Electroporation: Theory of Basic Mechanisms
Abstract
Electroporation is a dramatic and apparently universal phenomenon which occurs in all bilayer-containing membranes. For this reason electroporation has implications for basic understanding of cell membranes, and is also likely to lead to a number of new applications. A quantitative understanding of how electroporation occurs has been lacking. We report significant progress towards providing descriptions of mechanisms which can quantitatively account for most of the complex electrical behavior of planar bilayer membranes without proteins. This has set the stage for development of models which describe both electrical behavior and molecular transport. In summary form, electroporation (i) is now believed to be a universal cell membrane phenomenon, involving both the lipid bilayer and membrane macromolecules, and is therefore fundamental to membrane understanding, (ii) provides a general method for introducing molecules into cells, or releasing molecules from cells, with potentially major applications in science and technology. Keywords: Membrane channels, Bioelectrochemistry.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 30, 1989
- Accession Number
- ADA210196
Entities
People
- James C. Weaver
Organizations
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology