A certain proportion of docosahexaenoic acid tends to revert structural and dynamical effects of cholesterol on lipid membranes

Abstract

This work investigates how docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) modifies the effect of Cholesterol (Chol) on the structural and dynamical properties of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) membrane. We employ low-cost and non-invasive methods: zeta potential (ZP), conductivity, density, and ultrasound velocity, complemented by molecular dynamics simulations. Our studies reveal that 30% of DHA added to the DPPC-Chol system tends to revert Chol action on a model lipid bilayer. Results obtained in this work shed light on the effect of polyunsaturated fatty acids –particularly DHA– on lipid membranes, with potential preventive applications in many diseases, e.g. neuronal as, Alzheimer´s disease, and viral, as Covid-19.