Cone-shaped lipids increase the susceptibility of phospholipids in bilayers to the action of phospholipases.

Addition of cardiolipin or diacylglycerol to dispersions of phosphatidylcholine greatly increased hydrolysis by snake venom or pancreatic phospholipase A2, as well as by a microbial phospholipase. Monogalactosyl diglyceride which, like cardiolipin and diacylglycerol, will form nonbilayer hexagonal II structures also caused an increase in the breakdown of phosphatidylcholine. Addition of digalactosyl diglyceride, a bilayer lipid from the same source, had a much smaller effect on the three phospholipases, indicating that stimulation by the nonbilayer lipids was not due to their fatty acid compositions. Stimulation of the microbial phospholipase by cardiolipin did not require the presence of calcium, leading to the conclusion that the formation of nonbilayer structures was not necessary. The results suggest that cone-shaped lipids increase the accessibility of lipids in bilayers to phospholipases by decreasing the packing of the polar head groups.