Deuterium and phosphorus-31 nuclear magnetic resonance of cholesteryl palmitate in dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine model membranes
Cholesteryl palmitate (CP) bas been incorporated into vesicles of dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine and dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine/20 mol% cholesterol, in amounts up to 5 mol%. By means of 31P lanthanide induced shifts the average diameter of these vesicles was calculated to be ~270 Å.The 2H spectral linewidths of selectively deuterated CP incorporated into liquid crystalline dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine vesicles are ≤ 150 Hz, implying a low degree of order for the ester acyl chain. Addition of 20 mol% cholesterol to the vesicles increases the linewidths which, nevertheless, remain ≤ 185 Hz. The corresponding 2H longitudinal relaxation times (≤ 450 ms) indicate that the fast segmental motions of the ester chain are slower than for the phospholipid chains.