title: Light-responsive polyelectrolyte/gold nanoparticle microcapsules.
abstract: We report the preparation and characterization of light-responsive delivery vehicles, microcapsules composed of multiple polyelectrolyte layers and light-absorbing gold nanoparticles. The nanostructured capsules were loaded with macromolecules (fluorescein isothiocyanate-labeled dextran) by exploiting the pH-dependence of the shell permeability, and the encapsulated material was released on demand upon irradiation with short (10 ns) laser pulses in the near-infrared (1064 nm). In addition, the polyelectrolyte multilayer shell was modified with lipids (dilauroylphosphatidylethanolamine) and then functionalized with ligands (monoclonal immunoglobulin G antibodies) for the purposes of enhanced stability and targeted delivery, respectively. We anticipate that these capsules will find application in a range of areas where controlled delivery is desirable.
authors.affiliation: Center for Nanoscience and Nanotechnology, Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia.
authors.forename: Alexandra S
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Angelatos
authors.forename: Benno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Radt
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Caruso
mesh_terms: D002214:Capsules; D016503:Drug Delivery Systems; D004573:Electrolytes / Q000737:chemistry*; D016650:Fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate / Q000737:chemistry; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D007834:Lasers; D008027:Light; D008055:Lipids / Q000737:chemistry; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry*; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence / Q000379:methods; D010539:Permeability; D013055:Spectrophotometry, Infrared
chemical_list: D002214:Capsules; D004573:Electrolytes; D008055:Lipids; D006046:Gold; D016650:Fluorescein-5-isothiocyanate