Investigation and Comparison of Active and Passive Encapsulation Methods for Loading Proteins into Liposomes. 2023

Silvia Pisani, and Deborah Di Martino, and Silvia Cerri, and Ida Genta, and Rossella Dorati, and Giulia Bertino, and Marco Benazzo, and Bice Conti
Department of Drug Sciences, University of Pavia, Viale T. Taramelli 12, 27100 Pavia, Italy.

In this work, four different active encapsulation methods, microfluidic (MF), sonication (SC), freeze-thawing (FT), and electroporation (EP), were investigated to load a model protein (bovine serum albumin-BSA) into neutral liposomes made from 1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DSPC):cholesterol (Chol) and charged liposomes made from DSPC:Chol:Dioleoyl-3-trimethylammonium propane (DOTAP), DSPC:Chol:1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phospho-L-serine (DOPS), and DSPC:Chol:phosphatidylethanolamine (PE). The aim was to increase the protein encapsulation efficiency (EE%) by keeping the liposome size below 200 nm and the PDI value below 0.7, which warrants a nearly monodisperse preparation. Electroporation (100 V) yielded the best results in terms of EE%, with a dramatic increase in liposome size (>600 nm). The FT active-loading method, either applied to neutral or charged liposomes, allowed for obtaining suitable EE%, keeping the liposome size range below 200 nm with a suitable PDI index. Cationic liposomes (DSPC:Chol:DOTAP) loaded with the FT active method showed the best results in terms of EE% (7.2 ± 0.8%) and size (131.2 ± 11.4 nm, 0.140 PDI). In vitro release of BSA from AM neutral and charged liposomes resulted slower compared to PM liposomes and was affected by incubation temperature (37 °C, 4 °C). The empty charged liposomes tested for cell viability on Human Normal Dermal Fibroblast (HNDF) confirmed their cytocompatibility also at high concentrations (1010 particles/mL) and cellular uptake at 4 °C and 37 °C. It can be concluded that even if both microfluidic passive and active methods are more easily transferable to an industrial scale, the FT active-loading method turned out to be the best in terms of BSA encapsulation efficiencies, keeping liposome size below 200 nm.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008081 Liposomes Artificial, single or multilaminar vesicles (made from lecithins or other lipids) that are used for the delivery of a variety of biological molecules or molecular complexes to cells, for example, drug delivery and gene transfer. They are also used to study membranes and membrane proteins. Niosomes,Transferosomes,Ultradeformable Liposomes,Liposomes, Ultra-deformable,Liposome,Liposome, Ultra-deformable,Liposome, Ultradeformable,Liposomes, Ultra deformable,Liposomes, Ultradeformable,Niosome,Transferosome,Ultra-deformable Liposome,Ultra-deformable Liposomes,Ultradeformable Liposome
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000092722 Electroporation Therapies Treatment modalities that use pulsed electrical currents to permeabilize cell membranes and thereby enhance uptake of substances into cells of the body. Electroporation Therapeutic Uses,Electroporation Therapy,Therapeutic Use of Electroporation,Electroporation Therapeutic Use,Therapeutic Use, Electroporation,Therapeutic Uses, Electroporation,Therapies, Electroporation,Therapy, Electroporation
D012710 Serum Albumin, Bovine Serum albumin from cows, commonly used in in vitro biological studies. (From Stedman, 25th ed) Fetal Bovine Serum,Fetal Calf Serum,Albumin Bovine,Bovine Albumin,Bovine Serum Albumin,Albumin, Bovine,Albumin, Bovine Serum,Bovine Serum, Fetal,Bovine, Albumin,Calf Serum, Fetal,Serum, Fetal Bovine,Serum, Fetal Calf
D018274 Electroporation A technique in which electric pulses, in kilovolts per centimeter and of microsecond-to-millisecond duration, cause a loss of the semipermeability of CELL MEMBRANES, thus leading to ion leakage, escape of metabolites, and increased uptake by cells of drugs, molecular probes, and DNA. Depending on the dosage, the formation of openings in the cell membranes caused by the electric pulses may or may not be reversible. Electric Field-Mediated Cell Permeabilization,Irreversible Electroporation,Reversible Electroporation,Electropermeabilisation,Electric Field Mediated Cell Permeabilization,Electroporation, Irreversible,Electroporation, Reversible

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