Nanomechanical Characterization of the Interfacial Properties of Bilayers of 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine

Abstract: We investigate the mechanical properties of bilayers of 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine in the gel phase by using peak force tapping with quantitative nanomechanical mapping. We study both dry and aqueous bilayers and liposomes supported on the oxidized silicon surface. We report the observation of a marked substrate effect on the measured Young modulus of supported bilayer stacks which decreases as the height of the stack increases. In contrast a clear substrate effect is not observed for the top bilayer of supported aqueous liposomes, which is however affected by the surface curvature of the sample. Adhesion forces present quantitative differences between dry and aqueous samples, with the former being dominated by capillary effects and the latter by non-contact interactions between tip and substrate. The mechanical properties of stacked bilayers reveal a threshold between two different regimes, for the lower portion and the upper portion of the stack, that shows a change in the plasticity of the system. The threshold is affected by applied setpoint and aging of the sample. We propose that it arises from the presence of thin layers of hydration water between the headgroups of contacting phospholipid bilayers, which appears to have a major effect on the response of the bilayer to an external mechanical stress.