Self-assembly of perovskite nanoplates in colloidal suspensions.

In recent years, perovskite nanocrystal superlattices have been reported with collective optical phenomena, offering a promising platform for both fundamental science studies and device engineering. In this same avenue, superlattices of perovskite nanoplates can be easily prepared on different substrates, and they too present an ensemble optical response. However, the self-assembly and optical properties of these aggregates in solvents have not been reported to date.

The diffusion-driven microfluidic process to manufacture lipid-based nanotherapeutics with stealth properties for siRNA delivery.

Our study investigated the manufacturing of lipid-based nanotherapeutics with stealth properties for siRNA delivery by employing a diffusion-driven microfluidic process in one or two-steps strategies to produce siRNA-loaded lipid nanocarriers and lipoplexes, respectively. In the one-step synthesis, siRNA in the aqueous phase is introduced from one inlet, while phospholipids dispersed in anhydrous ethanol are introduced from other inlets, generating the lipid nanocarriers. In the two-steps strategies, the pre-formed liposomes are complexed with siRNA.

One-step Production of Sterically Stabilized Anionic Nanoliposome Using Microfluidic Device.

Anionic liposomes (AL) are very attractive for nanomedicine and some formulations have already been launched for clinical development. Despite the excellent potential, their application presents two major challenges: laborious production methods and rapid degradation and elimination from blood by the immune system. In this work, we optimized the production of AL and its stealth form (SAL) using a onestep microfluidic process.

Hybrid polymer/lipid vesicle synthesis: Association between cationic liposomes and lipoplexes with chondroitin sulfate.

The association of cationic carriers with different anionic mucoadhesive biopolymers has been widely explored as an alternative to improve their delivery routes and specific targeting. This work presents a complete analysis of the association between chondroitin sulfate (CS) and cationic liposomes (CLs)/lipoplex (CL-pDNA). In this study, plasmid DNA (pDNA) was used as a genetic cargo for association with carriers.

3D micromixer for nanoliposome synthesis: a promising advance in high mass productivity.

This paper addresses an important breakthrough in the high mass production of liposomes by microfluidics technology. We investigated the synthesis of liposomes using a high flow rate microfluidic device (HFR-MD) with a 3D-twisted cross-sectional microchannel to favor chaotic advection. A simple construction scaffold technique was used to manufacture the HFR-MD.

Physical and biological effects of paclitaxel encapsulation on disteraroylphosphatidylethanolamine-polyethyleneglycol polymeric micelles.

Simple size observations of 1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine-N-[methoxy(polyethyleneglycol)-2000] (DSPE-mPEG2000) polymeric micelles (PM) with different compositions including or not paclitaxel (PTX) are unable to evidence changes on the nanocarrier structure. In such system a detailed characterization using highly sensitive techniques such as X-ray scattering and asymmetric flow field flow fractionation coupled to multi-angle laser light scattering and dynamic light scattering (AF4-MALS-DLS) is mandatory to observe effects that take place by the addition of PTX and/or more lipid-polymer at PM, leading to complex changes on the structure of micelles, as well as in their supramolecular organization. SAXS and AF4-MALS-DLS suggested that PM can be found in the medium separately and highly organized, forming clusters of PM in the latter case.

Evidence of photoinduced lipid hydroperoxidation in Langmuir monolayers containing Eosin Y.

Photodynamic therapy (PDT) efficiency depends on many factors including the incorporation of the photosensitizer (PS) in cell membranes and possible lipid hydroperoxidation. In this study, we show that hydroperoxidation may be photoinduced when eosin Y is incorporated into Langmuir monolayers that serve as cell membrane models. This occurs for Langmuir monolayers of 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DOPC) and 1-palmitoyl-2-oleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (POPC), which have unsaturation in their hydrophobic chains.

Lecithin and phytosterols-based mixtures as hybrid structuring agents in different organic phases.

In this study the effect of lecithin (L) addition and solvent quality in a well-established oleogel system formed by β-sitosterol and γ-oryzanol (BG) was investigated. Medium chain triglycerides (MCT) and sunflower oil (SFO) were used as triglycerides and hexadecane (HEX) as a model of linear hydrocarbon. Lecithin was proposed due to its natural and versatile properties, showing different functionalities such as emulsifier and co-oleogelator.

Refractive index and thickness determination in Langmuir monolayers of myelin lipids.

Langmuir monolayers at the air/water interface are widely used as biomembrane models and for amphiphilic molecules studies in general. Under controlled intermolecular organization (lateral molecular area), surface pressure, surface potential, reflectivity (R) and other magnitudes can be precisely determined on these planar monomolecular films. However, some physical parameters such as the refractive index of the monolayer (n) still remain elusive.

Microfluidic Assembly of pDNA/Cationic Liposome Lipoplexes with High pDNA Loading for Gene Delivery.

Microfluidics offers unique characteristics to control the mixing of liquids under laminar flow. Its use for the assembly of lipoplexes represents an attractive alternative for the translation of gene delivery studies into clinical trials on a sufficient throughput scale. Here, it was shown that the microfluidic assembly of pDNA/cationic liposome (CL) lipoplexes allows the formation of nanocarriers with enhanced transfection efficiencies compared with the conventional bulk-mixing (BM) process under high pDNA loading conditions.

The Link Between Self-Assembly and Molecular Conformation of Amphiphilic Block Copolymers Monolayers at the Air/Water Interface: The Spreading Parameter.

Two amphiphilic block copolymers, namely polystyrene-b-poly(methyl-methacrylate) (PS-b-PMMA), at the air/water interface were studied combining the in situ structural characterization, by means of X-ray reflectivity (XRR) and grazing incidence small-angle X-ray scattering (GISAXS), and the ex situ morphological one, by atomic force microscopy (AFM). We observed that the conformation of the hydrophilic block spread on the water surface is dramatically influenced by the morphology of the monolayer. Our results showed that the hydrophilic PMMA block adopts an expanded conformation when thermodynamically stable nanodots are formed, whereas a coiled conformation is observed when the block copolymer formed kinetically frozen nanostrands.