The MagLab is funded by the National Science Foundation and the State of Florida.
The MagLab is funded by the National Science Foundation and the State of Florida.
Symposium on Lipid Nanodiscs: Applications in Structural Biology and Drug Delivery
Membrane proteins play central roles in cellular signaling, transport, and metabolism, and represent a major class of therapeutic targets. However, their intrinsic dependence on lipid bilayers has historically posed significant challenges for biochemical/biophysical characterization, high-resolution structural analysis, and translational applications. Lipid nanodiscs have emerged as a powerful and versatile platform to address these challenges, offering a native-like, soluble, and tunable membrane environment for membrane proteins.
This symposium will highlight recent advances in lipid nanodisc technology and explore their expanding applications in structural biology and drug delivery. Nanodiscs are self-assembled nanoscale lipid bilayers stabilized by amphipathic scaffold proteins, peptides, or synthetic polymers. They enable the reconstitution of membrane proteins in well-defined lipid environments. This has facilitated breakthroughs in cryo-electron microscopy, NMR spectroscopy, X-ray scattering, and other biophysical methods, allowing researchers to capture membrane proteins in functionally relevant conformational states.
A key focus of the symposium will be the use of nanodiscs in structural studies of receptors, ion channels, transporters, and multiprotein complexes. Speakers will discuss how lipid composition, bilayer size, and scaffold chemistry influence protein stability, dynamics, and activity, as well as how nanodiscs compare with alternative membrane mimetics such as detergents, liposomes, and bicelles. Emerging hybrid systems and next-generation nanodisc designs will also be presented, with emphasis on their compatibility with high-resolution and time-resolved techniques.
In addition to their impact on fundamental structural biology, lipid nanodiscs are gaining importance as platforms for drug discovery and delivery. Their ability to incorporate hydrophobic drugs, present membrane proteins in native conformations for ligand screening, and interface with biological systems makes them attractive tools for translational research. The symposium will feature discussions on nanodiscs as carriers for small molecules, peptides, and biologics, as well as their potential in targeted delivery.
By bringing together experts in biomedical engineering, biophysics, structural biology, chemistry, and pharmaceutical sciences, this symposium aims to foster interdisciplinary dialogue and collaboration. Participants will gain insight into the current state of the field, technical challenges, and future directions for lipid nanodiscs as enabling tools at the interface of basic research and therapeutic innovation.