Mapping Fusogenicity of Ciprofloxacin-Loaded Liposomes with Bacterial Cells

Area of Science:

• Pharmaceutical Sciences
• Drug Delivery
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Liposome fusion with cellular membranes is crucial for intracellular drug delivery, especially for poorly permeable drugs.
• Ciprofloxacin (CIP), a broad-spectrum antibiotic, exhibits poor permeability, limiting its intracellular therapeutic potential.
• Developing effective delivery systems is essential to overcome permeability barriers for antibiotics like CIP.

Purpose of the Study:

• To prepare and optimize ciprofloxacin-loaded liposomes using a solvent evaporation method and a 3^2 factorial design.
• To characterize the optimized liposomes for physical, chemical, and biological properties.
• To investigate the fusogenicity of CIP-loaded liposomes with bacterial cells and study the kinetics of this process.

Main Methods:

• Liposomes loaded with ciprofloxacin (CIP) were prepared via solvent evaporation and optimized using a 3^2 factorial design.
• Characterization included size, entrapment efficiency, zeta potential, FTIR, and microbial susceptibility testing against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli.
• Confocal microscopy and Small-Angle X-ray Scattering (SAXS) were employed to study liposome-cell fusion kinetics.

Main Results:

• Optimized CIP-loaded liposomes were successfully prepared and characterized.
• Liposomes demonstrated susceptibility against both S. aureus and E. coli.
• The fusion rate of CIP-loaded liposomes with the S. aureus cell wall was found to be twice that with the E. coli cell wall.

Conclusions:

• The study successfully developed and optimized ciprofloxacin-loaded liposomes for enhanced drug delivery.
• Liposome fusogenicity with bacterial cell walls varies, with a notably faster rate observed for S. aureus compared to E. coli.
• This research provides a foundation for designing liposomal formulations that enhance the delivery and efficacy of poorly permeable drugs.