Related Experiment Video
Updated: Dec 19, 2025

Controlling the Size, Shape and Stability of Supramolecular Polymers in Water
Published on: August 2, 2012
Structure of Supramers Formed by the Amphiphile Biotin-CMG-DOPE
Anton Zalygin1, Daria Solovyeva1, Ivan Vaskan1,2
1Shemyakin-Ovchinnikov Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry Russian Academy of Sciences 16/10 Miklukho-Maklaya str. Moscow 117997 Russia.
Abstract:
Invited for this month's cover is the group of Prof. Nicolai Bovin from the Russian Academy of Sciences. The cover picture shows how a biotin residue initially hidden in a monolayer formed on the surface of a material by biot-CMG-DOPE (see top left) is pulled out of the layer by the streptavidin molecule (Str) that has come close to it (see below). This can be considered as a model of certain events (in particular, cis protein-ligand interactions) occurring on the surface of a living cell when it is necessary to hide the ligand from undesirable interactions, but leave the possibility of its recognition by a high-affinity protein. The picture is inspired by the legendary Yellow Submarine cartoon. Read the full text of their Full Paper at https://doi.org/10.1002/open.201900276.
Related Concept Videos
Colloids
Biosynthesis of Lipids
Peptidoglycan Synthesis
Structure of Porins
Asymmetric Lipid Bilayer

