The thermodynamics of simple biomembrane mimetic systems.

摘要: Insight into the forces governing a system is essential for understanding its behavior and function. Thermodynamic investigations provide wealth of information that not, or hardly, available from other methods. This article reviews thermodynamic approaches assays to measure collective properties such as heat adsorption / emission volume variations. These methods can be successfully applied study lipid vesicles (liposomes) biological membranes. With respect instrumentation, differential scanning calorimetry, pressure perturbation isothermal titration dilatometry, acoustic techniques aimed at measuring adiabatic processes, two- three-dimensional compressibilities are considered. Applications these systems include measurement different parameters detailed characterization thermotropic, barotropic, lyotropic phase behavior. The membrane binding partitioning solutes (proteins, peptides, drugs, surfactants, ions, etc.) also quantified modeled. Many studying effect proteins additives on membranes, characterizing non-ideal mixing, domain formation, bilayer stability, curvature strain, permeability, solubilization, fusion. Studies in environments elucidate lipid-protein interactions Finally, plethora relaxation phenomena toward equilibrium structures investigated. described terms enthalpic entropic forces, constants, capacities, partial changes, area compressibility, so on, shedding light stability molecular origin mechanism structural changes.