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Lipid Carriers in Drug Delivery

A special issue of Molecules (ISSN 1420-3049). This special issue belongs to the section "Macromolecular Chemistry".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2024) | Viewed by 2693

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Department of Pharmacy-Drug Sciences, University of Bari “Aldo Moro”, 70125 Bari, Italy
Interests: polymers; high molecular weight lipids; micro- and nano-carriers
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Lipid carriers are interesting drug delivery systems since they are able to encapsulate a large variety of drugs and modulate their drug release kinetics. Due to their size, biocompatibility, and safety, they can be administered via different routes, including the oral, parenteral, topical, pulmonary, nasal, and ophthalmic ones. Remarkably, these lipid carriers are able to enhance solubility, absorption, and, consequently, the bioavailability of poorly soluble active drugs, meaning that they represent an important delivery option for this class of drugs. Different types of delivery systems, including liposomes, solid lipid nanoparticles, nanostructured lipid carriers, lipid–polymer hybrid nanoparticles, and lipoplexes, can be formulated depending on the lipid/excipient selected and the preparative method used.

We are pleased to invite you to contribute to the Special Issue entitled “Lipid Carriers in Drug Delivery", which aims to discuss the recent advances concerning the administration of drugs, both natural and synthetic active drugs, via the use of lipid-based carriers. Hence, in this context, this Special Issue will hopefully act as a forum for the presentation of rigorous research studies, reviews, and communications relevant to all the aspects of the vectorization of selected active substances, including the preparation, properties, and applications of lipid-based carriers.

In this Special Issue, emphasis will be placed on different lipid-based carrier systems, particularly those in nanostructured forms, and the advantages they offer, including improved solubility, absorption, and bioavailability. In particular, we wish to foster collaboration between researchers involved in the manufacturing of different carrier systems, with a view to upscaling their feasibility. Therefore, original research articles and reviews on gene delivery using charged lipids and the delivery of herbal actives and nutraceuticals are welcome, as well as scientific papers on commercial products based on the lipid technology and recent patents in this area.

Concerning the endpoints of the obtained drug delivery carriers, diagnosis, prevention, or therapeutic purposes need to be cohesive in order to yield significant effects in terms of human or veterinary health. Finally, the role of the well-characterized lipid vehicles must be a major part of submitted works, not a peripheral topic.

This Special Issue is structured around the following focal points:

  1. The design and formulation of lipid-based drug carriers: This theme emphasizes the design, formulation, and engineering of lipid-based drug carriers, encompassing liposomes, lipid nanoparticles, micelles, and more. It explores their structural and physicochemical properties.
  2. Targeted and controlled drug delivery: This Special Issue will investigate the utilization of lipid carriers for site-specific and controlled drug release, contributing to enhanced therapeutic outcomes.
  3. Lipid carriers in nanomedicine: We will explore the interdisciplinary field of nanomedicine, where lipid-based drug carriers have revolutionized drug delivery in various medicinal applications, including cancer therapy and diagnostics.
  4. Innovations in lipid carrier synthesis and characterization: This topic spotlights innovations in the synthesis of lipid carriers and advanced characterization techniques, ensuring their reliability and scalability.

The formation of this Special Issue provides a comprehensive platform for researchers, pharmacologists, and pharmaceutical scientists to share their latest findings and innovations regarding the field of lipid-based drug carriers. We anticipate contributions that shed light on the vital role of these carriers in optimizing drug delivery, reducing side effects, and revolutionizing the landscape of pharmaceuticals.

Dr. Adriana Trapani
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Molecules is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • lipid carriers
  • solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs)
  • nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs)
  • liposomes
  • gene delivery
  • cancer therapy
  • diagnostics

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Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

14 pages, 2472 KiB  
Article
Manganese-Loaded Liposomes: An In Vitro Study for Possible Diagnostic Application
by Maddalena Sguizzato, Petra Martini, Francesca Ferrara, Lorenza Marvelli, Markus Drechsler, Giovanni Reale, Francesca Calderoni, Federica Illuminati, Francesca Porto, Giorgia Speltri, Licia Uccelli, Melchiore Giganti, Alessandra Boschi and Rita Cortesi
Molecules 2024, 29(14), 3407; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules29143407 - 20 Jul 2024
Viewed by 872
Abstract
The present study investigates the possible use of manganese (Mn)-based liposomal formulations for diagnostic applications in imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), with the aim of overcoming the toxicity limitations associated with the use of free Mn2+. Specifically, anionic [...] Read more.
The present study investigates the possible use of manganese (Mn)-based liposomal formulations for diagnostic applications in imaging techniques such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), with the aim of overcoming the toxicity limitations associated with the use of free Mn2+. Specifically, anionic liposomes carrying two model Mn(II)-based compounds, MnCl2 (MC) and Mn(HMTA) (MH), were prepared and characterised in terms of morphology, size, loading capacity, and in vitro activity. Homogeneous dispersions characterised mainly by unilamellar vesicles were obtained; furthermore, no differences in size and morphology were detected between unloaded and Mn-loaded vesicles. The encapsulation efficiency of MC and MH was evaluated on extruded liposomes by means of ICP-OES analysis. The obtained results showed that both MC and MH are almost completely retained by the lipid portion of liposomes (LPs), with encapsulation efficiencies of 99.7% for MC and 98.8% for MH. The magnetic imaging properties of the produced liposomal formulations were investigated for application in a potential preclinical scenario by collecting magnetic resonance images of a phantom designed to compare the paramagnetic contrast properties of free MC and MH compounds and the corresponding manganese-containing liposome dispersions. It was found that both LP-MC and LP-MH at low concentrations (0.5 mM) show better contrast (contrast-to-noise ratios of 194 and 209, respectively) than solutions containing free Mn at the same concentrations (117 and 134, respectively) and are safe to use on human cells at the selected dose. Taken together, the results of this comparative analysis suggest that these liposome-containing Mn compounds might be suitable for diagnostic purposes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lipid Carriers in Drug Delivery)
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17 pages, 6320 KiB  
Article
Dopamine- and Grape-Seed-Extract-Loaded Solid Lipid Nanoparticles: Interaction Studies between Particles and Differentiated SH-SY5Y Neuronal Cell Model of Parkinson’s Disease
by Rosanna Mallamaci, Debora Musarò, Marco Greco, Antonello Caponio, Stefano Castellani, Anas Munir, Lorenzo Guerra, Marina Damato, Giuseppe Fracchiolla, Chiara Coppola, Rosa Angela Cardone, Mehdi Rashidi, Roberta Tardugno, Sara Sergio, Adriana Trapani and Michele Maffia
Molecules 2024, 29(8), 1774; https://doi.org/10.3390/molecules29081774 - 13 Apr 2024
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Abstract
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a prevalent neurodegenerative disorder, primarily associated with dopaminergic neuron depletion in the Substantia Nigra. Current treatment focuses on compensating for dopamine (DA) deficiency, but the blood–brain barrier (BBB) poses challenges for effective drug delivery. Using differentiated SH-SY5Y cells, we [...] Read more.
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a prevalent neurodegenerative disorder, primarily associated with dopaminergic neuron depletion in the Substantia Nigra. Current treatment focuses on compensating for dopamine (DA) deficiency, but the blood–brain barrier (BBB) poses challenges for effective drug delivery. Using differentiated SH-SY5Y cells, we investigated the co-administration of DA and the antioxidant Grape Seed Extract (GSE) to study the cytobiocompability, the cytoprotection against the neurotoxin Rotenone, and their antioxidant effects. For this purpose, two solid lipid nanoparticle (SLN) formulations, DA-co-GSE-SLNs and GSE-ads-DA-SLNs, were synthesized. Such SLNs showed mean particle sizes in the range of 187–297 nm, zeta potential values in the range of −4.1–−9.7 mV, and DA association efficiencies ranging from 35 to 82%, according to the formulation examined. The results showed that DA/GSE-SLNs did not alter cell viability and had a cytoprotective effect against Rotenone-induced toxicity and oxidative stress. In addition, this study also focused on the evaluation of Alpha-synuclein (aS) levels; SLNs showed the potential to modulate the Rotenone-mediated increase in aS levels. In conclusion, our study investigated the potential of SLNs as a delivery system for addressing PD, also representing a promising approach for enhanced delivery of pharmaceutical and antioxidant molecules across the BBB. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Lipid Carriers in Drug Delivery)
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