AI Article Synopsis

  • - This study investigates how melittin, an antimicrobial peptide, can permeabilize liposomes using an electrochemiluminescence (ECL) imaging technique, where ECL reagents are encapsulated in liposomes made from specific phospholipids.
  • - The researchers used a specially coated electrode to prevent any unwanted membrane damage before adding varying concentrations of melittin, leading to the release of the liposome contents and generating light through ECL processes.
  • - The combination of ECL and photoluminescence imaging allows for detailed observation of the permeabilization and release of contents from a single liposome, providing valuable insights into how AMPs and similar substances work on cellular membranes.

Article Abstract

The permeabilization of liposomes by melittin, an antimicrobial peptide (AMP), has been studied by an electrochemiluminescence (ECL) imaging strategy. The methodology consisted first of encapsulating ECL reagents in sealed giant asymmetrical liposomes (100 μm in diameter) made of DOPG/DOPC phospholipids (i.e., 1,2-dioleoyl--glycerol-3-phospho-(1'-rac-glycerol) sodium salt/1,2-dioleolyl--glycero-3-phosphocholine). Then liposomes were placed on an indium tin oxide electrode coated with poly-l-lysine to avoid any membrane poration/permeabilization through polarization of the electrode surface. Finally, the addition of melittin (from 10 μM to 100 nM in concentration) enabled the permeabilization of the lipid membrane followed by the liposome content release and subsequent light generation through the ECL reagents oxidation processes. Interestingly, at a melittin concentration of 10 μM, two successive leakages occurring on the same liposome could be imaged. Combination of ECL and photoluminescence imaging allowed comprehensive monitoring of the permeabilization and content release of a single liposome. This ECL imaging approach opens interesting perspectives to characterize the instant release of vesicle content upon permeabilization by AMPs or other membrane-active species.

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Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC11504585PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/cbmi.3c00003DOI Listing

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