Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 13, 2025

Phase Behavior of Charged Vesicles Under Symmetric and Asymmetric Solution Conditions Monitored with Fluorescence Microscopy
Published on: October 24, 2017
Characterizing the heterogeneity of membrane liquid-ordered domains
1Department of Theoretical Physics, Jožef Stefan Institute, Jamova 39, 1000, Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Abstract:
We use a lattice model of a ternary mixture containing saturated and unsaturated lipids with cholesterol (Chol), to study the structural properties characterizing the coexistence between the liquid-disordered and liquid-ordered phases. Depending on the affinity of the saturated and unsaturated lipids, the system may exhibit macroscopic (thermodynamic) liquid-liquid phase separation or be divided into small-size liquid-ordered domains surrounded by a liquid-disordered matrix. In both cases, it is found that the nanoscale structure of the liquid-ordered regions is heterogeneous, and that they are partitioned into Chol-rich sub-domains and Chol-free, gel-like, nano-clusters. This emerges as a characteristic feature of the liquid-ordered state, which helps distinguishing between liquid-ordered domains in a two-phase mixture, and similar-looking domains in a one-phase mixture that are rich in saturated lipids and Chol, but are merely thermal density fluctuations. The nano-structure heterogeneity of the liquid-ordered phase can be detected by suitable experimental spectroscopic methods and is observed also in atomistic computer simulations.
More Related Videos
07:31Author Spotlight: Advancing Cell Membrane Biophysics - Exploring Interactions and Challenges Through Experimental and Computational Approaches
Published on: September 1, 2023
05:56Spot Variation Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy for Analysis of Molecular Diffusion at the Plasma Membrane of Living Cells
Published on: November 12, 2020
Related Concept Videos
Membrane Domains
Protein Domains
The membrane comprises a group of distinct proteins responsible for carrying out a cell's specific function. For example, the plasma membrane of the human sperm, or a single germ cell, contains a unique set of proteins in the...
Membrane Fluidity
Mosaic nature of the membrane
The mosaic characteristic of the membrane helps the plasma membrane remain fluid. The integral proteins and lipids exist as separate but loosely-attached molecules in the membrane. The membrane is...
Fluid Mosaic Model
Mechanisms of Membrane Domain Formation
Another mechanism for membrane domain formation involves membrane proteins interacting with...
Asymmetric Lipid Bilayer
The Fluid Mosaic Model