Liposomal carrier systems for encapsulation of vitamins using bicellar mixture

• Main Author: Lim, May Zhi Qing
• Other Authors: Cho Nam-Joon
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: Nanyang Technological University 2024
• Subjects: Engineering; Liposomes; Bicelles
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/176197
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Vitamins are important to us as they can affect various physiological functions in our body. However, vitamin deficiency is still an ongoing problem in the world, and it can lead to the increase of multiple diseases. Although there are efforts made to encourage a healthy diet, achieving the optimal intake of different vitamins is still difficult due to factors such as limited access to food with those necessary vitamins, restrictions and preferences in the diet, as well as poor absorption from the cells of our body. As a result, there is a growing need for approaches to enhance the stability, bioavailability, and better delivery of vitamins within the human body. There are many potential methods to encapsulate the vitamins and each of them have its own advantages and limitations. Liposomal carrier systems are one of them. This study focuses on exploring the potential of bicellar mixtures as an approach to encapsulate the vitamins within the liposomes. Bicellar mixtures, made up of long-chain and short-chain phospholipids, are investigated together with freeze-thaw-vortex cycles to optimize the encapsulation efficiency. The experiment evaluates the effectiveness of bicellar mixtures in encapsulating both hydrophobic and hydrophilic vitamins. Namely vitamin E and vitamin B3 respectively. Parameters such as phospholipid concentrations and q-ratios are also varied to assess their impact on the encapsulation efficiency and vesicle characteristics. Characterization techniques such as size analysis, polydispersity index measurement, and stability testing are then carried out to evaluate the performance of the liposomal carrier systems. The study is motivated by the need to overcome limitations in the existing vitamin encapsulation technologies, particularly in terms of stability and bioavailability. Making use of the unique properties of bicellar mixtures and freeze-thaw-vortex cycles, this research aims to provide insights into the development of liposomal carrier systems for vitamin encapsulation. The results from this study have the potential to contribute to the advancement of vitamin delivery systems by addressing current challenges which paves the way for more effective and sustainable approaches in the future.