Characterisation of Hybrid Lipid-Polymer Nanoparticles

Hybrid lipid-polymer nanoparticles have demonstrated potential as drug delivery vehicles. The current proposal aims to use small angle neutron scattering (SANS) in combination with contrast variation to determine the detailed molecular structure of the drug-containing hybrid lipid-polymer nanoparticles, as well as their component lipid vesicles and polymeric nanoparticles. SANS coupled with contrast variation will allow us to establish precisely how much lipid is required to reproducibly and reliably coat the various sized polymeric NPs without using so much lipid so that excess vesicles are present. The information gained from SANS will be important in optimising the hybrid lipid-polymer formulations.

杂化脂质-聚合物纳米颗粒（hybrid lipid-polymer nanoparticles）已展现出作为药物递送载体的应用潜力。本研究拟采用小角中子散射（small angle neutron scattering, SANS）结合衬度变化法（contrast variation），解析载药杂化脂质-聚合物纳米颗粒及其组成脂质囊泡与聚合物纳米颗粒（polymeric nanoparticles, NPs）的精细分子结构。通过联用小角中子散射与衬度变化法，我们可精准确定包覆不同尺寸聚合物纳米颗粒所需的脂质用量，确保包覆过程可重复且稳定，同时避免因脂质用量过高而产生多余脂质囊泡。通过小角中子散射获取的研究数据，将对优化杂化脂质-聚合物纳米颗粒制剂配方具有重要指导意义。