Nanostructured bicontinuous cubic lipid self-assembly materials as matrices for protein encapsulation

Abstract

We review the use of bicontinuous cubic amphiphile self-assembly materials for protein encapsulation. The unique amphiphilic nature of bicontinuous cubic lipidic phases make them an ideal medium for the encapsulation of soluble, peripheral, and integral membrane proteins. Current and prospective applications for such systems include drug delivery, membrane protein crystallisation, biosensors and biofuel cells. We focus on the impact of the incorporated protein on the structure of the cubic phase, which has a knock-on effect on performance for many end-applications. Charlotte E. Conn was born in N. Ireland in 1979. Aer undergraduate study (Natural Sciences) at the University of Cambridge (B.A., M.Sci., 2002), she earned her PhD in 2007 from Imperial College London for research in biophysical chemistry. She joined CSIRO, Australia in 2006 as a postdoctoral research fellow and is currently a Research Scientist with CSIRO. Her research interests focus on the design and structural characterization of new lipidic materials, and the application of these materials in membrane protein crystallization, drug delivery, and as MRI contrast agents. Calum J. Drummond received a PhD in physical chemistry from The University of Melbourne in 1987. He is currently the CSIRO Group Executive responsible for Manufacturing, Materials and Minerals. Prior to this appointment he was the recipient of an Australian Research Council Federation Fellowship and Chief of the CSIRO Division of Materials Science and Engineering. He has also been Vice President Research at CAP-XX, initially an Intel portfolio company, that develops electrical double layer capacitors for consumer electronic products. His research interests are in the area of colloid and surface science including applications of amphiphile self-assembly materials.

Steric Stabilizers for Cubic Phase Lyotropic Liquid Crystal Nanodispersions (Cubosomes)

“…The cryo-FESEM images display the 3D particle morphology of cubosomes and are adapted from Rizwan et al [36]. Recent reviews by Rizwan et al [104] and Conn and Drummond [33] have collected examples where lyotropic liquid crystalline nanostructured particles accommodate biologically active molecules such as vitamins, enzymes, and other proteins, as well as crystallizing membrane proteins, which have important application for membrane protein crystallization, biosensors, biofuel applications, as well as in drug delivery. Owing to the highsurface area of the internal mesophase structure (up to 400 m 2 /g) [105], the cubic phase can be used to incorporate these biologically active molecules (e.g., globular proteins), which have similar dimensions to the water channels in the bicontinuous cubic phases [89].…”

“…These materials include anionic and cationic "soaps," zwitterionic and nonionic surfactants, and amphiphilic lipids of biological origin, such as monoglycerides, sphingolipids, and phospholipids, and also galactolipids, glycolipids, and tetra ether lipids [30]. Since then reviews have reported that inverse bicontinuous cubic phases have been observed for many different types of lipids, including monoacylglycerides, glycolipids, urea, and urea-like amphiphiles and monoethanolamides [31][32][33]. The amphiphilic lipids most commonly used in lipid lyotropic liquid crystal research have been glyceryl monooleate (GMO), a food emulsifier, and phytantriol, a cosmetic ingredient (Fig.…”

Effect of Lipid-Based Nanostructure on Protein Encapsulation within the Membrane Bilayer Mimetic Lipidic Cubic Phase Using Transmembrane and Lipo-proteins from the Beta-Barrel Assembly Machinery

“…6,7 The flexible cubic phase nanostructure can also accommodate soluble and peripheral proteins with a range of molecular weights. 8,9 The applications of encapsulated proteins in cubic phases include the in meso crystallization of membrane proteins, 10 as well as use as biosensors 11 The nanostructure of cubic phases can be significantly impacted by the incorporation of amphiphilic proteins and peptides, and can induce phase transitions to non-cubic phases. 8 The retention of the cubic phase is essential, however, for current and prospective applications of such systems.…”

Uptake of the butyrate receptors, GPR41 and GPR43, in lipidic bicontinuous cubic phases suitable for in meso crystallization

“…The technique exploits the amphiphilic nature of the lyotropic liquid crystalline bicontinuous cubic mesophase for protein encapsulation and stabilization [2] during the crystal growth process. Bicontinuous cubic phases ( Fig.…”