AVS 52nd International Symposium
    Biomaterial Interfaces Wednesday Sessions
       Session BI2-WeM

Paper BI2-WeM2
Probing Lipid Membrane Responses to Surface Morphology

Wednesday, November 2, 2005, 8:40 am, Room 312

Session: Biomembranes and Spectroscopy
Presenter: S.D. Gillmor, The Pennsylvania State University
Authors: S.D. Gillmor, The Pennsylvania State University
J.J. Heetderks, The Pennsylvania State University
X. Wang, The Pennsylvania State University
Q. Du, The Pennsylvania State University
P.S. Weiss, The Pennsylvania State University
Correspondent: Click to Email
The outer cellular membrane is a mixture of protein receptors, lipids and cholesterol whose organization is incompletely understood. Many cell membranes have complex interactions with the underlying basement membrane, and our investigations focus on lipid deformation due to adhesion to this support. We model the complex basement membrane structure chemically and topographically, through lithographically defined features for control over substrate morphology, and through chemical modification of the surface. Initially using simplified, lipid-only giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs) as models, we probe the membrane behavior in response to surface topography. Biotin-labeled lipids allow us to tether the vesicles to the surface and to investigate the role of adhesion proteins in the deformation during the vesicle-surface interactions. From confocal microscopy, we image the profile of the vesicle on both planar and topographically patterned substrates. From our model system, we measure the lipid membrane deformation due to the topography, and we compare these findings with the line tension characterization in the literature.@footnote 1@ We model and categorize these responses in our simple system using phase field formulation and compare these findings to cell responses on topographically patterned surfaces. @FootnoteText@ @footnote 1@ Baumgart, Hess and Webb, (2003) Nature 425, 821.