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Applied Sciences
Special Issues
Recent Progress in Biomimetic Membranes
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Recent Progress in Biomimetic Membranes

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Applied Biosciences and Bioengineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 July 2021) | Viewed by 10238

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Renate L. C. Naumann

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Structural Biology/Bioinformatics, University of Bayreuth, Universitätsstrasse 30, BGI, 95447 Bayreuth, Germany
Interests: electron- and proton transport through multi-redox center proteins incorporated in biomimetic membrane systems

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The bilayer lipid membrane is one of the essential constituents of the living cell. Many important proteins are incorporated or attached to it, their function closely depending on their electrical and other properties including fluidity. However, the investigation of these membrane proteins in their natural environment, for example in mitochondria or chloroplasts, is often hampered because the membranes are tightly packed with different proteins interacting with each other. Therefore, with the isolation and in vitro preparation of membrane proteins, artificial  bilayer lipid membrane systems were sought early on, starting with the black bilayer lipid membrane (BLM), followed by BLMs tethered to surfaces, using, for example, peptide or oligoethylene tether groups or BLMS attached to polymer cushions, for example, block copolymers. The specifications of these systems include high electrical (gigaohm) resistance of the lipid membrane, mechanical robustness, fluidity, and aqueous layers accessible from both sides of the lipid membrane.  The ultimate test is the demonstration of the function of a membrane protein in the artificial environment opening new methods of investigation for this important group of proteins.

Dr. Renate L. C. Naumann
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Applied Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • bilayer lipdi membrane
  • arificial lipid membrane
  • biomimetic lipid membrane
  • membrane proteins
  • surface-attached lipid membranes

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Review

36 pages, 6743 KiB  
Review
Why Do Tethered-Bilayer Lipid Membranes Suit for Functional Membrane Protein Reincorporation?
by Agnès P. Girard-Egrot and Ofelia Maniti
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(11), 4876; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app11114876 - 26 May 2021
Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4877
Abstract
Membrane proteins (MPs) are essential for cellular functions. Understanding the functions of MPs is crucial as they constitute an important class of drug targets. However, MPs are a challenging class of biomolecules to analyze because they cannot be studied outside their native environment. [...] Read more.
Membrane proteins (MPs) are essential for cellular functions. Understanding the functions of MPs is crucial as they constitute an important class of drug targets. However, MPs are a challenging class of biomolecules to analyze because they cannot be studied outside their native environment. Their structure, function and activity are highly dependent on the local lipid environment, and these properties are compromised when the protein does not reside in the cell membrane. Mammalian cell membranes are complex and composed of different lipid species. Model membranes have been developed to provide an adequate environment to envisage MP reconstitution. Among them, tethered-Bilayer Lipid Membranes (tBLMs) appear as the best model because they allow the lipid bilayer to be decoupled from the support. Thus, they provide a sufficient aqueous space to envisage the proper accommodation of large extra-membranous domains of MPs, extending outside. Additionally, as the bilayer remains attached to tethers covalently fixed to the solid support, they can be investigated by a wide variety of surface-sensitive analytical techniques. This review provides an overview of the different approaches developed over the last two decades to achieve sophisticated tBLMs, with a more and more complex lipid composition and adapted for functional MP reconstitution. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Progress in Biomimetic Membranes)
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16 pages, 1851 KiB  
Review
Interactions between Phase-Separated Liquids and Membrane Surfaces
by Samuel Botterbusch and Tobias Baumgart
Appl. Sci. 2021, 11(3), 1288; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/app11031288 - 31 Jan 2021
Cited by 19 | Viewed by 4839
Abstract
Liquid-liquid phase separation has recently emerged as an important fundamental organizational phenomenon in biological settings. Most studies of biological phase separation have focused on droplets that “condense” from solution above a critical concentration, forming so-called “membraneless organelles” suspended in solution. However, membranes are [...] Read more.
Liquid-liquid phase separation has recently emerged as an important fundamental organizational phenomenon in biological settings. Most studies of biological phase separation have focused on droplets that “condense” from solution above a critical concentration, forming so-called “membraneless organelles” suspended in solution. However, membranes are ubiquitous throughout cells, and many biomolecular condensates interact with membrane surfaces. Such membrane-associated phase-separated systems range from clusters of integral or peripheral membrane proteins in the plane of the membrane to free, spherical droplets wetting membrane surfaces to droplets containing small lipid vesicles. In this review, we consider phase-separated liquids that interact with membrane surfaces and we discuss the consequences of those interactions. The physical properties of distinct liquid phases in contact with bilayers can reshape the membrane, and liquid-liquid phase separation can construct membrane-associated protein structures, modulate their function, and organize collections of lipid vesicles dynamically. We summarize the common phenomena that arise in these systems of liquid phases and membranes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Progress in Biomimetic Membranes)
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