Biophysical studies of passive transport across synthetic lipid bilayers

2016-01-21Transport by passive diffusion acro ss the lipid bilayer of the plasma membrane represents a nearly universal mechanism of molecular entry of drugs and environmental toxins into the cell. Understanding the barrier properties of the lipid bilayer and what molecular characteristics control its permeability is therefore of fundamental interest to toxicology and drug development. Biomimetic membranes formed from commercially available synthetic lipids have been studied extensively as a method for mimicking the plasma membrane. Development of assays to rapidly measure bilayer permeability has been focused on optimization of three areas: maximizing high-throughput capabilities, minimizing analysis assumptions and artifacts, and maintaining a highly controllable membrane composition. This work presents a novel technique capable of all three areas of interest. The technique involves combining spinning disk confocal microscopy with a microfluidic platform to examine the permeability of synthetic lipid bilayers, which was then used to examine how varying membrane composition to reflect disease states can impact passive diffusion