This novel book presents a multi-disciplinary perspective on the physics of life and the particular role played by lipids and the lipid-bilayer component of cell membranes. The emphasis is on the physical properties of lipid membranes seen as soft and molecularly structured interfaces, and the applications of lipids in nano-technology and biomedicine are also described. By combining and synthesizing insights obtained from a variety of recent studies, an attempt is made to clarify what membrane structure is and how it can be quantitatively described. Furthermore, it is shown how biological function mediated by membranes is controlled by lipid membrane structure and organization on length scales ranging from the size of the individual molecule, across molecular assemblies of proteins and lipid domains in the range of nanometers, to the size of whole cells.

Includes supplementary material: sn.pub/extras

Autorentext

Ole Mouritsen is a professor of biophysics and affiliated with the Department of Physics, Chemistry and Pharmacy (FKF) of the University of Southern Denmark and is currently director of a national Danish center of excellence, MEMPHYS - Center for Biomembrane Physics - which is supported by the Danish National Research Foundation. He has published more than 400 scientific papers and reports as well as number of books among them three popular books on the science of cooking. Prof. Mouritsen is an elected member of the Royal Danish Academy of Science and Letters, The Danish Academy for Technical Sciences, and the Danish Gastronomical Academy. Among the several prizes for research and research communication he has received are the UK Royal Society of Chemistry Bourke Award (2008) and the European Lipid Science Award (2011). Last but not least, he is a co-founder of LiPlasome Pharma A/S which is an innovation company that develops liposome-based drug-delivery systems for cancer therapy.

Inhalt
The Overlooked Molecules.- Life from Molecules.- Head and Tail.- Oil and Water.- Lipids Speak the Language of Curvature.- A Matter of Softness.- Soft Shells Shape Up.- Biological Membranes Models and Fashion.- Prologue: Lipidomics A Science Beyond Stamp Collection.- Lipids Make Sense.- Lipids in Bilayers A Stressful Life.- The More We Are Together.- Lipids in Flatland.- Social Lipids.- Lively Lipids Provide for Function.- Proteins at Lipid Mattresses.- Lipids in Action.- Cholesterol on the Scene.- Lipids in Charge.- Being Smart A Fishy Matter of Fat.- Liquor and Drugs As a Matter of Fat.- Lipid Eaters.- Powerful and Strange Lipids at Work.- Survival by Lipids.