Abstract
Abstract Bipolar lipids (bolalipids) are composed of one or two long hydrophobic spacers and two polar headgroups attached to their ends. In water, they form various types of aggregate structures such as micelles, discs, fibers, tapes, tubes, or vesicles. The shape of the formed aggregates strongly depends on the head-to-spacer diameter ratio of the bolalipid as well as on electrostatic interactions and the possibility of forming hydrogen bonds between neighboring headgroups. This review focuses on symmetrical single-chain bolalipids, where two identical polar phosphocholine or phosphodimethylethanolamine headgroups are connected by one long hydrophobic alkyl chain spacer. These bolalipids proved to be capable of gelling water very efficiently by forming a dense network of fibers. The fibers exhibit a helical superstructure with hydrophobic pockets, where double-chain phospholipids can easily be inserted. The temperature-dependent self-assembly of the bolalipids in water and their mixing behavior with conventional phospholipids was investigated by differential scanning calorimetry, transmission electron microscopy, small-angle neutron scattering, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and rheological measurements.
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