Chemistry Letters, Vol.32, No.12, 1170-1171, 2003
Self-assembling lipid microtubules based on cyclobolaphile that mimics archaeal membrane lipid
This paper describes the first preparation of lipid microtubules that are composed of macrocyclic lipids. The lipid contains diacetylenic alkyl chains in a hydrophobic segment and phosphatidylcholine as a hydrophilic headgroup. The structural features of the assembly include: (i) monolayer wall, (ii) micron scale length, (iii) nano scale diameter, and (iv) elasticity.