Self-assembled liposomes from amphiphilic electrospun nanofibers

Amphiphilic nanofibers composed of the hydrophilic polymer polyvinylpyrrolidone K60 (PVP) and soybean lecithin were fabricated using an electrospinning process. As a result of the templating and confinement properties of the nanofibers, phosphatidyl choline (PC) liposomes were spontaneously formed t...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Soft matter 2011-01, Vol.7 (18), p.8239-8247
Main Authors: Yu, Deng-Guang, Branford-White, Christopher, Williams, Gareth R., Bligh, S. W. Annie, White, Kenneth, Zhu, Li-Min, Chatterton, Nicholas P.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biomedical materials
Electrospinning
Liposomes
Nanofibers
Polycarbonates
Polyvinylpyrrolidone
Self assembly
Strategy
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Summary:Amphiphilic nanofibers composed of the hydrophilic polymer polyvinylpyrrolidone K60 (PVP) and soybean lecithin were fabricated using an electrospinning process. As a result of the templating and confinement properties of the nanofibers, phosphatidyl choline (PC) liposomes were spontaneously formed through molecular self-assembly when the fibers were added to water. The sizes of the self-assembled liposomes could be manipulated by varying the content of PC in the nanofibers (over the range 9.1-33.3% (w/w) in the present study). The influence of PC on nanofiber formation, and a possible mechanism of templated liposome formation are discussed. This facile and convenient strategy for manipulating molecular self-assembly to synthesize liposomes provides a versatile new approach for the development of novel drug delivery systems and biomaterials.
ISSN:1744-683X
1744-6848
DOI:10.1039/c1sm05961k