Herein, transition metal-lipid complexes are characterized using model membranes. We
show that Cu2+, Zn2+ and Ni2+ bind to phosphatidylserine (PS) lipids and that Cu2+ also binds with
the lipid phosphatidylethanolamine (PE). These transition metals can induce dramatic chemical or
physical changes to the lipid membrane upon binding. For example, oxidation rates in the
presence of Cu2+ and hydrogen peroxide were significantly higher for bilayers containing PE than
for pure phosphatidylcholine (PC) bilayers that do not bind Cu2+. Zn2+ was found to induce
membrane blebbing upon binding to supported bilayers containing PS lipids. A second objective
of this work was to develop new analytical tools for studying transition metal-lipid complexes.
We propose that the family of transition metal-lipid complexes be referred to as
metallomembranes. These results suggest that metallomembrans are physiologically relevant and
may play a role in diseases where the Cu2+ concentration in the body is abnormally high.
