Fig. 2.

A model of a carpet-like mechanism for membrane disruption. In this model, the peptides disrupt the membrane by covering the lipid membrane with an extensive layer of peptide. a The peptides electrostatically bind to the surface of lipid membrane so that hydrophobic groups of peptides face the membrane and their hydrophilic groups face water molecules. Hydrophobic groups of the peptide are shown colored black and hydrophilic groups of the peptide are shown colored red. b, c After local high concentration of peptides occurs on the surface of phospholipids, membrane permeation is triggered. Lipid membranes are then disintegrated leading to micellization. At this stage, a transient hole is formed before the membrane is thoroughly disintegrated (97,98). The size of the transient hole that forms in this mechanism can be exemplified by lytic activity of the flock house virus. The γ1 peptide of this virus induces transient holes of approximately 50–500 nm (100)