Effects of Cholesterol on the Partitioning of a Drug Molecule in Lipid Bilayers. 2021

Yuqin Yang, and Hao Dong, and Huan-Xiang Zhou
Kuang Yaming Honors School, Nanjing University, 210023 Nanjing, China.

Drug molecules either bind to membrane-bound targets or permeate through cell membranes to reach intracellular targets, and hence, their membrane partition and permeation are of great importance. Here, we studied the effects of cholesterol on the partition of amantadine, an antiflu drug molecule, into 1,2-dimyristoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine bilayers using molecular dynamics simulations. The membrane partition of amantadine is sensitive to the cholesterol mole fraction (xchol). In the absence of cholesterol, amantadine is stably bound in membranes, but at xchol = 32%, it can escape to the aqueous phase, in agreement with recent experiments. The reduced membrane partition of amantadine at a high cholesterol content is mainly due to the perturbation of the bilayer structure and dynamics. Surrounding lipids stabilize amantadine by having their tails wrapped around the drug molecule, and this ability is compromised when cholesterol is present to increase the order in lipid tails. The atomic details on interactions with lipids and perturbations by cholesterol revealed here provide insight into membrane partition and delivery of drug molecules to their targets.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008051 Lipid Bilayers Layers of lipid molecules which are two molecules thick. Bilayer systems are frequently studied as models of biological membranes. Bilayers, Lipid,Bilayer, Lipid,Lipid Bilayer
D002462 Cell Membrane The lipid- and protein-containing, selectively permeable membrane that surrounds the cytoplasm in prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. Plasma Membrane,Cytoplasmic Membrane,Cell Membranes,Cytoplasmic Membranes,Membrane, Cell,Membrane, Cytoplasmic,Membrane, Plasma,Membranes, Cell,Membranes, Cytoplasmic,Membranes, Plasma,Plasma Membranes
D002784 Cholesterol The principal sterol of all higher animals, distributed in body tissues, especially the brain and spinal cord, and in animal fats and oils. Epicholesterol
D004364 Pharmaceutical Preparations Drugs intended for human or veterinary use, presented in their finished dosage form. Included here are materials used in the preparation and/or formulation of the finished dosage form. Drug,Drugs,Pharmaceutical,Pharmaceutical Preparation,Pharmaceutical Product,Pharmaceutic Preparations,Pharmaceutical Products,Pharmaceuticals,Preparations, Pharmaceutical,Preparation, Pharmaceutical,Preparations, Pharmaceutic,Product, Pharmaceutical,Products, Pharmaceutical
D056004 Molecular Dynamics Simulation A computer simulation developed to study the motion of molecules over a period of time. Molecular Dynamics Simulations,Molecular Dynamics,Dynamic, Molecular,Dynamics Simulation, Molecular,Dynamics Simulations, Molecular,Dynamics, Molecular,Molecular Dynamic,Simulation, Molecular Dynamics,Simulations, Molecular Dynamics

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