Cubosomes Formation by Novel Process

Cubosomes Formation by Novel Process

Author Name : Dr M. Sunitha Reddy, G. Simran

ABSTRACT

A novel process for producing cubic liquid crystalline nanoparticles  (cubosomes) has been developed. The process includes simple mixing of two water like solutions with a minimal input of energy. The key to this is the inclusion of hydrotrope. Most lipids such as monoolein used to form cubic liquid crystals  are essentially insoluble in water. Cubosomes are the square and rounded particles with internal cubic lattices visible. Cubosomes are thermodynamically stable; they have a structure like honeycombed with bicontinuous domains of water and lipid in which surfactant assembles into bilayers and twisted into a three dimensional periodic, and minimal surface forming a tightly packed structure. The hydrotrope present dissolves the lipid to create a water like solution. Water is added to the hydrotrope solution resulting in a precipitous decrease in lipid solubility. Provided that  the dilution trajectory falls into a liquid cubic phase. This process  is versatile enough to accommodate any lipid and hydrotope combination that forms a cubic liquid crystalline material upon dilution. This process replaces current processes that require long hold times processing of solid like material and very high energy inputs to create cubosome nanoparticle dispersions. This process produces smaller ,more stable cubosomes than by conventional bulk dispersion techniques.

Keywords: Cubosomes, cubic liquid crystalline, hydrotrope, dilution.