Transition from unilamellar to bilamellar vesicles induced by an amphiphilic biopolymer

Phys Rev Lett. 2006 Feb 3;96(4):048102. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.96.048102. Epub 2006 Jan 31.

Abstract

We report some unusual structural transitions upon the addition of an amphiphilic biopolymer to unilamellar surfactant vesicles. The polymer is a hydrophobically modified chitosan and it embeds its hydrophobes in vesicle bilayers. We study vesicle-polymer mixtures using small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) and cryotransmission electron microscopy (cryo-TEM). When low amounts of the polymer are added to unilamellar vesicles of ca. 120 nm diameter, the vesicle size decreases by about 50%. Upon further addition of polymer, lamellar peaks are observed in the SANS spectra at high scattering vectors. We show that these spectra correspond to a co-existence of unilamellar and bilamellar vesicles. The transition to bilamellar vesicles as well as the changes in unilamellar vesicle size are further confirmed by cryo-TEM. A mechanism for the polymer-induced transitions in vesicle morphology is proposed.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Chitosan / chemistry*
  • Cryoelectron Microscopy
  • Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions*
  • Lipid Bilayers / chemistry*
  • Membranes, Artificial*
  • Phase Transition*

Substances

  • Lipid Bilayers
  • Membranes, Artificial
  • Chitosan