Press Releases | July 18, 2023

Localization of lipid bilayer domain on graphene oxide

A research team from the Department of Applied Chemistry and Life Science at the Toyohashi University of Technology (Professor Ryugo Tero et al.) discovered a phenomenon in which specific lipids were concentrated on graphene oxide in a multicomponent lipid bilayer membrane serving as a cell membrane model. This research team also clarified the mechanism by which the components of "lipid rafts" (where important cell membrane reactions such as neurotransmission and metabolism occur) gather owing to the surface characteristics of graphene oxide. This discovery is expected to be utilized in fundamental technologies for concentrating and separating the lipids and membrane proteins in cell membranes as important research targets in the medicine and drug discovery fields.

Full text: Concentration of cell membrane components with nanocarbon materials
TUT website: Press release