A comparative study of F-DPPC/DPPC mixed monolayers. Influence of subphase temperature on F-DPPC and DPPC monolayers

The surface behavior of two zwitterionic phospholipids: 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC) and 1-palmitoyl-2-[16-fluoropalmitoyl-phosphatidylcholine] (F-DPPC), has been investigated at the air–water interface at the temperature range from 10 to 30 °C. Surface pressure-area isotherms, BAM images and thickness-time curves were obtained for monolayers made from these pure phospholipids and from their mixtures. The comparative study of the behavior of both phospholipid monolayers with temperature showed some differences as the disappearance of the liquid expanded (LE)-liquid condensed (LC) phase transition at low temperatures for the DPPC but not for F-DPPC, because the F-DPPC monolayer is more expanded and more resistant to changes of temperature. On the other hand, film elasticity (Cs−1) values calculated for both phospholipids show that the film condensation diminishes when the temperature increases, in accordance with the results obtained from surface pressure measurements. BAM images for F-DPPC monolayers recorded at different surface pressures and temperatures show the existence of numerous ovoid-like domains when the LE-LC phase transition is reached. However, in the LE and LC phases, homogeneous images were obtained. Time evolution of relative thickness along the compression of F-DPPC and DPPC monolayers shows similar behavior of both phospholipids, except at low temperatures. For DPPC/F-DPPC mixed systems, the plots of the mean molecular area as a function of F-DPPC mole fraction (XF-DPPC) indicated that, whatever the surface pressure, the experimental results match the theoretical values calculated from the additivity rule, a typical behavior for ideal mixed monolayers made of miscible components. This conclusion is confirmed from the values calculated for the free energy of excess (ΔGexc) of this system, which are practically zero, whatever the composition of the mixtures and the surface pressure at which ΔGexc values were calculated.