Interactions of surfactants and fatty acids with lipids

The recent studies on the interaction of surfactants and fatty acids with l ipids are inspired by the want of knowledge from several research fields of highest activity: identification of membrane rafts; membrane protein cryst allization; formation of non-lamellar phases in membranes; membrane fusion. Detailed phase diagrams for lipid-surfactant and lipid-fatty acid mixtures , obtained in the last few years, reveal complicated mesomorphic and polymo rphic behavior, including miscibility gaps and compound formation. Surfacta nt-induced non-lamellar to lamellar transitions in lipids and specific temp erature-driven bilayer-micelle transitions represent extensions of the gene ral three-stage model of membrane solubilization. Further research is requi red to construct phase diagrams as to delineate the principles of lipid-sur factant and lipid-fatty acid interactions for the variety of membrane lipid classes. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.