Molecular-Level Organization of Saturated and Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in a Phosphatidylcholine Bilayer Containing Cholesterol

Cholesterol's preference for specific fatty acid chains is investigated at the atomic level in a 20 ns molecular dynamics computer simulation of a lipid bilayer membrane consisting of cholesterol and 1-stearoyl-2-docosahexaenoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (SDPC) in a 1:3 ratio. These simulations reproduce experimental measurements suggesting that cholesterol prefers to be solvated by saturated acyl chains and has a low affinity for polyunsaturated fatty acids. Analyses of the simulation trajectory provide a detailed picture of both the transverse and lateral structures of the lipid bilayer membrane, along with a description of lipid and cholesterol dynamics at high temporal resolution. Comparison with a previous simulation of a pure phospholipid bilayer allows an atomic-level description of the changes in membrane structure and dynamics resulting from incorporation of cholesterol. The observed differential cholesterol interactions with saturated and polyunsaturated lipids provide a mechanism for the formation of laterally inhomogeneous membranes; thus, the simulation provides molecular-level insight into the formation of lipid rafts.