Lipid droplets understood through student designed 3D printed models of the seipin protein complex

Abstract

Lipid droplets (LD’s) are organelles that play a key role in metabolism and human physiology, storing energy for cells to use when needed. Defects in LD metabolism can cause diseases such as obesity and lipodystrophy. LDs have a single phospholipid layer exterior and hold triglycerides and other lipids. Several different proteins are also found in the phospholipid exterior of an LD, for example GPAT (glycerol‐3‐phosphate O‐acyltransferase). LDs are assembled at the surface of the endoplasmic reticulum by the seipin protein complex, with the LD forming at the seipin site similar to “blowing a bubble”. We are undergraduate students at various levels in our training and have not encountered LDs in our coursework. However, we believe they are an important and intriguing model for teaching many introductory and more advanced biology and chemistry concepts. We designed a 3D printed model of the seipin complex (based on PDB file 6DS5, Yan 2018) that can be used in undergraduate teaching. This model, along with online videos and other tools, can be used to teach many topics through a hands‐on approach to learning. Topics we learned about while building our models and through the use of other materials included: protein structure, protein complexes, metabolism and its connection to different diseases, basic chemical structures, metabolic pathways, cellular structures, computational visualization of proteins, and the utilization of online tools such as the Protein Databank. LDs can be connected to content in many courses, including General Biology, General Chemistry, Biochemistry, Organic Chemistry, Genetics, Cell Biology and Physiology. Instructions for printing a copy of this model along with a list of other teaching resources can be made available to anyone who is interested.