Multicompartment Lipid Nanocarriers for Targeting of Cells Expressing Brain Receptors - Self-Assembled Supramolecular Architectures: Lyotropic Liquid Crystals - page 325

(c)

(a)

(b)

Figure 11.3 Cryo-TEM images of cubic-phase liquid crystalline particles, cubosomes,
in (a) MO/OA (70/30 mol/mol) dispersion [adapted from Ferreira et al. (2006)] and in
(b) MO/Poloxamer 407 (92/8 wt/wt) dispersion [adapted from Spicer and Hayden,
(2001)]. The cubosomes appear to coexist with (a) particles with transient structures
or with (b) vesicles. (c) Cubosome particle with a diamond-type internal cubic structure.
The cross sections of the particle show a network of aqueous nanochannels [adapted
from Angelova et al. (2005b) ].

A number of molecules have been incorporated in nanostructured cubic-
phase carriers (Angelova et al., 2011a) and tested for intravenous, nasal, and
intragastric administration (e.g., insulin, somatostatin, and cyclosporine)
(Drummond and Fong, 1999). The liquid crystalline phase has been found to
enhance the stability of encapsulated active molecules such as enzymes or
coenzymes (Larsson, 2000; Nylander et al. 1996). However, the solubilized
guest molecules can modify the internal cubic lattice structure of the cubo-
somes. A new category of particles, “proteocubosomes,” obtained by entrap-
ment of proteins in lipid cubic lattice networks, has been established (Angelova
et al., 2005b, 2011a). The proteocubosomes appeared to be built up by the