Membrane lipids: where they are and how they behave
Open accessAbstract
Throughout the biological world, a 30 A hydrophobic film typically delimits the environments that serve as the margin between life and death for individual cells. Biochemical and biophysical findings have provided a detailed model of the composition and structure of membranes, which includes levels of dynamic organization both across the lipid bilayer (lipid asymmetry) and in the lateral dimension (lipid domains) of membranes. How do cells apply anabolic and catabolic enzymes, translocases and transporters, plus the intrinsic physical phase behaviour of lipids and their interactions with membrane proteins, to create the unique compositions and multiple functionalities of their individual membranes?
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The ER is the primary site of lipid synthesis in most cells.
“the fact that the ER is the primary site of lipid synthesis in most cells,51”
From ApoE is Secreted as a Lipid Nanoparticle by Mammalian Cells: Implications for Alzheimer’s Disease Pathogenesis (2025) · cites this paper as [51]
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- Authors
- van Meer, G., Voelker, D. R., & Feigenson, G. W.
- Affiliations
- National Jewish Health (US)
- Cornell University (US)
- Venue
- Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology
- Published
- 2008-02
- Volume
- 9
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 112-124
- ISSN
- 1471-0072 (ISSN-L)
- 1471-0080
- PMC
- PMC2642958
- OpenAlex
- W2125872855
- Cited by
- 7,157
- References
- 1
- Citations by year
- 2026: 453 · 2025: 476 · 2024: 507 · 2023: 522 · 2022: 550 · 2021: 593 · 2020: 558 · 2019: 500 · 2018: 467 · 2017: 414 · 2016: 399 · 2015: 367 · 2014: 324 · 2013: 269 · 2012: 228
- FWCI
- 13.51
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Utrecht University Repository (Utrecht University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Funders
- National Institute of General Medical Sciences (R01GM077198)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Lipid Membrane Structure and Behavior
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Biochemistry › Lipid metabolism and biosynthesis
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Cell Biology › Caveolin-1 and cellular processes
- Keywords
- membrane lipids, lipid bilayer structure, lipid asymmetry, lipid rafts, lipid domains, protein-lipid interactions, membrane composition, membrane transporters, membrane-bound enzyme
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Biochemistry, Biophysics, Cell Membrane, Cytosol, Golgi Apparatus, Humans, Lipid Bilayers, Lipids, Models, Biological, Phosphatidylcholines, Protein Transport
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