Preparation and characterization of cationic lipid nanobubbles as ultrasound contrast agents
Objective To explore a more stable and efficient gene carrier tool by preparing cationic lipid nanobubbles as ultrasound contrast agents and to compare the preparation effects of homemade cationic lipid nanobubbles with those of ordinary lipid microbubbles.Methods Cationic lipid nanobubbles were prepared u-sing distearoylphosphatidylcholine(DSPC)/distearoylphosphatidylethanolamine-polyethylene glycol(DSPE-PEG2000)/DC-cholesterol(DC-Chol)at a molar ratio of 9:0.5:1.Simple microbubbles,namely,core nanobubbles,were used as controls.The general physicochemical properties and stability of the nanobubbles in each group were measured,including particle size,surface potential,polydispersity index(PDI),etc.The mor-phology of the nanobubbles in each group was observed using an inverted microscope and an electron micro-scope,and their contrast effects in vitro were observed using an agarose gel model.Results The prepared cat-ionic lipid nanobubbles had an average particle size of(564.35±25.93)nm,an average surface charge of(17.6±2.1)mV,a PDI of 0.30±0.16,and a concentration of(4.27±0.31)×108.The core nanobubbles had an average particle size of(582.55±16.30)nm,an average surface charge of(-7.9±1.6)mV,a PDI of 0.37±0.15,and a concentration of(4.24±0.30)×108.There was a statistically significant difference in surface charge between the two groups(P＜0.05).Both groups maintained good stability within 2 hours of continu-ous measurement and showed good contrast effects in vitro.Conclusion The homemade cationic lipid nanobubbles have high positive charges while maintaining good stability and contrast effects in vitro.This method is expected to be promoted and applied and provides a reference for ligand loading,potentially becom-ing an efficient and novel contrast agent.
Ultrasound microbubblesContrast agentsCationicNanoscalePreparationCharacterization study
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维普
