(2011) SAMANTA, SOUMYA; COLOMBINI, MARCO; Biology; Digital Repository at the University of Maryland; University of Maryland (College Park, Md.)
Functional studies have shown that the sphingolipid ceramide, self-assembles in
phospholipid membranes to form large channels capable of allowing proteins to cross the
membrane. Here these channels are visualized by negative stain transmission electron
microscopy. The images contain features consistent with stain-filled pores having a
roughly circular profile. There is no indication of tilt, and the results are consistent with
the formation of right cylinders. The sizes of the pores range from 5 to 40 nm in diameter
with an asymmetric distribution indicating no apparent upper size limit. The size
distribution matches well with the distribution of sizes calculated from
electrophysiological measurements.
