Papahadjopoulos-Sternberg B.
NanoAnalytical Laboratory, US
Keywords: drug/gene delivery, freeze-fracture elecron microscopy, nano/microstructures
The potency of drug/gene-loaded nanoparticles is frequently depending upon their morphology adopted in a biological relevant environment. Freeze-fracture electron microscopy (ff-em) is a powerful techniques to monitor the self-assembling of lipid-, polymer-, as well as protein/peptide-based drug and gene carries on a nano-size resolution scale (resolution limit in our hands is 2 nm for periodical structures). Ff-em allows not only the characterization of nano- and micoparticles suitable for drug/gene delivery but also is the method of choice to study their fate related to drug/gene load, application milieu, and during interaction with cells [1-3]. Furthermore it allows distinguishing between bilayer and non-bilayer structures [4-7]. Using ff-em we studied the morphology of a wide variety of nano- and microparticles suitable for drug and gene delivery such as quantum dots, micelles, including spherical-, disc-, and worm-type micelles, small unilamellar liposomes, multilamellar liposomes, niosomes, lipid-stabilized gas bubbles, cochleate cylinder, depofoam particles, and drug crystals[1-3, 8-13]. Because of their small size, nanoparticles such as spherical micelles (
Journal: TechConnect Briefs
Volume: 2, Technical Proceedings of the 2007 NSTI Nanotechnology Conference and Trade Show, Volume 2
Published: May 20, 2007
Pages: 333 - 334
Industry sectors: Advanced Materials & Manufacturing | Medical & Biotech
Topics: Biomaterials, Materials Characterization & Imaging
ISBN: 1-4200-6183-6