Insight into theranostic nanovesicles prepared by thin lipid hydration and microfluidic method

Liposomes are phospholipid-based self-assembled nanoparticles. Various components can be solubilized in the lipid bilayer, encapsulated aqueous core or attached to surface, making liposomes attractive platforms for multimodality functionalization. Here we describe theranostic delivering a magnetic resonance contrast agent (lipid derivative of gadopentetic acid) and hydrophobic photosensitizer (zinc phthalocyanine, ZnPc) photodynamic therapy cancer. For first time, this system was prepared by microfluidic method. Analogous formulations were produced thin film hydration (TLH) with down-sizing performed extrusion comparison purposes. We demonstrated double loading capacity ZnPc into made microfluidics compared TLH/extrusion. Microfluidics resulted nanoliposomes characterized sizes =2.5x smaller than vesicles Increased relaxivity observed manufactured TLH, despite slightly lower Gd chelate recovery. attributed improved relaxation increased surface area/volume ratio decreased phosphatidylcholine/ZnPc molar ratio, which affected water molecules' diffusion through liposomal membrane. Finally, showed efficacy loaded head neck cancer model, resulting IC50 0.22 – 0.61 μM, depending on formulation cell line used. demonstrate microfluidics' feasibility used liposome manufacturing co-entrapment therapeutic imaging single-step process high yield.