The alveolar  surface is lined by film of submicron thickness between the epithelial cells and the alveolar lumen with the main function to lower the surface tension. The aqueous bulk structure of this layer consists of lipid bilayers forming lamellar bodies (LB:s) and tubular myelin (TM), and two hydrophilic proteins in the outside water ; SP-A and SP-D. We are studying the interfacial and bulk structure of and phase transitions in this lung surfactant extracts and model systems using ssNMR, SAXS/WAXS, ellipsometry, monolayer techniques and cryo-TEM. Another aspect of the project is the diffusion in through the interfacial lipid membrane with complex structure that implies a diffusional permeability that is different for hydrophilic and hydrophobic  substances.

People:  Jenny Andersson, Tommy Nylander, Marcus Larsson (Lund University Hospital), Tiago Ferreira (Martin Luther universität Halle - Wittenberg, Germany), Emma Sparr.

Contact person:Emma Sparr