The orientation of the acyl chains depends on the lipids used. Generally if you are interested in producing stericlly-stabilized "long circulating" liposomes you want to use saturated high-phase transition. Using saturated lipids you would have acyl-chains without double bonds (kinks). This would improve their stability, i.e., less oxidation and tighter packing. When you add cholesterol that further condenses the bilayer decreaseing membrane fluidity and increasing drug retention within the aqueous core.
@Robert: thank you for the answer.
About the cholesterol, how does it affect the membrane packing of saturated compared to unsaturated lipids? and also the chain length?
If you consider a single molecule, you can have a distribution of arrengements of the alkyl side chains, ando some of them are energetically favoured. And those are with the chains aligned close to each other because of van der Waals interactions.
@Jesus: thank you for the answer. but how close these chains can be? are there any parameter to predict this distance? Btw, some literature mention the hydrophobic effect as the driving force for this fenomena. Do you know about it?
Hi,
Because they do not have "side-chains" in those acyl chains.
The chemical forces holding phospholipids next to each other in structures such as liposomes and nanoliposomes is basically hydrophilic-hydrophobic interactions and the van der Waals forces (or van der Waals interaction).
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