Formation of nanocarrier systems by dense gas processing.

Area of Science:

• Nanotechnology
• Materials Science
• Pharmaceutical Sciences

Background:

• Nanocarrier systems (liposomes, polymersomes, micelles) are crucial for pharmaceutical delivery, enhancing bioavailability and reducing toxicity.
• Conventional methods for nanocarrier production often result in high residual solvent levels.
• Targeted drug delivery relies on effective and safe nanocarrier formulations.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and evaluate a novel dense gas technique, depressurization of an expanded solution into aqueous media (DESAM), for nanocarrier production.
• To investigate the influence of dense gases and operating temperatures on nanocarrier formation using DESAM.
• To assess the encapsulation efficiency of hydrophilic compounds and residual solvent content in DESAM-produced nanocarriers.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the depressurization of an expanded solution into aqueous media (DESAM) technique.
• Employed various dense gases and controlled operating temperatures during the DESAM process.
• Investigated the encapsulation of hydrophilic compounds within liposomes and polymersomes.

Main Results:

• Successfully produced various nanocarrier systems, including liposomes and polymersomes, using the DESAM technique.
• Achieved high encapsulation efficiencies of 10.2% for liposomes and 9.7% for polymersomes.
• Demonstrated significantly reduced residual solvent content (2.2% v/v) compared to conventional methods.

Conclusions:

• The DESAM process is a viable and efficient method for producing nanocarrier systems for pharmaceutical applications.
• DESAM offers advantages in terms of encapsulation efficiency and reduced residual solvent levels.
• This technique holds promise for improving the safety and efficacy of nanocarrier-based drug delivery systems.