The Institute of Pharmaceutical Innovation

Monday 8th October, 2007 IPI work recently highlighted on the cover of the Journal of Physical Chemistry B

Dr. Andrey Gurtovenko & Professor Jamshed Anwar’s article – Modulating the Structure and Properties of Cell Membranes: The Molecular Mechanism of Action of Dimethyl Sulfoxide (2007) has been highlighted on the cover of J. Physical Chemistry B 111, 10453-10460.

The state-of-the-art atomic-scale computer modelling reveals the molecular mechanism of action of small amphiphilic solutes such as dimethylsulfoxide
(DMSO) on cell membranes. It turns out that simply by changing the concentration of the solute it is possible to induce various structural changes in a membrane, from thinning, induction of transient water pores, to complete disintegration of the membrane. Overall, these findings shed light on the microscopic processes behind the effectiveness of some small solutes in general (and DMSO in particular) in serving as membrane penetration enhancers, cell fusogens, and cryoprotectants.

A. Gurtovenko & J. Anwar, Modulating the Structure and Properties of Cell Membranes: The Molecular Mechanism of Action of Dimethyl Sulfoxide (2007) J. Physical Chemistry B 111, 10453-10460