Lipid-lipid recognition in fluid bilayers: solving the cholesterol mystery.

Nearest-neighbour recognition measurements take 'molecular-level snapshots' of lipid organization in fluid bilayers by detecting and quantifying the thermodynamic tendency of two lipids to become nearest-neighbours. Recent nearest-neighbour recognition experiments have clarified the structural role that cholesterol plays in biological membranes. They have also clarified the influence that the linkage region of sphingolipids, the sugar head group of glycolipids, and lipid-peptide interactions have on lipid-lipid recognition.