New Insights into the Molecular Structure of Tear Film Lipids Revealed by Surface X-ray Scattering.
Ryan M TrevorahMira ViljanenTuomo ViitajaHenrik StubbJulia SevónOleg KonovalovMaciej JankowskiPhilippe FontaineArnaud HemmerleJan-Erik RaitanenFilip S EkholmKirsi J SvedströmPublished in: The journal of physical chemistry letters (2024)
The tear film lipid layer (TFLL) is a unique biological membrane that serves a pivotal role in the maintenance of ocular surface health. Reaching an overarching understanding of the functional principle of the TFLL has been hampered by a lack of insights into the structural and functional roles played by individual lipid classes. To bridge this knowledge gap, we herein focus on studying films formed by principal lipid classes by surface scattering methods. Through grazing incidence X-ray diffraction and X-ray reflectivity studies, we reveal quantitative data about the lattice distances, molecular tilt angles, and mono/multilayer thickness and density profiles for central TFLL lipid classes under close to simulated physiological conditions. In addition, we discuss the correlation of the results to those obtained previously with the natural lipid composition of meibum.
Keyphrases
- fatty acid
- high resolution
- healthcare
- room temperature
- public health
- mental health
- dual energy
- magnetic resonance imaging
- electron microscopy
- gene expression
- optical coherence tomography
- machine learning
- electronic health record
- mass spectrometry
- single molecule
- health information
- dna methylation
- risk assessment
- gold nanoparticles
- human health
- crystal structure
- carbon nanotubes