Low-molecular-weight heparin-conjugated liposomes with improved stability and hemocompatibility

Multilamellar vesicles (MLV) containing phosphatidyl choline (PC), cholesterol (CHOL), and stearylamine (SA) in the molar ratio of 7:2:0.2 were prepared by the thin film hydration method. Low-molecular-weight heparin (LMWH, MW: 3000) was conjugated with the MLV using carbodiimide (EDC). Infrared, Raman, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectra and DSC of each sample (MLV, LMWH, and MLV-LMWH) were obtained, enabling the authors to determine the chemical changes that occurred in the MLV structure at the end of the conjugation step. In addition, the changes in the chemical structures of the conjugated samples were revealed by the use of elemental analysis. Particle size analysis was used to determine the difference between the sizes of MLV and MLV-LMWH. In order to study the effect of LMWH on the behavior of MLV-LMWH in blood, osmotic fragility (in saline and plasma), hemolytic activity, and plasma recalcification time tests were carried out. These tests showed that it was possible to construct liposomes that would not induce reactions in the blood and would have potentially longer half-lives in the circulation.