Monolayers formed with 1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine, 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine, 1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-[phospho-rac-(1-glycerol)] and 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-[phospho-rac-(1-glycerol)] at the air/water interface were used as model membranes for studying a potential biological activity of four newly synthesized gemini amphiphilic pseudopeptides (GAPs); some of the GAPs studied showed interesting self-assembly properties. The capacity of GAPs to self-assemble in different environments let us think that these molecules may find biomedical applications in, e.g., drug delivery or transfection. The surface pressure-area and surface potential-area compression isotherms, as well as Brewster angle microscopy and polarization-modulation infrared reflection-absorption spectroscopy were used to study monolayers formed with pure GAPs, pure lipids and lipid/GAPs mixtures. The results obtained show that all four GAPs studied can be incorporated in lipid monolayers. The monolayers containing GAPs are expanded and more liquid-like compared to pure lipids. The overall results indicate that the important changes of the properties induced in the model membranes by GAPs are related to their intrinsic conformational flexibility. This feature of GAPs can be easily adjusted by engineering the structure of the spacer present in the polar head, with the aim to modify lipid membranes in a controlled way.
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