Formation and regulation of lipid microdomains in cell membranes: Theory, modeling, and speculation

Jun Fan, Maria Sammalkorpi, Mikko Haataja

Research output: Contribution to journalReview articlepeer-review

94 Scopus citations

Abstract

Compositional lipid microdomains (" lipid rafts" ) in plasma membranes are believed to be important components of many cellular processes. The biophysical mechanisms by which cells regulate the size, lifetime, and spatial localization of these domains are rather poorly understood at the moment. Over the years, experimental studies of raft formation have inspired several phenomenological theories and speculations incorporating a wide variety of thermodynamic assumptions regarding lipid-lipid and lipid-protein interactions, and the potential role of active cellular processes on membrane structure. Here we critically review and discuss these theories, models, and speculations, and present our view on future directions.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)1678-1684
Number of pages7
JournalFEBS Letters
Volume584
Issue number9
DOIs
StatePublished - May 2010
Externally publishedYes

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Genetics
  • Molecular Biology
  • Biophysics
  • Structural Biology
  • Biochemistry
  • Cell Biology

Keywords

  • Cell membrane
  • Lipid microdomain
  • Modeling
  • Theory

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