Large unilamellar lipid vesicles for use in therapeutic and diagnostic medicine.
Large unilamellar lipid vesicles are prepared by a detergent dialysis procedure using beta-D-octylglucoside as the detergent. This procedure is nondenaturing and allows for the encapsulation of sensitive biological molecules. Vesicles prepared with the composition of 2 mol phosphatidylcholine and 1 mol cholesterol have a mean diameter of 200 nm and allow for the encapsulation of 150 molecules of alkaline phosphatase per vesicle without loss of activity. Stability studies show that less than 4 per cent of the original enzyme leaks from the vesicles over a 250 day period upon storage at 4 degrees C. A mechanistic model for vesicle formation is described to provide a clear understanding of the events occurring during the encapsulation stages.
D000469:Alkaline Phosphatase / Q000008:administration & dosage; D003902:Detergents / Q000494:pharmacology; D003956:Dialysis; D008081:Liposomes / Q000008:administration & dosage
D003902:Detergents; D008081:Liposomes; D000469:Alkaline Phosphatase