Stable polymethacrylate nanocapsules from ultraviolet light-induced template radical polymerization of unilamellar liposomes.
We employed UV-induced template polymerization to create hollow nanometer-sized polymer capsules. Homogeneous, unilamellar liposomes served as a two-dimensional template for the cross-linking of either butyl methacrylate or hydroxyethyl methacrylate with the bifunctional ethyleneglycol dimethacrylate. Different molar ratios of lipid/hydrophobic monomer/bifunctional monomer/photoinitiator were tested and dynamic light scattering revealed negligible changes of size at a defined molar ratio of 2/1/10/20, respectively. Cryo-transmission electron microscopy provided clear evidence that incorporation of the methacrylate monomers into and polymerization in the hydrophobic bilayer phase does not disrupt vesicle integrity. Moreover, after solubilization of the lipids, the polymethacrylate nanocapsules were stable at conditions needed for negative staining and could be visualized by atomic force microscopy. In contrast to previous findings, the nanocapsule size and shape did not change considerably after removal of the template phase, and the size distribution remained strictly monomodal. The employed method is not only an advance to fortify liposomes, but the nanocapsules themselves can be functionalized.
Gomes
Joana Filipa Pereira da Silva
JF
Institut de Pharmacologie et Biologie Structurale CNRS UMR5089, Toulouse F-31077, France. j.gomes@iu-bremen.de
Sonnen
Andreas F-P
AF
Kronenberger
Astrid
A
Fritz
Jürgen
J
Coelho
Manuel Alvaro Neto
MA
Fournier
Didier
D
Fournier-Nöel
Clara
C
Mauzac
Monique
M
Winterhalter
Mathias
M
D020285:Cryoelectron Microscopy; D005609:Free Radicals / Q000737:chemistry; D008081:Liposomes / Q000737:chemistry*; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D053769:Nanocapsules / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D011109:Polymethacrylic Acids / Q000737:chemistry*; D014466:Ultraviolet Rays; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry
D005609:Free Radicals; D008081:Liposomes; D053769:Nanocapsules; D011109:Polymethacrylic Acids; D014867:Water; C030613:polymethacrylic acid