Lipidomics update - October 2009

Lipid of the month

Phosphatidylcholine
As the major phospholipid component of mammalian cell membranes, phosphatidylcholine species underpin membrane transport and phospholipid signaling pathways.

Research highlights

• Lipid signaling: S1P's nuclear program

  Sphingosine-1-phosphate binds to and inhibits histone deacetylases 1 and 2, and regulates gene expression.

• Membrane curvature: Bending begets binding

  Curved membranes intrinsically recruit large densities of alkylated or amphipathic proteins independent of affinity, with no requirement for specific recognition motifs.

• Choline phospholipids: Now you see them

  A new metabolic labeling technique allows in vivo imaging of choline phospholipids.

• Systems biology: Cell biology put in context

  A systems biology approach demonstrates that the characteristics of a cell population determine the attributes of individual cells, which should be taken into account for interpreting data.

Events calendar

• 3rd Singapore Lipid Symposium

  3 - 5 March, 2010

• 3rd European Workshop on Lipid Mediators

  3 - 4 June, 2010

more events