Unilamellar vesicle formation and encapsulation by microfluidic jetting

Compartmentalization of biomolecules within lipid membranes is a fundamental requirement of living systems and an essential feature of many pharmaceutical therapies. However, applications of membrane-enclosed solutions of proteins, DNA, and other biologically active compounds have been limited by th...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS 2008-03, Vol.105 (12), p.4697-4702
Main Authors: Stachowiak, Jeanne C, Richmond, David L, Li, Thomas H, Liu, Allen P, Parekh, Sapun H, Fletcher, Daniel A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological Sciences
Biological Transport
Biomechanical Phenomena
Deoxyribonucleic acid
DNA
Encapsulation
Fluid jets
Lipid bilayers
Lipids
Liposomes
Membranes
Microfluidics - methods
Molecular biology
Molecules
Nozzles
P branes
Porosity
Proteins - metabolism
Solutes
Unilamellar liposomes
Unilamellar Liposomes - metabolism
Vortex rings
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Summary:Compartmentalization of biomolecules within lipid membranes is a fundamental requirement of living systems and an essential feature of many pharmaceutical therapies. However, applications of membrane-enclosed solutions of proteins, DNA, and other biologically active compounds have been limited by the difficulty of forming unilamellar vesicles with controlled contents in a repeatable manner. Here, we demonstrate a method for simultaneously creating and loading giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs) using a pulsed microfluidic jet. Akin to blowing a bubble, the microfluidic jet deforms a planar lipid bilayer into a vesicle that is filled with solution from the jet and separates from the planar bilayer. In contrast with existing techniques, our method rapidly generates multiple monodisperse, unilamellar vesicles containing solutions of unrestricted composition and molecular weight. Using the microfluidic jetting technique, we demonstrate repeatable encapsulation of 500-nm particles into GUVs and show that functional pore proteins can be incorporated into the vesicle membrane to mediate transport. The ability of microfluidic jetting to controllably encapsulate solutions inside of GUVs creates new opportunities for the study and use of compartmentalized biomolecular systems in science, industry, and medicine.
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.0710875105