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News and Views
Nature 444, 697 (7 December 2006) | doi:10.1038/nature05408; Published online 29 November 2006
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Ion channels: A paddle in oil
Anthony G. Lee1
Abstract
How do voltage-gated ion channels in cell membranes open? The latest work suggests that the process depends on having the correct lipid molecules in the membrane, with phosphate groups being mandatory.
Electrical signalling in the nervous system involves voltage-gated ion channels, proteins that sit in the outer membrane of nerve cells. This membrane, like all membranes, consists of lipid molecules that are organized in the form of a bilayer — the charged parts of the molecules, the lipid headgroups, lie on the outside of the bilayer in contact with water, with the fatty acyl chains of the lipid molecules occupying the centre and forming the oily core.
- Anthony G. Lee is in the School of Biological Sciences, University of Southampton, Southampton SO16 7PX, UK.
Email: agl@soton.ac.uk
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