Biomimetic properties of simulated protomembranes

Abstract

Experimental data of the concept of a pregenetic stage of the origin of a spherical protomembrane are reported. The protomembrane is considered as a result of transition from the phase separation to a structural-cellular membrane with primordial channel-like pores controlling ionic permeability. Research, based on a synthetic polyamino acid (Przybylski et al., 1982) and polyamino acid-lipid model (Ishima et al., 1981) of the membrane, demonstrated that the model reveals membrane and action potentials. The observed membrane of this model displays also: electrical conductance, ion permeability, current-voltage characteristics, hysteresis and negative resistance. The electrical phenomena were observed both in planar and spherical membranes. The pH effect upon electrical phenomena of synthetic membranes was observed. It is known that lipid-only models of the membrane do not reveal permeability and excitability. These properties are present in such models only after additon of proteins or polypeptides (Mueller and Rudin, 1968). It has been found that a deposition of thermal polyamino acids on the phosphatidylcholine membrane also results in electrical activity. (Przybylski, 1985). Membranes made from proteinoids-only display electrical activity as well. Electrical polarization, discharges, selective permeability, osmotic properties, and black films support electron micrograph evidence that structures made from thermal proteins have a double membrane resembling biological ones (Fox et al. 1978).