Protective Role of Sphingomyelin in Eye Lens Cell Membrane Model against Oxidative Stress
Open Access
- 12 February 2021
- journal article
- research article
- Published by MDPI AG in Biomolecules
- Vol. 11 (2), 276
- https://doi.org/10.3390/biom11020276
Abstract
In the eye lens cell membrane, the lipid composition changes during the aging process: the proportion of sphingomyelins (SM) increases, that of phosphatidylcholines decreases. To investigate the protective role of the SMs in the lens cell membrane against oxidative damage, analytical techniques such as electrochemistry, high-resolution mass spectrometry (HR-MS), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were applied. Supported lipid bilayers (SLB) were prepared to mimic the lens cell membrane with different fractions of PLPC/SM (PLPC: 1-palmitoyl-2-linoleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine). The SLBs were treated with cold physical plasma. A protective effect of 30% and 44% in the presence of 25%, and 75% SM in the bilayer was observed, respectively. PLPC and SM oxidation products were determined via HR-MS for SLBs after plasma treatment. The yield of fragments gradually decreased as the SM ratio increased. Topographic images obtained by AFM of PLPC-bilayers showed SLB degradation and pore formation after plasma treatment, no degradation was observed in PLPC/SM bilayers. The results of all techniques confirm the protective role of SM in the membrane against oxidative damage and support the idea that the SM content in lens cell membrane is increased during aging in the absence of effective antioxidant systems to protect the eye from oxidative damage and to prolong lens transparency.Funding Information
- Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (03Z22DN12, 03Z22CI1)
- Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (231396381/GRK1947)
This publication has 79 references indexed in Scilit:
- Dental Applications of Low‐Temperature Nonthermal PlasmasPlasma Processes and Polymers, 2013
- A New Definition of Aging?Frontiers in Genetics, 2012
- Changes in Human Meibum Lipid Composition with Age Using Nuclear Magnetic Resonance SpectroscopyInvestigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, 2012
- Sphingolipid distribution changes with age in the human lensJournal of Lipid Research, 2010
- Lipids and the ocular lensJournal of Lipid Research, 2010
- Oxidative Stress, Lens Gap Junctions, and CataractsAntioxidants and Redox Signaling, 2009
- Model membrane systems and their applicationsCurrent Opinion in Chemical Biology, 2007
- Indirect Electrochemical Sensing of Radicals and Radical Scavengers in Biological MatricesAngewandte Chemie, 2007
- Cataract formation and preventionExpert Opinion on Investigational Drugs, 2004
- Liquid Chromatography/ Mass-Spectrometric Characterization of Sphingomyelin and Dihydrosphingomyelin of Human Lens MembranesOphthalmic Research, 1997