Polymorphism, Structure, and Nucleation of Cholesterol·HO at Aqueous Interfaces and in Pathological Media: Revisited from a Computational Perspective.

We revisit the important issues of polymorphism, structure, and nucleation of cholesterol·HO using first-principles calculations based on dispersion-augmented density functional theory. For the lesser known monoclinic polymorph, we obtain a fully extended H-bonded network in a structure akin to that of hexagonal ice. We show that the energy of the monoclinic and triclinic polymorphs is similar, strongly suggesting that kinetic and environmental effects play a significant role in determining polymorph nucleation.

The Effect of the Phospholipid Bilayer Environment on Cholesterol Crystal Polymorphism.

Invited for this month's cover are the group of Prof. Lia Addadi at the Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel and collaborators at the Università Degli Studi di Milano, Italy, and the ALBA Synchrotron Light Source, Spain. The front cover shows how cholesterol crystals form in macrophage cells and in lipid bilayers of different compositions.

The Effect of the Phospholipid Bilayer Environment on Cholesterol Crystal Polymorphism.

Cholesterol crystallization from mixtures of unesterified cholesterol with phospholipids and cholesterol esters is believed to be a key event in atherosclerosis progression. Not much is understood, however, about the influence of the lipid environment on cholesterol crystallization. Here we study cholesterol monohydrate crystal formation from mixed bilayers with palmitoyl-oleoyl-phosphatidylcholine (POPC), dipalmitoyl-phosphatidylcholine (DPPC) and sphingomyelin.

Two polymorphic cholesterol monohydrate crystal structures form in macrophage culture models of atherosclerosis.

The formation of atherosclerotic plaques in the blood vessel walls is the result of LDL particle uptake, and consequently of cholesterol accumulation in macrophage cells. Excess cholesterol accumulation eventually results in cholesterol crystal deposition, the hallmark of mature atheromas. We followed the formation of cholesterol crystals in J774A.