Figure 8. Diagrammatic model showing the transport of S. chinensis lignans through the HepG2 cell membrane in the presence and absence of peptidylglycan SC-2.

The conformation of SC-2 was specifically altered when submerged onto the outer membrane of target cells, concomitantly, the free energy change declined to ΔG<0. The membrane-bound SC-2 specifically accumulated the lignans and pumped them into the intramembrane space. The cytosolic lignan concentration was thus rapidly raised to a higher level than the original extracellular concentration. Supposedly, Gomisin C bearing an OH-group at position 7 (Fig. 1) could be more tightly arrested by SC-2.