2026-04-13T01:50:52Zhttps://recercat.cat/oai/request
oai:recercat.cat:2445/2286242026-04-07T18:55:08Zcom_2072_1057col_2072_478822col_2072_478917
RECERCAT author Spinozzi, Francesco author Moretti, Paolo author Romano Perinelli, Diego author Corucci, Giacomo author Piergiovanni, Paolo author Amenitsch, Heinz author Alfredo Sancin, Giulio author Franzese, Giancarlo author Blasi, Paolo 2026-03-31T08:58:00Z2026-03-31T08:58:00Z2024-02-122026-03-31T08:58:00Z Lipid nanoparticles own a remarkable potential in nanomedicine, only partially disclosed. While the clinical use of liposomes and cationic lipid-nucleic acid complexes is well-established, liquid lipid nanoparticles (nanoemulsions), solid lipid nanoparticles, and nanostructured lipid carriers have even greater possibilities. However, they face obstacles in being used in clinics due to a lack of understanding about the molecular mechanisms controlling their drug loading and release, interactions with the biological environment (such as the protein corona), and shelf-life stability. To create effective drug delivery carriers and successfully translate bench research to clinical settings, it is crucial to have a thorough understanding of the internal structure of lipid nanoparticles. Through synchrotron small-angle X-ray scattering experiments, we determined the spatial distribution and internal structure of the nanoparticles’ lipid, surfactant, and the bound water in them. The nanoparticles themselves have a barrel-like shape that consists of coplanar lipid platelets (specifically cetyl palmitate) that are covered by loosely spaced polysorbate 80 surfactant molecules, whose polar heads retain a large amount of bound water. To reduce the interface cost of bound water with unbound water without stacking, the platelets collapse onto each other. This internal structure challenges the classical core-shell model typically used to describe solid lipid nanoparticles and could play a significant role in drug loading and release, biological fluid interaction, and nanoparticle stability, making our findings valuable for the rational design of lipid-based nanoparticles. cc-by-nc-nd (c) Spinozzi, Francesco, et al., 2024 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess Nanolitografia Lípids Nanomedicina Nanolithography Lipids Nanomedicine Small-angle X-ray scattering unveils the internal structure of lipid nanoparticles. info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion