Biological Evaluation of Oral Care Products Using 3D Tissue-Engineered In Vitro Models of Plaque-Induced Gingivitis.

Background: The aim of this study was to investigate and visualize the anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial effects of different oral care products using an infected and inflamed 3D tissue-engineered gingival mucosal model.

Methods: A 3D full-thickness oral mucosal model was engineered inside tissue culture inserts using collagen hydrogels populated with human gingival fibroblasts and THP-1 monocytes and layered with oral epithelial cell lines. Oral saliva bacteria were cultured and added to the surface of the models and inflammation was further simulated with lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of .

High-throughput manufacturing of size-tuned liposomes by a new microfluidics method using enhanced statistical tools for characterization.

Microfluidics has recently emerged as a new method of manufacturing liposomes, which allows for reproducible mixing in miliseconds on the nanoliter scale. Here we investigate microfluidics-based manufacturing of liposomes. The aim of these studies was to assess the parameters in a microfluidic process by varying the total flow rate (TFR) and the flow rate ratio (FRR) of the solvent and aqueous phases.

The role of lipid geometry in designing liposomes for the solubilisation of poorly water soluble drugs.

Liposomes are well recognised for their ability to improve the delivery of a range of drugs. More commonly they are applied for the delivery of water-soluble drugs, but given their structural attributes, they can also be employed as solubilising agents for low solubility drugs as well as drug targeting agents. To further explore the potential of liposomes as solubilising agents, we have investigated the role of bilayer packaging in promoting drug solubilisation in liposome bilayers.

Preparation, characterisation and entrapment of a non-glycosidic threitol ceramide into liposomes for presentation to invariant natural killer T cells.

Dendritic cells (DCs) are able to present glycolipids to invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells in vivo. Very few compounds have been found to stimulate iNKT cells, and of these, the best characterised is the glycolipid α-galactosylceramide, which stimulates the production of large quantities of interferon-gamma (IFN-γ) and interleukin-4 (IL-4). However, αGalCer leads to overstimulation of iNKT cells.

The application of monolayer studies in the understanding of liposomal formulations.

The study of surfactant monolayers is certainly not a new technique, but the application of monolayer studies to elucidate controlling factors in liposome design remains an underutilised resource. Using a Langmuir-Blodgett trough, pure and mixed lipid monolayers can be investigated, both for their interactions within the monolayer, and for interfacial interactions with drugs in the aqueous sub-phase. Despite these monolayers effectively being only half a bilayer, with a flat rather than curved structure, information from these studies can be effectively translated into liposomal systems.

Exploring the correlation between lipid packaging in lipoplexes and their transfection efficacy.

Whilst there is a large body of evidence looking at the design of cationic liposomes as transfection agents, correlates of formulation to function remain elusive. In this research, we investigate if lipid packaging can give further insights into transfection efficacy. DNA lipoplexes composed of 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine (DOPE) or 1,2-distearoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphoethanolamine (DSPE) in combination with 1,2-dioleoyl-3-trimethylammonium-propane (DOTAP) or 1,2-stearoyl-3-trimethylammonium-propane (DSTAP) were prepared by the lipid hydration method.