Interactions of lipid-based liquid crystalline nanoparticles with model and cell membranes

Lipid-based liquid crystalline nanoparticles (LCNPs) are interesting candidates for drug delivery applications, for instance as solubilizing or encapsulating carriers for intravenous (i.v.) drugs. Here it is important that the carriers are safe and tolerable and do not have, e.g. hemolytic activity. In the present study we have studied LCNP particles of different compositions with respect to their mixing behavior and membrane destabilizing effects in model and cell membrane systems. Different types of non-lamellar LCNPs were studied including cubic phase nanoparticles (Cubosome) based on glycerol monooleate (GMO), hexagonal phase nanoparticles (Hexosome) based on diglycerol monooleate (DGMO) and glycerol dioleate (GDO), sponge phase nanoparticles based on DGMO/GDO/polysorbate 80 (P80) and non-lamellar nanoparticles based on soy phosphatidylcholine (SPC)/GDO. Importantly, the LCNPs based on the long-chain monoacyl lipid, GMO, were shown to display a very fast and complete lipid mixing with model membranes composed of multilamellar SPC liposomes as assessed by a fluorescence energy transfer (FRET) assay. The result correlated well with pronounced hemolytic properties observed when the GMO-based LCNPs were mixed with rat whole blood. In sharp contrast, LCNPs based on mixtures of the long-chain diacyl lipids, SPC and GDO, were found to be practically inert towards both hemolysis in rat whole blood as well as lipid mixing with SPC model membranes. The LCNP dispersions based on a mixture of long-chain monoacyl and diacyl lipids, DGMO/GDO, displayed an intermediate behavior compared to the GMO and SPC/GDO-based systems with respect to both hemolysis and lipid mixing. It is concluded that GMO-based LCNPs are unsuitable for parenteral drug delivery applications (e.g. i.v. administration) while the SPC/GDO-based LCNPs exhibit good properties with limited lipid mixing and hemolytic activity. The correlation between results from lipid mixing or FRET experiments and the in vitro hemolysis data indicates that FRET assays can be one useful screening tool for parenteral drug delivery systems. It is argued that the hemolytic potential is correlated with chemical activity of the monomers in the mixtures.