Polimeric gel method applied to form giant unilamellar vesicles

Abstract

The phospholipids are a class of materials applied in systems that seek to mimic the lipid structure of cellular membrane (biomimetic models) in the study of interaction with various analytes. This approach allows one to infer the susceptibility of living organisms to the action of these analytes. The organization of phospholipids forming bilayer in giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs) is one of the possibilities to obtain biomimetic models, which will be employed in this project, mainly from the polymeric gel method using, basically, zwitterionic phospholipids (DPPC, POPC and DOPC). In addition, for comparison, if necessary, GUVs will also be formed from the electroformation process. The wider objective of this project, corresponding to a later stage of the proposal for this first year, is the exposure of these GUVs to different pesticides that we have studied in our research group to investigate the action of these compounds on the lipid structure in the form of bilayers (GUVs). (AU)