Learn about the state of the art in building artificial membranes and synthetic biological devices, and in constructing mathematical models for their dynamics at multiple time and spatial scales with this comprehensive book. Drawing on recent advances in bioengineering and biochemistry, it describes how to engineer tethered bilayer lipid membranes, bioelectronic interfaces, high-resolution biosensors, and diagnostic devices for non-invasive cellular measurements and electroporation. Multi-physics models combining atomistic (molecular dynamics and coarse-grained molecular dynamics), mesoscopic (Poisson-Nernst-Planck), and macroscopic (reaction-rate theory) dynamics provide a complete structure-to-function description of these devices. Experiments and dynamic models explain how anti-microbial peptides penetrate membranes, how molecular machine biosensors built out of artificial membranes can detect femtomolar concentrations, and how electroporation can be controlled. Supported by atomistic simulation code online, this is essential reading for researchers, students and professionals in bioengineering, chemical engineering, biophysics, applied mathematics, and electrical engineering.

The physical properties associated with the saturated and trans fats obtained through partial hydrogenation of vegetable oils (PHVOs) provide the solid fat content, melting and textural properties that consumers require in food products like butter, margarines, vegetable creams, spreads, and confectionary fats. However, saturated and trans fats increase low density lipoprotein, while trans fats also lower high-density lipoprotein serum levels. These indicators increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease, type II diabetes, stroke, and have recently been associated with metabolic syndrome. Consequently, regulatory agencies worldwide have passed legislation restricting the addition of PHVOs and their derivatives (i.e., shortenings) to food products. This has lead research groups worldwide to investigate different mechanisms to provide structural and physical properties to edible, healthy unsaturated oils. The overall objective is to achieve similar functional properties to those provided by PHVOs and shortenings to food products. This book encompasses the work of leading researchers discussing, from a scientific and technological perspective, the latest and most innovative approaches to structure edible oils without the use of trans fats. Additionally, the authors discuss practical uses and technical limitations associated with the use of "structured edible oils" in different food systems. Appealing to researchers and professionals working in lipid science, food chemistry and fat metabolism, it fills the gap in the literature for a book in this fast-changing field.

Advances in Biomembranes and Lipid Self-Assembly, formerly titled Advances in Planar Lipid Bilayers and Liposomes, provides a global platform for a broad community of experimental and theoretical researchers studying cell membranes, lipid model membranes, and lipid self-assemblies from the micro- to the nanoscale. Planar lipid bilayers are widely studied due to their ubiquity in nature and find their application in the formulation of biomimetic model membranes, and in the design of artificial dispersion of liposomes. Moreover, lipids self-assemble into a wide range of other structures, including micelles and the liquid crystalline hexagonal and cubic phases. Consensus has been reached that curved membrane phases do play an important role in nature as well, especially in dynamic processes, such as vesicles fusion and cell communication. Self-assembled lipid structures have enormous potential as dynamic materials ranging from artificial lipid membranes to cell membranes, from biosensing to controlled drug delivery, from pharmaceutical formulations to novel food products to mention a few. An assortment of chapters in this volume represents both original research as well as comprehensive reviews written by world leading experts and young researchers.

This second edition volume expands all chapters of the previous edition, which have been enhanced to cover the most recent developments, the current state of method research, and applications. Additional protocols were added to examine lipid-protein interactions by mass spectrometry, to use protein microarrays to investigate large sets of various proteins, to study membrane protein dynamics by UV resonance Raman spectroscopy, to analyze peptide-induced pore formation in membranes, and to investigate folding and insertion of membrane proteins. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Cutting-edge and authoritative, Lipid-Protein Interactions: Methods and Protocols, Second Edition is an essential resource for all researchers who are interested in obtaining up-to-date and comprehensive information about membrane structure and function.

Isoprenoids are important in primary and secondary metabolism. They have implications in a myriad of physiological processes notably in plants, microorganisms and parasites, and biological activities at the cellular, organism, and ecosystem levels. The importance of isoprenoids in various areas of the scientific world has spurred intense research worldwide. Also their role in "nutraceuticals" has stimulated scientific curiosity. Literature on isoprenoids is widely scattered in journals with quite differing readerships and geographic distribution. A comprehensive book on isoprenoids does not exist. Isoprenoid Synthesis in Plants and Microorganisms: New Concepts and Experimental Approaches fills this gap by presenting the latest and the most applicable information on isoprenoids. The most recent TERPNET conference serves as the backdrop and provides much of the inspiration for the topics covered in the book. Additional topics of interest are covered as well, making Isoprenoid Synthesis in Plants and Microorganisms: New Concepts and Experimental Approaches the most comprehensive review of isoprenoid synthesis to date.

What are lipid nanoparticles? How are they structured? How are they formed? What techniques are best to characterize them? How great is their potential as drug delivery systems? These questions and more are answered in this comprehensive and highly readable work on lipid nanoparticles. This work sets out to provide the reader with a clear and understandable understanding of the current practices in formulation, characterization and drug delivery of lipid nanoparticles. A comprehensive description of the current understanding of synthesis, characterization, stability optimization and drug incorporation of solid lipid nanoparticles is provided. Nanoparticles have attracted great interest over the past few decades with almost exponential growth in their research and application. Their small particle size and subsequent high surface area make them ideal in many uses, but particularly as drug carrier systems. Nanoparticles made from lipids are especially attractive because of their enhanced biocompatibility imparted by the lipid. The work provides a detailed description of the types of lipid nanoparticles available (e.g. SLN, NLC, LDC, PLN) and how they range from imperfect crystalline to amorphous in structure. Current thoughts on where drugs are situated (e.g. in the core, or at the interface) and how this can be manipulated are discussed. The many techniques for production, including the author's own variant of microwave heating, are fully discussed. Techniques for measuring arguably the most important characteristics of particle size and polydispersity are discussed, along with techniques to measure crystallinity, shape and drug capacity. Finally, a full chapter on techniques for measuring stability, both in the absence and presence of drugs, is discussed, along with suggestions on how to optimize that stability. This work appeals to students of colloid science, practitioners of research into drug delivery and academics alike.

Advances in Biomembranes and Lipid Self-Assembly, Volume 29, formerly titled Advances in Planar Lipid Bilayers and Liposomes, provides a global platform for the study of cell membranes, lipid model membranes, and lipid self-assemblies, from the micro- to the nanoscale. As planar lipid bilayers are widely studied due to their ubiquity in nature, this book presents research on their application in the formulation of biomimetic model membranes, and in the design of artificial dispersion of liposomes. Moreover, the book discusses how lipids self-assemble into a wide range of other structures, including micelles and the liquid crystalline hexagonal and cubic phases. Chapters in this volume present both original research and comprehensive reviews written by world leading experts and young researchers.

Covers the area of lipidomics from fundamentals and theory to applications * Presents a balanced discussion of the fundamentals, theory, experimental methods and applications of lipidomics * Covers different characterizations of lipids including Glycerophospholipids; Sphingolipids; Glycerolipids and Glycolipids; and Fatty Acids and Modified Fatty Acids * Includes a section on quantification of Lipids in Lipidomics such as sample preparation; factors affecting accurate quantification; and data processing and interpretation * Details applications of Lipidomics Tools including for Health and Disease; Plant Lipidomics; and Lipidomics on Cellular Membranes

This detailed book explores examples of current in vitro and in silico techniques that are at the forefront of lipid membrane research today. Beginning with methods and strategies associated with the creation and use of lipid membrane models in various research settings, the volume continues with electrical impedance spectroscopy strategies and methods to identify how ions and proteins interact with model lipid bilayers, guidance on lipid bilayer in silico molecular dynamics modeling, novel techniques to explore lipid bilayer characteristics using neutron scattering, IR spectroscopy, and atomic force microscopy (AFM), as well as unique fluorescence techniques. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series style, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and cutting-edge, Membrane Lipids: Methods and Protocols serves as an ideal guide for researchers seeking to further investigate the often complicated world of lipid membrane biophysics.

Lipidomics is an important aspect of personalized medicine in relation to nutrition and metabolism. This approach has become important due to the substantial presence of nutraceuticals in the market, since it gives personalized criteria on how to choose the right nutraceutical strategy for both prevention and for quality of life. This multi-disciplinary textbook uses a simple and practical approach to provide a comprehensive overview of lipidomics and their connection with health and nutrition. The text is divided into two parts: - Part 1 outlines the basics of lipidomics and focuses on the biochemical and nutritional aspects with descriptions of the analytical methods employed for the examination of cell membrane fatty acid composition. - Part 2 familiarizes the reader with the use of membrane lipidomic diagnostics in practical health care, using health conditions as examples to introduce the concept of lipidomic profiles in different physiological and pathological situations including prevention. Through the various properties of membrane lipidomics, readers will be able to combine the molecular status of the cell membrane with the evaluation of the subject for personalized nutritional and nutraceutical strategies. Membrane Lipidomics for Personalized Health will be beneficial to biologists, biochemists and medical researchers, as well as health care professionals, pharmacists, and nutritionists seeking in-depth information on the topic.

Biomembranes consist of molecular bilayers with many lipid and protein components. The fluidity of these bilayers allows them to respond to different environmental cues by changing their local molecular composition as well as their shape and topology. On the nanometer scale, this multi-responsive behavior can be studied by molecular dynamics simulations, which provide both snapshots and movies of the bilayer conformations. The general conceptual framework for these simulations is provided by the theory of curvature elasticity. The latter theory also explains the behavior of giant vesicles as observed by optical microscopy on the micrometer scale. The present volume describes new insights as obtained from recent developments in analytical theory, computer simulations, and experimental approaches. The seven chapters of the volume are arranged in a bottom-up manner from smaller to larger scales. These chapters address the refined molecular dynamics and multiscale modeling of biomembranes, their morphological complexity and adhesion, the engulfment and endocytosis of nanoparticles, the fusion of giant unilamellar vesicles, as well as recent advances in microfluidic technology applied to model membranes.

The lipids of cellular membranes not only serve roles in controlling the structure and fluidity of the membrane, but are increasingly recognized for their roles as signalling molecules and modifiers of membrane protein function. Recent studies described in this volume reveal striking changes in membrane lipids during aging and in age-related diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease and neurodegenerative disorders. Lipids including inositol phospholipids, cholesterol, sphingolipids and ceramides play important roles in signalling cellular responses to stress and specific stimuli such as growth factors, cytokines and neurotransmitters. One or more of these lipid mediators has been linked to the pathogenesis of age-related diseases.

This book provides a comprehensive review of specific membrane lipid mediators and their roles in aging and age-related disease.

This book focuses on the emerging role of ferroptosis in human diseases. It gives a detailed perspective on how to induce or suppress ferroptosis to treat challenging conditions such as infectious diseases, including COVID-19, tuberculosis, parasitic diseases and cancer. The book serves as a practical guide by providing a valuable collection of all currently known activators or inhibitors of ferroptosis. It will enable readers to choose molecules for experimental design for in vitro and in vivo studies of ferroptosis. Furthermore, this volume highlights the aspects of iron metabolism and its connection to ferritinophagy, a ferritin selective autophagy, with profound implications in neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer, Parkinson, Huntington and ALS. Lastly, it describes necroptosis, another important form of cell death, along with its connections to human disorders and potential crosstalk with ferroptosis. While covering basic concepts, the book delves into mechanisms and modulation of ferroptosis for treating a wide variety of human diseases thus offering a valuable and informative resource for both, scientists and clinical researchers.

This is the third edition of this advanced textbook, written with two major objectives in mind. One is to provide an advanced textbook covering the major areas in the fields of lipid, lipoprotein, and membrane biochemistry, and molecular biology. The second objective is to provide a clear summary of these research areas for scientists presently working in these fields.

The volume provides the basis for an advanced course for students in the biochemistry of lipids, lipoproteins and membranes. The book will satisfy the need for a general reference and review book for scientists studying lipids, proteins and membranes. Excellent up-to-date reviews are available on the various topics covered. A current, readable, and critical summary of these areas of research, it will allow scientists to become familiar with recent developments related to their own research interests, and will help clinical researchers and medical students keep abreast of developments in basic science that are important for subsequent clinical advances.

This volume explores analytical methods to study complex lipid mixtures from plants and algae. The chapters in this book are organized into five parts and cover topics such as basic methods of lipid isolation and analysis; mass spectrometry and NMR analysis; lipid isolation and analysis from plant tissues, cell compartments and organelles; lipid signaling, lipid-protein interactions, and imaging; and lipid databases. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Cutting-edge and comprehensive, Plant Lipids: Methods and Protocols is a valuable guide for experienced researchers and undergraduate, graduate, and Ph.D. students. This book is also an excellent resource for novice scientists with little to no experience in lipid experiments who are interested in approaching this field experimentally.

The new series "Microbiology Monographs" begins with two volumes on intracellular components in prokaryotes. In this first volume, "Inclusions in Prokaryotes", the components, labeled inclusions, are defined as discrete bodies resulting from synthesis of a metabolic product. Research on the biosynthesis and reutilization of the accumulated materials is still in progress, and interest in the inclusions is growing. This comprehensive volume provides historical background and comprehensive reviews of eight well-known prokaryotic inclusions.

This volume contains the proceedings of an International Symposium held in Toulouse on 22 to 23 April 1988 on essential fatty acids. This symposium was initiated by Professor Jacques Ghisolfi and Kabi Laboratories were honoured to contribute to the organization of the meeting. Specialists from several countries gathered to discuss developments about essential fatty acids. The intention was to bring the audience up to the state of the art in this field.

This detailed volume covers conventional MS-based "shotgun lipidomics" by which samples are introduced by infusion or loop injection, as well as LC-MS-based lipidomics, which are becoming increasingly important due to the ever-increasing demand for a complete and precise lipid analysis of the complex and diversified lipids in nature. The volume features protocols applying chemical reactions, the on-line photochemical reactions combined with various MS methods for comprehensive characterization of various lipid classes, and quantification of specific and rare lipids. Written for the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and practical, Mass Spectrometry-Based Lipidomics: Methods and Protocols serves as an invaluable guide for biochemists and mass spectroscopists who are interested in lipid studies.

This detailed book examines experimental approaches used to investigate the regulation and function of phosphoinositides (PtdInsP), rare eukaryotic phospholipids with a broad role in biological processes such as signal transduction, cell migration and adhesion, cell growth, subcellular organization, and membrane trafficking. The combination of complementary biochemical, mass spectrometry, and imaging methods are instrumental for the detection and quantification of PtdInsP species, as well as induced dimerization methods, affinity precipitation or co-sedimentation with liposomes, protein insertion within lipid bilayers, and enzymatic assays, or through emerging methods like native mass spectrometry and microfluidics, all of which are touched upon in this volume. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and practical, Phosphoinositides: Methods and Protocols provides detailed methodology for both specialist and novice researchers on a variety of complementary methods that have been instrumental in dissecting the regulation, dynamics, and function of PtdInsPs.

This book provides an up-to-date review of the fundamentals of lipid metabolism and its role in cardiovascular diseases. Focusing on lipid transfer proteins in the circulation and cells, the role of important lipid transporters, the effect of recently discovered lipid binding proteins, and the link between lipid metabolism disorders and cardiovascular diseases, it covers phospholipid transfer protein, cholesteryl ester transfer protein, lipopolysaccharide binding protein, microsomal triglyceride transfer protein, ABC binding cassette members, and more. The book offers graduate students and researchers a coherent overview of lipid transfer and transport, as well as the limitations of current research in the field, and promotes further studies on cardiovascular diseases, as well as pharmaceutical research on drug discovery based on lipid transfer, transport, and binding.

Currently, the health of over half the adult population in the UK suffers because of fat. The UK is not alone: obesity is a global problem, but the populations of some countries are heavier than others. This book probes the chemistry of fat in our bodies, providing a unique insight into understanding obesity, and how this material becomes accumulated to cause obesity with particular emphasis on the contribution of nutrition beyond calories. It visits the current hot topic of the genetic origins of obesity and progresses through to the relatively under publicised field of epigenetics, emphasising its importance to understanding the current epidemic. Coming in the wake of the establishment of international collaborations, the book aims to quantify the extent of the contribution of nutritional deficiencies to body weight gain. Yet even before these studies begin some important links have been identified and the molecular mechanisms by which they induce obesity have been mapped. This information reveals a serious problem for the next generation, but it is expected to provide the necessary information to tackle the obesity epidemic. Based on an extensive review of scientific literature, this topical book is written in a way that is accessible to the non-specialist. Suitable for the general public, the principal focus of the book is to advance the public understanding and awareness of science through the high interest subject of obesity. However, many universities recommend public understanding of science texts to students as a means of broadening general knowledge and as a means to emphasise to students the importance of communicating their research to the public. This book will be instrumental in developing this knowledge.

The new series "Microbiology Monographs" begins with two volumes on intracellular components in prokaryotes. In this first volume, "Inclusions in Prokaryotes", the components, labeled inclusions, are defined as discrete bodies resulting from synthesis of a metabolic product. Research on the biosynthesis and reutilization of the accumulated materials is still in progress, and interest in the inclusions is growing. This comprehensive volume provides historical background and comprehensive reviews of eight well-known prokaryotic inclusions.

This book provides an up-to-date review of the fundamentals of lipid metabolism and its role in cardiovascular diseases. Focusing on lipid transfer proteins in the circulation and cells, the role of important lipid transporters, the effect of recently discovered lipid binding proteins, and the link between lipid metabolism disorders and cardiovascular diseases, it covers phospholipid transfer protein, cholesteryl ester transfer protein, lipopolysaccharide binding protein, microsomal triglyceride transfer protein, ABC binding cassette members, and more. The book offers graduate students and researchers a coherent overview of lipid transfer and transport, as well as the limitations of current research in the field, and promotes further studies on cardiovascular diseases, as well as pharmaceutical research on drug discovery based on lipid transfer, transport, and binding.

This book covers a wide range of state-of-the-art methodologies and detailed protocols currently used to study the actions that lipid-activated nuclear receptors and their co-regulators have in tissues and immune cell types considered classic metabolic "powerhouses". This includes the liver, adipose tissue, and monocytes/macrophages present in these and other metabolic tissues. While the main focus is on the oxysterol receptor or Liver X Receptor (LXR), the majority of the methods described can be easily applied to multiple nuclear receptors, as well as to other tissues or cell types. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and cutting-edge, Lipid-Activated Nuclear Receptors: Methods and Protocols serves as an ideal guide for researchers pursuing the vital study of nuclear receptor biology and beyond.

This detailed book provides technical approaches to tackle a variety of questions related to intracellular lipid transport in order to improve our understanding at different scales of how lipids are accurately displaced between organelles, across long distances or at membrane contact sites, or within cellular membranes. The volume begins with methodologies to measure the movement of varied lipid species between or in organelle membranes, inside eukaryotic cells, including plant cells, or in bacteria, and continues in vitro or in silico approaches aiming to define, more from a biochemical and structural standpoints, how lipid transfer proteins (LTPs) or flippases/scramblases precisely function. Written for the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and practical, Intracellular Lipid Transport: Methods and Protocols serves as an ideal guide for researchers seeking to shed light on diverse aspects of this critical and often elusive cellular process.