Events

Dr. Mario Orsi, Molecular simulation of lipid membranes: from fundamental biophysical properties to the interaction with drugs and antimicrobials

Dr. Mario Orsi
Dr. Mario Orsi

Date: Wednesday 19 June 2013 15:00 - 16:00

Location: The People's Palace - PP2

Dr. Mario Orsi, School of Engineering & Materials Science, Queen Mary, University of London

Lipid membranes are interfacial systems employed by living organisms to enclose cells and organelles, transmit information, control molecular transport, and store energy. Lipids also have many industrial applications, for example in the areas of drug design and targeted delivery, nanotechnology, and biofuel production. This talk will focus on particle-based simulations of membrane systems using the molecular dynamics method. It will be shown how fundamental membrane properties can be characterized quantitatively using relatively simple (coarse-grained) models. Internal mechanical stresses and electric fields are found to change dramatically across the membrane; these features, which are extremely difficult to measure experimentally, are believed to play key roles in a wide range of biophysical phenomena (e.g., regulation of membrane proteins). I will also present a molecular-level view of a number of complex processes, including the self-assembly of lamellar and hexagonal lipid phases, the transmembrane transport of drugs, and the action mechanism of antibacterial molecules.

SEMS/IoB Seminar Series
Coffee/tea/biscuits provided after the seminar