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Abstract

The repulsive forces in a wide range of diacyl and monoacyl phospholipid systems have been obtained from the adsorption isotherms for water. From the exponential dependence of the repulsive pressure on the water content, information has been deduced regarding the hydration force. For diacyl phosphatidylcholines the strength of the hydration force and its characteristic decay length are in good agreement with values previously obtained by x-ray diffraction methods. For natural and synthetic diacyl phosphatidylcholines in the fluid lamellar phase, the hydration force extrapolated to zero layer separation (Po) is in the range 4–5.10(8) N.m-2 and the decay length is approximately 0.3 nm. The results for dimyristoyl, dipalmitoyl, and distearoyl phosphatidylcholines in the gel phase are very similar with Po approximately 2.5.10(8) N.m-2 and decay length of approximately 0.2 nm. Egg monomethyl phosphatidylethanolamine is less strongly hydrated: Po = 2.3.10(9) N.m-2, with a decay length of 0.3 nm. Egg phosphatidylethanolamine and bovine phosphatidylserine hydrate even more weakly with Po approximately 1.3.10(8) N.m-2 and decay length of approximately 0.15 nm. Mixtures with cholesterol or phosphatidylcholine increase both Po and the decay length for phosphatidylethanolamine to values closer to those for phosphatidylcholine. The repulsive forces deduced for egg lysophosphatidylcholine at 40 degrees C display a biphasic water dependence, with the low water phase being similar to lamellar egg phosphatidylcholine, and the phase at higher water content having a smaller value of Po = 2.10(8) N.m-2 but a longer decay length of approximately 0.45 nm, corresponding to a nonlamellar configuration.