DIANA IONESCU

Biophysical Department, „Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmaceutics, Bucharest

Abstract. Quercetin (QCT) is a wide spread flavonoid often encountered in various edible plants, with remarkable antioxidant properties. Its interaction with cell membranes, especially with the lipidic fraction of the membrane, represents an up to date topic. Here we investigate QCT interaction with artificial lipid membranes, containing various cholesterol concentrations. For this purpose we measured the electrical properties, namely the electrical conductance and electrical capacitance, of the artificial lipid membrane using the black lipid membrane technique (BLM). QCT capacity to modify membrane different properties (including the electric ones) and its ability to interact and penetrate the lipid bilayers, thus being responsible for the variations in membrane structure and fluidity, are in direct correlation. Our results show that QCT interaction with the lipid membrane depends on cholesterol percentage in the membrane and on membrane bathing solutions type as well.
Key words: quercetin, cholesterol, BLM.

Author’s e-mail: diana.ionescu@umf.ro

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