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Transbilayer movement of cholesterol in dipalmitoyllecithin–cholesterol vesicles

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Abstract

THE movement of cholesterol across biological membranes is an important process for many cellular functions, but the mechanisms by which it occurs are not known. The movement of lipid molecules between the two halves of a bilayer, a process which has come to be known as flip flop, was first demonstrated to occur in films of stearate1. Subsequently, several workers have reported flip-flop times for phospholipids in model systems, the values obtained varying between several hours and many days depending on the system studied and the techniques used2–5.

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Author notes

  1. MARK POZNANSKY

    Present address: Department of Physiology, University of Alberta, Edmonont, Canada

  2. YVONNE LANGE

    Present address: Department of Medicine, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, Massachusetts, 02119

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biophysical Laboratory, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, 02115

    MARK POZNANSKY & YVONNE LANGE

Authors
  1. MARK POZNANSKY
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  2. YVONNE LANGE
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POZNANSKY, M., LANGE, Y. Transbilayer movement of cholesterol in dipalmitoyllecithin–cholesterol vesicles. Nature 259, 420–422 (1976). https://doi.org/10.1038/259420a0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/259420a0

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