A brand new examine by the College of Barcelona in Spain has analyzed the viability of a brand new nanomolecule that can be utilized as a drug supply car.
The outcomes, revealed within the journal Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces, present that liposomes designed by researchers are capable of transport and ship an anticancer drug that has been used as a mannequin contained in the cells.
Interplay between liposomes and the cell membrane
A liposome is a synthetic spherical vesicle with a membrane fabricated from a twin layer of lipids just like the construction of cell membranes. Since these molecules have been discovered, within the Sixties, they’ve been used as a mannequin to check cell membranes and as a possible drug supply system.
One of many challenges of turning liposomes into drug supply autos is discovering out how they work together with cell membranes and what fundamental mechanism—adsorption, fusion or endocytosis, or a mixture of the three—is concerned within the integration of liposomes by cells.
“The interactions between liposomes and the cell membrane might be extraordinarily completely different relying on the character of the cell membrane and the lipidic composition of liposomes,” the researchers be aware.
The liposomes designed by the UB workforce are small lipid spheres with a composition just like that of the cell they need to deal with.
“This similarity eases its incorporation and the drug supply contained in the cell,” stated Òscar Domenech, Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology of the UB member and one of many researchers that took half within the examine.
Examine in cell cultures
This examine is the continuation of a earlier examine carried out by the identical analysis workforce that analyzed the fusion mechanisms of liposomes utilizing a simplified mannequin that copied the membrane of HeLa cells, a kind of tradition cells that are broadly utilized in scientific analysis.
“The membrane of HeLa cells is extra advanced than the mannequin we used within the earlier examine. Now, now we have used actual cell cultures so as to acquire a greater view of the interplay mechanism of our liposomes,” the researchers stated.
To check the interplay between the liposomes and the cell membrane and to evaluate the mixing of those nanomolecules, the researchers mixed two strategies. They used confocal fluorescence, which permits them to see fluorescent molecules contained in the cell. Then, the liposomes encapsulated calcein, a fluorescent dye, to see whether or not the nanomolecule and its content material have been coming into the cells.
Additionally, the researchers used the atomic drive microscopy approach to see the physicochemical modifications of the cell floor and assess the stiffness of the cell membrane within the presence of liposomes.
The interplay of the liposomes designed by the researchers affirmed the outcomes obtained with mannequin membranes and it exhibits the capability of the formulation of those nanomolecules as a possible nanotransporter.
“We present that the lipid composition permits a supply of the liposome content material contained in the cell, in addition to the impact of the filopodia —small flagella of the cell— in easing the arrival of liposomes on the cell membrane,” Domènech stated.
A take a look at with an anticancer drug
To validate the capability of the liposomes as a drug supply system, the researchers encapsulated methotrexate, an immunosuppressive drug used within the remedy of a number of oncologic, inflammatory and autoimmune pathologies.
“We might present that our liposomes are perfect for delivering this mannequin molecule, which we all know can remove most cancers cells,” Domènech added.
The outcomes open the door to future research with different molecules and cell varieties.
“Our curiosity can be to increase the methodology to different varieties of cells and even tissues to point out the viability of the evaluation, in addition to to make use of different therapeutical molecules encapsulated in liposomes,” Domènech stated.
“The 2 strategies we utilized in the course of the examine allowed us to acquire ends in a quick and minimally invasive approach, which sooner or later may very well be indicators of the great functioning of a drug in opposition to most cancers cells.”
The examine included the participation of researchers from the colleges of Biology, Physics and Pharmacy and Meals Sciences on the College of Barcelona, in addition to researchers from the Scientific and Technological Facilities of the UB (CCiTUB), the Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology of the UB (IN2UB) and from the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC).
