The structure of cell membranes has been intensively investigated and many models and concepts have been proposed for the lateral organization of the plasma membrane. While proteomics and lipidomics have identified many if not all membrane components, how lipids and proteins interactions are coordinated in a specific cell function remains poorly understood. It is generally accepted that the organization of the plasma membrane is likely to play a critical role in the regulation of cell function such as receptor signalling by governing molecular interactions and dynamics. In this review we present different plasma membrane models and discuss microscopy approaches used for investigating protein behaviour, distribution and lipid organization.
Keywords: Membrane order; microscopy techniques; protein interaction.