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Abstract

Bilayer lipid membranes were deposited onto two different thin water swellable polymer cushions predominantly by Langmuir- Blodgett trough methods. Membranes consisting of zwitterionic lipids supported by agarose films were shown to be unstable, as observed by fluorescence microscopy, reflection interference contrast microscopy, and the impossibility of bilayer spreading (Radler, J.; Strey, H.; Sackmann, E. Langmuir 1995, 11, 4539- 4548) on the agarose surface. Chitosan, formerly observed to permanently coat liposome surfaces of zwitterionic lipid membranes (Henriksen, I.; Smistad, G.; Karlsen, J. Int. J. Pharm. 1994,101, 227-236), was used to prepare thin films by spin-coating and was found to sufficiently adsorb and thereby stabilize planar bilayer lipid membranes. Bilayer spreading on a chitosan surface was observed, indicating the self-healing ability of chitosan-supported lipid membranes.