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. 2009 Jan 16;284(3):1755–1764. doi: 10.1074/jbc.M807210200

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Copyright © 2009, The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

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FIGURE 8. — Model of cholesterol- and side chain oxysterol-phospholipid interaction. Lipid membranes consisting of POPC and cholesterol or side chain oxysterols (e.g. 25-HC) were constructed using VMD Version 1.86 (Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology). A and C show cholesterol in condensed packing with three phospholipids in horizontal and vertical views. B and D show similar views for 25-HC associated with three phospholipids where the alkane chains are in the more usual non-condensed conformation. This configuration promotes the membrane expansion observed upon the addition of 25-HC to phospholipid monolayers and bilayers. Increasing the saturation of phospholipid acyl chains (e.g. DPPC) promotes less tilted and deeper insertion of side chain oxysterols into membranes, thereby abrogating their membrane-expansion effects.