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Updated: Oct 26, 2026

Realistic Membrane Modeling Using Complex Lipid Mixtures in Simulation Studies
Published on: September 1, 2023
Cytoplasmic Lipid Membrane Biogenesis in Prokaryotes: From Soluble Lipid Building Blocks to a Dynamic and Functional
Sergiy Gan1, Marten Exterkate1
1Membrane Biogenesis and Lipidomics Group, Institute of Biochemistry, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany.
Abstract:
Prokaryotic membranes are fundamental to cellular organization and function, serving as dynamic platforms for transport, energy conservation, signaling, environmental adaptation, etc. This review provides an overview of prokaryotic membrane architecture, highlighting the structural diversity of bacterial and archaeal cell envelopes, focusing on the cytoplasmic membranes and the distinct lipid chemistries that define them. By describing the general pathways for fatty acid and phospholipid biosynthesis, we emphasize the universal role for the lipid intermediates lysophosphatidic acid and phosphatidic acid, as well as the major lipid species phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, and cardiolipin of the diderm bacteria Escherichia coli. Besides synthesis, lipid membrane insertion is described, highlighting recent findings regarding lipid leaflet distribution, asymmetry, and intermembrane transport. Altogether, these processes provide a general overview of lipid composition and function of proliferating cells.
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