Properties of the biomembrane lipid phase optimization to high pressure.

The hypothesis of homeoviscous adaptation extended to other (except viscosity) physical properties of membranes raises the problem of the regulation of several membrane properties under environmental changes. The existence of limitations on the lipid composition, required for maintaining membrane polarity and viscosity at constant levels, was demonstrated for model membranes (liposomes from egg yolk lecithin and cholesterol) at the varying hydrostatic pressure (0-600 atm). It is assumed that similar limitations can determine the features of the lipid composition of biological membranes.