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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 38: Membranes and Vesicles I

BP 38.2: Vortrag

Mittwoch, 22. März 2017, 10:00–10:15, HÜL 386

Carbon nanotubes mediate fusion of lipid vesicles — •Stephanie Linker, Ramachandra Bhaskara, Martin Vögele, Jürgen Köfinger, and Gerhard Hummer — Department of Theoretical Biophysics, Max Planck Institute of Biophysics, Max-von-Laue Straße 3, D-60438 Frankfurt am Main, Germany

The fusion of lipid membranes is opposed by high energetic barriers. In living organisms, complex protein machineries carry out this biologically essential process. Here we show that membrane-spanning carbon nanotubes (CNTs) can trigger spontaneous fusion of small lipid vesicles.

In coarse-grained molecular dynamics simulations, we find that a CNT bridging between two vesicles locally perturbs their lipid structure. Their outer leaflets merge as the CNT pulls lipids out of the membranes, creating an hourglass-shaped fusion intermediate with still intact inner leaflets. As the CNT moves away from its symmetry axis, the inner leaflets merge, forming a pore that completes fusion. CNT-mediated vesicle fusion offers a fresh perspective on a poorly understood process. Possible applications include the design of new fusion agents, e.g., for the targeted delivery of drugs or nucleic acids.