Externalization of phosphatidylserine from inner to outer layer may alter the effect of plant sterols on human erythrocyte membrane — The Langmuir monolayer studies

One of the factors, which can strongly modify the cell membrane composition, is disordering in membrane asymmetry, resulting from redistribution of lipids from inner to outer layer. Such a disturbance may affect the behavior of various biologically active compounds incorporating into membranes. In this contribution, the relationship between the amounts of phosphatidylserine (PS) in the model outer layer of human erythrocyte (RBC) membrane and the effect induced by a plant sterol (β-sitosterol) was verified. The experiments were performed on multicomponent Langmuir films imitating red blood cell (RBC) membrane, differing in the contents of PS (0%; 5% and 10%) into which the plant sterol was incorporated in various concentrations. The analysis of experimental results (surface pressure–area isotherms complemented with Brewster Angle Microscopy (BAM) proved that the presence of phosphatidylserine molecules, depending on their contents in the mixed monolayer mimicking RBC membrane, changes its properties and exerts influence on the effect of plant sterol on the model system. The addition of phytosterol into the monolayer that lacks or contains only 5% of PS was found to be of rather weak effect on the properties of the system. However, in the case of the model membrane containing the increased amount (10%) of PS, the incorporation of plant sterol strongly affects the interactions between molecules and caused thermodynamic destabilization of the monolayer imitating RBC membrane. These results allow one to suggest that externalization of phosphatidyserine to the outer membrane leaflet may differentiate the effect of plant sterols on cell membranes of various origins.

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► Phosphatidylserine modifies the effect of phytosterol on model outer membrane layer.
► Phytosterol destabilizes only the systems of increased phosphatidylserine level.
► Phosphatidylserine determines solubility limit of sterols in the mixed film.
► Disturbances in lipid asymmetry may change the effect of plant sterols on membrane.