From fat to bilayers: Understanding where and how vitamin E works

Vitamin E was one of the last fat-soluble vitamins to be discovered. We provide here an historical review of the discovery and the increasingly more detailed understanding of the role of alpha-tocopherol both as an antioxidant and as a structural component of phospholipid bilayer membranes. Despite the detailed descriptions now available of the orientation, location, and dynamics of alpha-tocopherol in lipid bilayers, there are still gaps in our knowledge of the effect of alpha-tocopherol and its potential receptors than control gene transcription.

Automated summary

Vitamin E was one of the last fat-soluble vitamins discovered, and it plays important roles as an antioxidant and structural component in phospholipid bilayer membranes. Despite our detailed understanding of the orientation and dynamics of alpha-tocopherol in lipid bilayers, gaps still exist in our knowledge regarding its effects and potential receptors in controlling gene transcription.