Cubosomes: The Next Generation of Smart Lipid Nanoparticles?

Cubosomes are highly stable nanoparticles formed from the lipid cubic phase and stabilized by a polymer based outer corona. Bicontinuous lipid cubic phases consist of a single lipid bilayer that forms a continuous periodic membrane lattice structure with pores formed by two interwoven water channels. Cubosome composition can be tuned to engineer pore sizes or include bioactive lipids, the polymer outer corona can be used for targeting and they are highly stable under physiological conditions. Compared to liposomes, the structure provides a significantly higher membrane surface area for loading of membrane proteins and small drug molecules. Owing to recent advances, they can be engineered in vitro in both bulk and nanoparticle formats with applications including drug delivery, membrane bioreactors, artificial cells, and biosensors. This review outlines recent advances in cubosome technology enabling their application and provides guidelines for the rational design of new systems for biomedical applications.     

Development of a PDEδ-Targeting PROTACs that Impair Lipid Metabolism

The prenyl-protein chaperone PDEδ modulates the localization of lipidated proteins in the cell, but current knowledge about its biological function is limited. Small-molecule inhibitors that target the PDEδ prenyl-binding site have proven invaluable in the analysis of biological processes mediated by PDEδ, like KRas cellular trafficking. However, allosteric inhibitor release from PDEδ by the Arl2/3 GTPases limits their application. We describe the development of new proteolysis-targeting chimeras (PROTACs) that efficiently and selectively reduce PDEδ levels in cells through induced proteasomal degradation. Application of the PDEδ PROTACs increased sterol regulatory element binding protein (SREBP)-mediated gene expression of enzymes involved in lipid metabolism, which was accompanied by elevated levels of cholesterol precursors. This finding for the first time demonstrates that PDEδ function plays a role in the regulation of enzymes of the mevalonate pathway.     

All-d-Enantiomer of β-Amyloid Peptide Forms Ion Channels in Lipid Bilayers

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common type of senile dementia in aging populations. Amyloid β (Aβ)-mediated dysregulation of ionic homeostasis is the prevailing underlying mechanism leading to synaptic degeneration and neuronal death. Aβ-dependent ionic dysregulation most likely occurs either directly via unregulated ionic transport through the membrane or indirectly via Aβ binding to cell membrane receptors and subsequent opening of existing ion channels or transporters. Receptor binding is expected to involve a high degree of stereospecificity. Here, we investigated whether an Aβ peptide enantiomer, whose entire sequence consists of d-amino acids, can form ion-conducting channels; these channels can directly mediate Aβ effects even in the absence of receptor-peptide interactions. Using complementary approaches of planar lipid bilayer (PLB) electrophysiological recordings and molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, we show that the d-Aβ isomer exhibits ion conductance behavior in the bilayer indistinguishable from that described earlier for the l-Aβ isomer. The d isomer forms channel-like pores with heterogeneous ionic conductance similar to the l-Aβ isomer channels, and the d-isomer channel conductance is blocked by Zn(2+), a known blocker of l-Aβ isomer channels. MD simulations further verify formation of β-barrel-like Aβ channels with d- and l-isomers, illustrating that both d- and l-Aβ barrels can conduct cations. The calculated values of the single-channel conductance are approximately in the range of the experimental values. These findings are in agreement with amyloids forming Ca(2+) leaking, unregulated channels in AD, and suggest that Aβ toxicity is mediated through a receptor-independent, nonstereoselective mechanism.     

Maximizing the Potency of siRNA Lipid Nanoparticles for Hepatic Gene Silencing In Vivo

Special (lipid) delivery: The role of the ionizable lipid pK(a) in the in?vivo delivery of siRNA by lipid nanoparticles has been studied with a large number of head group modifications to the lipids. A tight correlation between the lipid pK(a) value and silencing of the mouse FVII gene (FVII ED(50) ) was found, with an optimal pK(a) range of 6.2-6.5. The most potent cationic lipid from this study has ED(50) levels around 0.005?mg?kg(-1) in mice and less than 0.03?mg?kg(-1) in non-human primates.     

Cation Selectivity of Channels Formed at Planar Lipid Bilayer by Pinellia ternata Lectin

By means of the two-compartment system. PTL-channels, the first lectin channels formed on planar lipid bilayers by Pinellia ternata lectin (PTL) have been studied. The results show (i) PTL-channels are voltage-independent and have apparent subunits; (ii) in 50 mmol/L KC1 and 25 mmol/L BaCl2 solutions, a single channel has unit conductance of 21 pS and 42 pS, respectively; (iii) the channel exhibits a slightly higher permeability to divalent than monovalent cation (PBa/PK=4.1), and (iv) the selectivity among divalent or monovalent cations is poor. The cation selectivity sequence for the channel will follow PBa(7. 0)-Psr (6. 4)~PMg(6. 4)>PK(1. 7)>PN.(1. 0)~PLi(l. 0).Moreover, these data also give explanation to the facilitatory action of PTL on the release of acetyl-choline from motor nerve terminals.     

Electrochemical and Spectroscopic Study on the Interaction of Cytochrome c with Anionic Lipid Vesicles

The structure and the electron-transfer of cytochrome c binding on the anionic lipid vesicles wrer analyzed by electrochemical and various spectroscopic methods.It was found that upon binding to anionic lipid membrane,the formal potential of cytochrome c shifted 30 mV negtively indicating an easier redox interaction than that in its native state.This is due to the local alteration of the coordination and the heme crevice.The structural perturbation in which a molten globule-like state is formed during binding to anionic lipid vesicles is more important.This study may help to understand the mechanism of the electron-transfer reactions of cytochrome c at the mitochondrial membrane.     

Lipid binding interactions of antimicrobial plant seed defence proteins: puroindoline-a and β-purothionin

The indolines and thionins are basic, amphiphilic and cysteine-rich proteins found in cereals; puroindoline-a (Pin-a) and β-purothionin (β-Pth) are members of these families in wheat (Triticum aestivum). Pin-a and β-Pth have been suggested to play a significant role in seed defence against microbial pathogens, making the interaction of these proteins with model bacterial membranes an area of potential interest. We have examined the binding of these proteins to lipid monolayers composed of 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phospho-(1'-rac-glycerol) (DPPG) using a combination of neutron reflectometry, Brewster angle microscopy, and infrared spectroscopy. Results showed that both Pin-a and β-Pth interact strongly with condensed phase DPPG monolayers, but the degree of penetration was different. β-Pth was shown to penetrate the lipid acyl chain region of the monolayer and remove lipids from the air/liquid interface during the adsorption process, suggesting this protein may be able to both form membrane spanning ion channels and remove membrane phospholipids in its lytic activity. Conversely, Pin-a was shown to interact mainly with the head-group region of the condensed phase DPPG monolayer and form a 33 ? thick layer below the lipid film. The differences between the interfacial structures formed by these two proteins may be related to the differing composition of the Pin-a and β-Pth hydrophobic regions.     

Electrocatalytic Oxidation of Dopamine by Ferrocene in Lipid Film Cast on a Glassy Carbon Electrode

ＩｎｔｒｏｄｕｃｔｉｏｎＤＡｉｓｏｎｅｏｆｅｓｓｅｎｔｉａｌｐａｒｔｉｃｉｐａｎｔｓｉｎｔｈｅｎｅｕｒｏ ｔｒａｎｓｍｉｓｓｉｏｎｐｒｏｃｅｓｓｉｎｍａｍｍａｌｉａｎｃｅｎｔｒａｌｎｅｒｖｏｕｓｓｙｓ ｔｅｍ .ＡｌｏｓｓｏｆＤＡ ｃｏｎｔａｉｎｉｎｇｎｅｕｒｏｎｓｍａｙｒｅｓｕｌｔｉｎｓｏｍｅｓｅｒｉｏｕｓｄｉｓｅａｓｅｓｕｃｈａｓＰａｒｋｉｎｓｏｎｉｓｍ .1Ｓｉｎｃｅｉｔｓｄｉｓｃｏｖ ｅｒｙｉｎｔｈｅ 195 0ｓ ,ＤＡｈａｓｂｅｅｎｏｆｉｎｔｅｒｅｓｔｔｏｎｅｕｒｏｓｃｉｅｎ ｔｉｓｔｓａｎｄｃｈｅｍ…     

Efficient Photoelectrochemical Energy Conversion using Spinach Photosystem II (PSII) in Lipid Multilayer Films

The need for clean, renewable energy has fostered research into photovoltaic alternatives to silicon solar cells. Pigment–protein complexes in green plants convert light energy into chemical potential using redox processes that produce molecular oxygen. Here, we report the first use of spinach protein photosystem II (PSII) core complex in lipid films in photoelectrochemical devices. Photocurrents were generated from PSII in a ∼2 μm biomimetic dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC) film on a pyrolytic graphite (PG) anode with PSII embedded in multiple lipid bilayers. The photocurrent was ∼20 μA cm⁻² under light intensity 40 mW cm⁻². The PSII–DMPC anode was used in a photobiofuel cell with a platinum black mesh cathode in perchloric acid solution to give an output voltage of 0.6 V and a maximum output power of 14 μW cm⁻². Part of this large output is related to a five-unit anode–cathode pH gradient. With catholytes at higher pH or no perchlorate, or using an MnO₂ oxygen-reduction cathode, the power output was smaller. The results described raise the possibility of using PSII–DMPC films in small portable power conversion devices.     

Relationship Between Membrane Damage Induced by Osmotic Stress and Lipid Peroxidation and Some Free Radicals

To treat leaf discs with solutions of various osmotic potentials of polyethylene glycols (MW 6000) by adopting the floating treatment could increase the membrane permeability, decrease the formation of malondialdehyde,and reduce the activity of peroxidase. Nevertheless, the activities of superoxide dismutase and catalase were not obviously altered. In verifying if the membrane damage was caused by lipid peroxidation initiated by active oxygen species, diethyldithiocarbamate was chosen as inhibitor superoxide dismutase,aminotriazole as catalase and mannitol as scavenger of hydroxyl free radicals.The results have shown that there is not any correlation between lipid peroxidation and membrane damage.Therefore,membrane damage caused by water stress is probably not due to free radical initiation.     

Establishing a Robust and Reliable Response from a Potent Osmium-Based Photosensitizer Via Lipid Nanoformulation†

Osmium (Os) based photosensitizers (PSs) are a unique class of nontetrapyrrolic metal-containing PSs that absorb red light. We recently reported a highly potent Os(II) PS, rac-[Os(phen)₂(IP-4T)](Cl)₂, referred to as ML18J03 herein, with light EC₅₀ values as low as 20 pm . ML18J03 also exhibits low dark toxicity and submicromolar light EC₅₀ values in hypoxia in some cell lines. However, owing to its longer oligothiophene chain, ML18J03 is not completely water soluble and forms 1–2 μm sized aggregates in PBS containing 1% DMSO. This aggregation causes variability in PDT efficacy between assays and thus unreliable and irreproducible reports of in vitro activity. To that end, we utilized PEG-modified DPPC liposomes (138 nm diameter) and DSPE-mPEG₂₀₀₀ micelles (10.2 nm diameter) as lipid nanoformulation vehicles to mitigate aggregation of ML18J03 and found that the spectroscopic properties important to biological activity were maintained or improved. Importantly, the lipid formulations decreased the interassay variance between the EC₅₀ values by almost 20-fold, with respect to the unformulated ML18J03 when using broadband visible light excitation (P = 0.0276). Herein, lipid formulations are presented as reliable platforms for more accurate in vitro photocytotoxicity quantification for PSs prone to aggregation (such as ML18J03) and will be useful for assessing their in vivo PDT effects.     

Oxygen-evolving Activity in Photosystem II Core Complex of Photosynthetic Membrane in the Presence of Native Lipid

ＩｎｔｒｏｄｕｃｔｉｏｎＯｘｙｇｅｎｉｃｐｈｏｔｏｓｙｎｔｈｅｓｉｓｉｓｃａｒｒｉｅｄｏｕｔｉｎｐｈｏｔｏｓｙｎ ｔｈｅｔｉｃｍｅｍｂｒａｎｅｓｉｎｗｈｉｃｈｈｉｇｈｌｙｏｒｇａｎｉｚｅｄｐｉｇｍｅｎｔ ｐｒｏ ｔｅｉｎｃｏｍｐｌｅｘｅｓａｒｅｅｍｂｅｄｄｅｄｉｎｔｈｅｌｉｐｉｄｍａｔｒｉｘ .Ｉｔｉｓｗｅｌｌｅｓｔａｂｌｉｓｈｅｄｔｈａｔｓｐｅｃｉｆｉｃｉｎｔｅｒａｃｔｉｏｎｓｍｉｇｈｔｅｘｉｓｔｂｅ ｔｗｅｅｎｐｉｇｍｅｎｔ ｐｒｏｔｅｉｎｃｏｍｐｌｅｘｅｓａｎｄｌｉｐｉｄｓ .Ｆｏｒｅｘａｍ ｐｌｅ…     

Esterification Catalysis by Pyridinium p-Toluenesulfonate Revisited—Modification with a Lipid Chain for Improved Activities and Selectivities

The lipid analogs of pyridinium p-toluenesulfonate (PPTS) were examined for catalysis of the condensation of an equimolar mixture of carboxylic acids and alcohols under mild conditions without removal of water. Although PPTS is a poor catalyst, the introduction of a lipid chain and nitro group significantly improved the activity of PPTS and led to selectivity at suppressing the elimination side reactions of alcohols. 2-Oleamido-5-nitro-pyridinium p-toluenesulfonate (6) is a lead catalyst that promoted various esterification reactions with yields up to 99%.

[Supplementary materials are available for this article. Go to the publisher's online edition of Synthetic Communications® for the following free supplemental resource: Full experimental and spectral details.]     

Study of the Ion Channel Behavior of Didodecyldimethylammonium Bromide Formed Bilayer Lipid Membrane Stimulated by PF6

Bilayer lipid membranes(BLM) formed from didodecyldimethylammonium bromide were made on the freshly exposed surface of a galssy carbon(GC) and were demonstrated by the acimpedance spectroscopy.The ion channels of membrane properties induced by PF6^- were studied by the cyclic voltammetric methods.Experimental results indicated that the ion channel of BLM was open in the presence of the PF6^- due to the interaction of PF6^- with the BLM,while it was switched off in the absence of PF6^-.Because the ion channel behavior was affected by the concentration of PF6^-,a sersor for PF6^- can be developed.     

Oxygen—evloving Activity in PhotosystemⅡ Core Complex of Photosynthetic Membrane in the Presence of Native Lipid

The techniques of oxygen electrode polarography and Fourier transform infrared (FT‐IR) spectroscopy were employed to explore the involvement of digalactosyl diacylglycerol (DGDG) in functional and structural roles in the photosystem II core complex (PSIICC). It was shown that DGDG exhibited the ability to stimulate the oxygen evolution in PSIICC, which was accompanied by the changes in the structures of PSIICC proteins. The results revealed that there existed hydrogen‐bonding interactions between DGDG molecules and PSIICC proteins. It is most likely that the sites of PSIICC interaction with DGDG are in the extrinsic protein of 33 kDa.     

Surprising Inability of Singlet Oxygen-generated 6-Hydroperoxycholesterol to Induce Damaging Free Radical Lipid Peroxidation in Cell Membranes†

Singlet oxygen attack on cholesterol (Ch), a prominent monounsaturated lipid of mammalian cell plasma membranes, gives rise to three hydroperoxide (ChOOH) isomers, 5α-OOH, 6α-OOH and 6β-OOH, the latter two in lower yield than 5α-OOH, and 6α-OOH in lowest yield. A third possible positional isomer, 7α-OOH and 7β-OOH, is produced by free radical attack. In the presence of iron and ascorbate (Fe/AH), 5α-OOH or 6β-OOH in phosphatidylcholine/Ch/ChOOH (20:15:1 by mol) liposomes was reduced to its corresponding alcohol, the rate constant being approximately the same for both ChOOHs. Using [¹⁴C]Ch as an in situ probe, we found that liposomal 5α-OOH readily set off free radical-mediated (chain) peroxidation reactions when exposed to Fe/AH, whereas 6β-OOH under the same conditions did not. Moreover, liposomal 5α-OOH triggered robust chain peroxidation in [¹⁴C]Ch-labeled L1210 cells, leading to cell death, whereas 6β-OOH was essentially inert in this regard. Thus, 5α-OOH and 6β-OOH undergo iron-catalyzed reductive turnover, but only the former can provoke toxic membrane damage. These novel findings have important implications for UVA-induced photodamage in Ch-rich tissues like skin and eye, where ¹O₂ often plays a major role.     

Lipid dynamics and protein-lipid interactions in 2D crystals formed with the β-barrel integral membrane protein VDAC1

We employ a combination of (13)C/(15)N magic angle spinning (MAS) NMR and (2)H NMR to study the structural and functional consequences of different membrane environments on VDAC1 and, conversely, the effect of VDAC1 on the structure of the lipid bilayer. MAS spectra reveal a well-structured VDAC1 in 2D crystals of dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC) and diphytanoylphosphatidylcholine (DPhPC), and their temperature dependence suggests that the VDAC structure does not change conformation above and below the lipid phase transition temperature. The same data show that the N-terminus remains structured at both low and high temperatures. Importantly, functional studies based on electrophysiological measurements on these same samples show fully functional channels, even without the presence of Triton X-100 that has been found necessary for in vitro-refolded channels. (2)H solid-state NMR and differential scanning calorimetry were used to investigate the dynamics and phase behavior of the lipids within the VDAC1 2D crystals. (2)H NMR spectra indicate that the presence of protein in DMPC results in a broad lipid phase transition that is shifted from 19 to ~27 °C and show the existence of different lipid populations, consistent with the presence of both annular and bulk lipids in the functionally and structurally homogeneous samples.     

Interaction of α-Synuclein with Phospholipids and the Associated Restructuring of Interfacial Lipid Water: An Interface-Selective Vibrational Spectroscopic Study

Interaction of α-Synuclein (αS) with biological lipids is crucial for the onset of its fibrillation at the cell membrane/water interface. Probed herein is the interaction of αS with membrane-mimicking lipid monolayer/water interfaces. The results depict that αS interacts negligibly with zwitterionic lipids, but strongly affects the pristine air/water and charged lipid/water interfaces by perturbing the structure and orientation of the interfacial water. The net negative αS (−9 in bulk water; pH 7.4) reorients the water as hydrogen-up (H-up) at the air/water interface, and electrostatically interacts with positively charged lipids, making the interface nearly net neutral. αS also interacts with negatively charged lipids: the net H-up orientation of the interfacial water decreases at the anionic lipid/water interface, revealing a domain-specific interaction of net negative αS with the negatively charged lipids at the membrane surface.