This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will test the feasibility of new drug delivery applications arising from Advanced Encapsulation's patented method of lipid membrane encapsulation. This passive method has demonstrated the ability to encapsulate nearly any object of colloidal dimensions at relatively high yield under gentle conditions. Specifically, no other technique has been reported which encapsulates interior vesicles intact and having a composition distinct from the outer membrane. Cationic vesicles and iron oxide nanoparticles are all known to have poor compatibility with blood environments resulting in rapid aggregation and/or clearance. However, these materials have shown great promise in vitro for various biomedical applications including medical imaging, controlled release, and localized delivery via magnetic fields. This project will test the encapsulation and separation efficiency as well as the stability of these materials in bovine serum and/or plasma. Based on the successes of liposomes in intravenous drug delivery, and on the physics of macromolecular interactions, liposomal encapsulation should engender biocompatibility to both classes of materials in question. The commercial applications of this project are in the area of pharmaceutical drug delivery.
