Skin lipid structure controls water permeability in snake molts.
J Struct Biol
; 185(1): 99-106, 2014 Jan.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-24157843
ABSTRACT
The role of lipids in controlling water exchange is fundamentally a matter of molecular organization. In the present study we have observed that in snake molt the water permeability drastically varies among species living in different climates and habitats. The analysis of molts from four snake species tiger snake, Notechis scutatus, gabon viper, Bitis gabonica, rattle snake, Crotalus atrox, and grass snake, Natrix natrix, revealed correlations between the molecular composition and the structural organization of the lipid-rich mesos layer with control in water exchange as a function of temperature. It was discovered, merging data from micro-diffraction and micro-spectroscopy with those from thermal, NMR and chromatographic analyses, that this control is generated from a sophisticated structural organization that changes size and phase distribution of crystalline domains of specific lipid molecules as a function of temperature. Thus, the results of this research on four snake species suggest that in snake skins different structured lipid layers have evolved and adapted to different climates. Moreover, these lipid structures can protect, "safety", the snakes from water lost even at temperatures higher than those of their usual habitat.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Pele
/
Serpentes
/
Água
/
Muda
/
Lipídeos
Limite:
Animals
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2014
Tipo de documento:
Article