Advances in the Design of pH-Sensitive Cubosome Liquid Crystalline Nanocarriers for Drug Delivery Applications

• Main Authors: Omar Mertins, Patrick D. Mathews, Angelina Angelova
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2020-05-01
• Series: Nanomaterials
• Subjects: pH-sensitive mesophase lipid structures; cubosomes with pH-responsive polymer shells; self-assembled lyotropic liquid crystalline nanoparticles; nonlamellar lipids; phase transitions; drug delivery vehicles
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/10/5/963

Nanostructure bicontinuous cubic phase self-assembled materials are receiving expanding applications as biocompatible delivery systems in various therapeutic fields. The functionalization of cubosome, spongosome, hexosome and liposome nanocarriers by pH-sensitive lipids and/or pH-sensitive polymer shells offers new opportunities for oral and topical drug delivery towards a new generation of cancer therapies. The electrochemical behavior of drug compounds may favor pH-triggered drug release as well. Here, we highlight recent investigations, which explore the phase behavior of mixed nonlamellar lipid/fatty acid or phospholipid systems for the design of pH-responsive and mucoadhesive drug delivery systems with sustained-release properties. X-ray diffraction and small-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS) techniques are widely used in the development of innovative delivery assemblies through detailed structural analyses of multiple amphiphilic compositions from the lipid/co-lipid/water phase diagrams. pH-responsive nanoscale materials and nanoparticles are required for challenging therapeutic applications such as oral delivery of therapeutic proteins and peptides as well as of poorly water-soluble substances. Perspective nanomedicine developments with smart cubosome nanocarriers may exploit compositions elaborated to overcome the intestinal obstacles, dual-drug loaded pH-sensitive liquid crystalline architectures aiming at enhanced therapeutic efficacy, as well as composite (lipid/polyelectrolyte) types of mucoadhesive controlled release colloidal cubosomal formulations for the improvement of the drugs’ bioavailability.