol backbone with two fatty acid chains and a phosphate attached to a myoinositol sugar ring. The inositol head group extends into the cytoplasm, where it is modified by adding phosphate groups to form phosphatidylinositol phosphates or PIPs.
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Membrane Fluidity01:23

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Cell membranes are composed of phospholipids, proteins, and carbohydrates loosely attached to one another through chemical interactions. Molecules are generally able to move about in the plane of the membrane, giving the membrane its flexible nature called fluidity. Two other features of the membrane contribute to membrane fluidity: the chemical structure of the phospholipids and the presence of cholesterol in the membrane.
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Membrane Fluidity01:26

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Membrane fluidity is explained by the fluid mosaic model of the cell membrane, which describes the plasma membrane structure as a mosaic of components—including phospholipids, cholesterol, proteins, and carbohydrates—that gives the membrane a fluid character.
Mosaic nature of the membrane
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Biological membranes show uneven distribution of different types of lipids in the inner and outer layers, resulting in transverse asymmetric membranes. The treatment of the erythrocyte membrane with the enzyme phospholipase confirmed the asymmetric nature of the lipid bilayer. The enzyme hydrolyzes lipids into fatty acids and hydrophilic groups. The phospholipase acts only on the outer layer of the membrane, while the inner layer remains intact. The phospholipase treatment resulted in 80%...
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Lipids as Anchors01:32

Lipids as Anchors

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In the plasma membrane, the lipids forming the bilayer can also act as an anchor to tether proteins to the membrane. The three main types of lipid anchors found in eukaryotes are – prenyl groups, fatty acyl groups, and glycosylphosphatidylinositol or GPI groups. Prenyl and fatty acyl groups act as anchors on the cytosolic surface of the membrane, whereas GPI anchors proteins on the extracellular side.
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SNARE-mediated Fusion of Single Proteoliposomes with Tethered Supported Bilayers in a Microfluidic Flow Cell Monitored by Polarized TIRF Microscopy
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A firehose for phospholipids.

William A Prinz1, James H Hurley2,3

  • 1National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD.

The Journal of Cell Biology
|April 28, 2020
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Vacuolar protein sorting 13 (Vps13) proteins may act as lipid channels. This study reveals a channel-like domain in Vps13, suggesting a mechanism for lipid transfer between cellular membranes at contact sites.

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Area of Science:

  • Cell Biology
  • Membrane Biology
  • Lipid Transport

Background:

  • Eukaryotic lipid transport proteins are believed to mediate lipid transfer between cellular membranes.
  • The precise mechanisms of lipid shuttling and the roles of specific proteins remain areas of active investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the structural and functional properties of the Vps13 protein.
  • To determine the potential role of Vps13 in lipid transport between cellular membranes.

Main Methods:

  • Structural analysis of the Vps13 protein.
  • Functional assays to assess lipid transfer capabilities.

Main Results:

  • Vps13 possesses a channel-like domain.
  • This domain suggests a mechanism for facilitating lipid flow between closely apposed membranes at membrane contact sites.

Conclusions:

  • The Vps13 protein may function as a lipid transporter through its channel-like domain.
  • This finding provides new insights into the mechanisms of inter-organelle lipid transport at membrane contact sites.