EN
Although interaction of red blood cell spectrin with phospholipids of the membrane bilayer was first reported more than 20 years ago its physiological significance is still a matter of dispute. In this paper we review the available data on interactions of red blood cell and nonerythroid spectrin with membrane phospholipids. The results from our laboratory indicate that ankyrin and phospholipids (particularly PE1-rich lipid domains) may, at least in part, share a binding site on erythrocyte and brain spectrin b-subunit. The physiological significance of this model is discussed.