UC San Diego

Liposomal circular dichroism (L-CD) of acyclic amino alcohols exhibit amplification of Cotton effects when measured in highly uniform, unilamellar liposomes. The effect is likely due to intermolecular associations-H-aggregates-that self-assemble spontaneously within the lipid bilayer, and persists over long time scales. L-CD spectra of N,O,O'-tri-(6'methoxy-2'-naphthoyl)-d-erythro-sphingosine, or the corresponding dihydro-derivative (sphinganine), shows ~10-fold amplification of magnitudes of Cotton effects over conventional CD spectra recorded in isotropic solution.