Eudragit E100 surface activity and lipid interactions

Eudragit E100 (E100) is a cationic methacrylate polymer that interacts with viral and cell membranes. We studied the effect of pH, ionic strength and the presence of lipid monolayers on the surface activity of the polymer. E100 forms stable monolayers at the air-water interface, either by spreading or when added into the subphase. This behavior is highly influenced by the pH and saline concentration of the subphase. At pH 5 or higher, the adsorption of the polymer to the air-water interface begins immediately after its injection into the subphase, while at pH below 5 E100 remains in the subphase with a particularly slow adsorption to the interface. In addition, low ionic strength (10 mM) in the subphase results in a fast adsorption of the polymer to the interface, even at pH under 5. On the other hand, in the presence of non-ionic (cholesterol) or anionic (monosialoganglioside) lipid monolayers, E100 shows a fast adsorption to the interface, [comma] reaching surface pressures of 25 and 36 mN m(-1), respectively. However, E100 barely interacts with monolayers of a zwitterionic lipid (hydrogenated soy lecithin) with a cut-off pressure of 11 mN m(-1). The interaction of E100 with GM1 micelles in the subphase reduces its surface activity. Altogether these results show that E100 can effectively penetrate into model membranes and that its amphipathic character is largely dependent on the chemical composition of the aqueous environment and the lipid composition of the membrane.