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Lipid-based nanoparticle

Lipid-based nanoparticle is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Lipid-based nanoparticle rather than just read about it. In short: Lipid-based nanoparticles are very small spherical particles composed of lipids. They are a novel pharmaceutical drug delivery system (part of nanoparticle drug delivery), and a novel pharmaceutical formulation.

Lipid-based nanoparticle — main illustration
Lipid-based nanoparticle — illustration

Key takeaways

  • Lipid-based nanoparticle belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
  • Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
  • Connect Lipid-based nanoparticle to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
  • Reproduce the core statement of Lipid-based nanoparticle from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Lipid-based nanoparticles are very small spherical particles composed of lipids. They are a novel pharmaceutical drug delivery system (part of nanoparticle drug delivery), and a novel pharmaceutical formulation. There are many subclasses of lipid-based nanoparticles such as: lipid nanoparticles (LNPs), solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs), and nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs). Sometimes the term "LNP" describes all lipid-based nanoparticles. In specific applications, LNPs describe a specific type of lipid-based nanoparticle, such as the LNPs used for the mRNA vaccine. Using LNPs for drug delivery was first approved in 2018 for the siRNA drug Onpattro. LNPs became more widely known late in 2020, as some COVID-19 vaccines that use RNA vaccine technology coat the fragile mRNA strands with PEGylated lipid nanoparticles as their delivery vehicle (including both the Moderna and the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccines).

Characteristics A lipid nanoparticle is typically spherical with an average diameter between 10 and 1000 nanometers. LNPs are made up of phospholipids, cholesterols, ionizable lipids, and polyethylene glycol-derived lipids (PEGylated lipids). Each of these components play a key role in LNPs used for mRNA vaccines that target SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19). The ionizable cationic lipids bind to mRNA, PEGylated lipids stabilize LNPs, and phospholipids and cholesterol give LNPs their structure. Because of rapid clearance by the immune system of the positively charged lipid, neutral ionizable amino lipids were developed. A novel squaramide lipid (a partially aromatic four-membered ring that can participate in pi–pi interactions) has been used as part of the delivery system used, for example, by Moderna. Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs) possess a solid lipid core matrix that solubilizes lipophilic molecules. Surfactants (emulsifiers) stabilize the lipid core. The emulsifier used depends on administration routes, and is more limited for parenteral administrations. The term "lipid" refers to a broader class of molecules, and includes triglycerides (e.g. tristearin), diglycerides (e.g. glycerol bahenate), monoglycerides (e.g. glycerol monostearate), fatty acids (e.g. stearic acid), steroids (e.g. cholesterol), and waxes (e.g. cetyl palmitate). All classes of emulsifiers (with respect to charge and molecular weight) have been used to stabilize the lipid dispersion. It has been found that the combination of emulsifiers might prevent particle agglomeration more efficiently. An SLN is generally spherical and consists of a solid lipid core stabilized by a surfactant. The core lipids can be fatty acids, acylglycerols, waxes, and mixtures of these surfactants. Biological membrane lipids, such as phospholipids, sphingomyelins, bile salts (sodium taurocholate), and sterols (cholesterol) are used as stabilizers. Biological lipids having minimum carrier cytotoxicity and the solid state of the lipid permit better controlled drug release due to increased mass transfer resistance.

Nanostructured lipid carriers (NLCs) are lipid-based nanoparticles that contain a mixture of solid and liquid lipids in the central core of the lipid carrier. NLCs are derived from SLNs by injecting liquid lipids into the solid core, resulting in a non-uniform internal core. This modification allows for higher drug capacity and more controlled drug delivery.

Preparation Lipid-based nanoparticles are generally prepared by formulation and self-assembly processes rather than by chemical synthesis of the final particle. Common preparation methods include homogenisation, ultrasonication, solvent emulsification and evaporation, microemulsion-based methods, ethanol injection, and controlled mixing of lipid-containing organic phases with aqueous phases. Microfluidic and other continuous-flow mixing methods are widely used for lipid nanoparticle and lipid-based nanomedicine preparation because they allow controlled mixing, continuous production, high-throughput formulation screening and improved control of particle size, polydispersity and reproducibility. In these methods, formulation composition, solvent conditions, lipid concentration, flow-rate ratio, total flow rate, temperature and downstream processing can strongly affect the final nanoparticle population.

Applications Development of solid lipid nanoparticles is one of the emerging fields of lipid nanotechnology (for a review on lipid nanotechnology, see ) with several potential applications in drug delivery, clinical medicine and research, as well as in other disciplines. Due to their unique size-dependent properties, lipid nanoparticles can possibly develop new therapeutics. The ability to incorporate drugs into nanocarriers offers a new prototype in drug delivery that could hold great promise for attaining bioavailability enhancement along with controlled and site-specific drug delivery. SLNs are also considered to be well tolerated in general, due to their composition from physiologically similar lipids. The conventional approaches such as use of permeation enhancers, surface modification, prodrug synthesis, complex formation and colloidal lipid carrier-based strategies have been developed for the delivery of drugs to intestinal lymphatics. In addition, polymeric nanoparticles, self-emulsifying delivery systems, liposomes, microemulsions, micellar solutions and recently, solid lipid nanoparticles (SLN) have been exploited as probable possibilities as carriers for oral intestinal lymphatic delivery.

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Lipid-based nanoparticle: Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs). There is only one phospholipid layer because the bulk of the interior of the particle is composed of lipophilic substance. Payloads such as modRNA, RNA vaccine or others can be embedded in the interior, as desired. Optionally, targeting-molecules such as antibodies, cell-targeting peptides, and/or other drug molecules can be bound to the exterior surface of the SLN.
Solid lipid nanoparticles (SLNs). There is only one phospholipid layer because the bulk of the interior of the particle is composed of lipophilic substance. Payloads such as modRNA, RNA vaccine or others can be embedded in the interior, as desired. Optionally, targeting-molecules such as antibodies, cell-targeting peptides, and/or other drug molecules can be bound to the exterior surface of the SLN.
Lipid-based nanoparticle: Liposomes are ("hollow") lipid nanoparticles which have a phospholipid bilayer as coat, because the bulk of the interior of the particle is composed of aqueous substance. In various popular uses, the optional payload is e.g. DNA vaccines, Gene therapy, vitamins, antibiotics, cosmetics and many others.
Liposomes are ("hollow") lipid nanoparticles which have a phospholipid bilayer as coat, because the bulk of the interior of the particle is composed of aqueous substance. In various popular uses, the optional payload is e.g. DNA vaccines, Gene therapy, vitamins, antibiotics, cosmetics and many others.
Lipid-based nanoparticle illustration
Lipid-based nanoparticle: Structure of NLCs, SLNs, and LNPs
Structure of NLCs, SLNs, and LNPs

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Lipid-based nanoparticle

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Lipid-based nanoparticle claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Lipid-based nanoparticle before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Lipid-based nanoparticle ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Lipid-based nanoparticle

In research
Lipid-based nanoparticle appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry
Engineering practice reuses Lipid-based nanoparticle in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom
Lipid-based nanoparticle is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Lipids, Nanoparticles by composition, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life
Look for Lipid-based nanoparticle outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Lipid-based nanoparticle in 20 minutes

  1. Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
  2. Close the page and write down what Lipid-based nanoparticle means in your own words.
  3. Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
  4. Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
  5. Explain Lipid-based nanoparticle out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Lipid-based nanoparticle in simple terms?

Lipid-based nanoparticles are very small spherical particles composed of lipids. They are a novel pharmaceutical drug delivery system (part of nanoparticle drug delivery), and a novel pharmaceutical formulation.

Why does Lipid-based nanoparticle matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Lipid-based nanoparticle?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Lipid-based nanoparticle.

Tags

  • Lipids
  • Nanoparticles by composition

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