Lipid Monolayers at Liquid Interfaces

Abstract

In living systems, the structures of the cells and tissues are based on large molecules—proteins, polysaccharides, and complex lipids—while the organization of the systems appears to be a function of the nucleic acid complexes. Most lipid molecules are not as complex or as large as proteins. A large variety of compounds exist, many of them differing only in the composition of the long-chain fatty acid or aldehyde moieties. The word “lipid” (from the Greek lipos,“fat”) covers what seems to be an everexpanding group of compounds, the classification of which has been a subject of some controversy.