Lipid liquid crystalline sponge phase as matrices for enzyme encapsulation

Lipid liquid crystalline sponge phase (L3) has so far not been very much considered in the context of matrixes for biofunctional molecules like enzymes.

However, they have distinct advantages in terms of their capacity to form large aqueous pores able to encapsulate large bioactive molecules.

They are also flexible than other reversed mesophases, the sponge phase can be dispersed into colloidal stable particles as aqueous dispersions, in which entrapped active substances are protected from degradation at same time as their release can be controlled. The proposed project has two main objectives:Utilize the lipid sponge phases to entrap functional biomolecules.

The project will fully exploit and extend previous work on sponge phases both as liquid crystallin bulk phases and as dispersed liquid crystalline nanoparticles.Reveal the effect of lipid sponge phases confinement at interfaces.

The purpose is to design responsive and biofunctional lipid-based surface films.We expect to increased knowledge on how to tune the structure and dynamics of the lipid sponge phases to control enzyme/protein entrapment, release and activity both from bulk dispersions an as interfacial films. For the flexible sponge phases, revealing the dynamic footprint is as important as knowledge about the structure.

Fundamental insight on simple model system is expected to increase our understanding of more complex biological system, like the mitochondria.