The molecular structure of lecithin dihydrate (2024)

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Abstract Access options Additional access options: Similar content being viewed by others Structure of membrane diacylglycerol kinase in lipid bilayers C24:0 and C24:1 sphingolipids in cholesterol-containing, five- and six-component lipid membranes Physicochemical and electrical properties of DPPC bilayer membranes in the presence of oleanolic or asiatic acid References Author information Authors and Affiliations Rights and permissions About this article Cite this article This article is cited by Penicillium raperi, a species isolated from Colorado cropping soils, is a potential biological control agent that produces multiple metabolites and is antagonistic against postharvest phytopathogens Bicontinuous cubic phases in biological and artificial self-assembled systems The effect of H3O+ on the membrane morphology and hydrogen bonding of a phospholipid bilayer Atomistic simulation studies of the α/β-glucoside and galactoside in anhydrous bilayers: effect of the anomeric and epimeric configurations Orientation and conformation of lipids in crystals of transmembrane proteins
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  • Robert H. Pearson1 &
  • Irmin Pascher2

Nature volume281,pages 499–501 (1979)Cite this article

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Abstract

Lecithin is a major structural component of biological membranes1,2. Because of their amphipathic nature, lecithin and related phospholipids tend to aggregate as bilayer structures in which the hydrophilic head groups are orientated towards the surface and the hydrophobic hydrocarbon chains towards the interior. A detailed knowledge of the three-dimensional structure of lecithins will aid in the understanding of their role in membrane structure and function, but is still lacking. To this end we have now crystallised and solved the molecular structure of 1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphorylcholine (DMPC), a lecithin species in the naturally occurring configuration. This compound crystallises from a water-containing solution, with two water molecules (5% w/w) of hydration.

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The molecular structure of lecithin dihydrate (1)

Structure of membrane diacylglycerol kinase in lipid bilayers

Article Open access 05 March 2021

The molecular structure of lecithin dihydrate (2)

C24:0 and C24:1 sphingolipids in cholesterol-containing, five- and six-component lipid membranes

Article Open access 24 August 2020

The molecular structure of lecithin dihydrate (3)

Physicochemical and electrical properties of DPPC bilayer membranes in the presence of oleanolic or asiatic acid

Article Open access 08 November 2024

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Medical Foundation of Buffalo and Electron Optics Laboratory, Biophysics Department, Roswell Park Memorial Institute, Buffalo, New York, 14263

    Robert H. Pearson

  2. Department of Structural Chemistry, Göteborg University, POB, S40033, Göteborg, Sweden

    Irmin Pascher

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  1. Robert H. Pearson

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  2. Irmin Pascher

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Pearson, R., Pascher, I. The molecular structure of lecithin dihydrate. Nature 281, 499–501 (1979). https://doi.org/10.1038/281499a0

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