Advances and challenges in liposome digestion: Surface interaction, biological fate, and GIT modeling

doi:10.1016/j.cis.2018.11.007

Advances in Colloid and Interface Science

Volume 263, January 2019, Pages 52-67

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cis.2018.11.007 Get rights and content

Highlights

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Liposomes interact with encapsulated biomolecules, outer layers and other components.
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Composition and surface property, enzymes and bile salts affect liposomal digestion.
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Ingestion of liposomes alters the release, absorption and bioaccessibility of cargos.
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Static and dynamic GIT models are developed but limited models are used for liposomes.

Abstract

During the past 50 years, there has been increased interest in liposomes as carriers of pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and agricultural products. More recently, much progress has been made in the use of surface-modified formulas in experimental food matrices. However, before the viability and the applications of nutrients in liposomal form in the edible field can be determined, the digestion behavior along the human gastrointestinal tract (GIT) must be clarified. In vitro digestion models, from static models to dynamic mono-/bi-/multi-compartmental models, are increasingly being developed and applied as alternatives to in vivo assays. This review describes the surface interactions of liposomes with their encapsulated ingredients and with external food components and updates the biological fate of liposomes after ingestion. It summarizes current models for the human stomach and intestine that are available and their relevance in nutritional studies. It highlights limitations and challenges in the use of these models for liposomal colloid system digestion and discusses crucial factors, such as enzymes and bile salts, that affect liposomal bilayer degradation.

Graphical abstract

Section snippets

General introduction to liposomes

Liposomes are lipid-based vesicular carrier systems that range from 25 nm to several microns in size. They have an outer shell bilayer of phospholipids and an internal chamber that holds the encapsulated ingredient [1]. Since liposomes were first described in the 1960s by Alec Bangham and understood as a potential drug delivery system in the early 1970s, they have been beneficial in medical, cosmetic, and agricultural fields [2]. More recently, liposomes have become integral to food research

Interaction of liposomes with encapsulated biomolecules

Generally, the interactions between liposomes and biomolecules can be classified into three categories [23]. In the first category, hydrophilic compounds are localized in the aqueous phase of liposomes and some will interact with the head groups (hydrophilic groups) of phospholipids if they have a very high polar surface area. The second category of interaction is adsorption at the interface of the water–lipid bilayer, when the biomolecules are amphiphilic, and even penetration into the lipid

Human digestion process

The disintegration of food comprises three stages: oral processing, gastric digestion, and intestinal digestion [41]. Digestion starts with the first bite of food in the mouth, followed by chewing, mastication, transportation, bolus formation, and swallowing [42]. The structure of the mouth is shown in Table 1. The food particles are reduced to an appropriate size for swallowing and transport through the esophagus to the stomach. The pH and the enzyme content of saliva, the time and strength of

GIT digestion models for liposome research

Understanding and controlling the digestibility of nutrients and food delivery systems within the human GIT is especially relevant to the maintenance of human health. However, human digestion is complex, in that three main processes occur simultaneously: (1) the food particle size is reduced by mechanical actions; (2) macromolecules are hydrolyzed into smaller constituents by enzymatic catalysis; (3) degraded particles are absorbed into the blood circulation. Degradation of food starts after

Conclusions and future prospects

The development of “edible” liposomes is currently a growth area. The increasing number of GIT models provide valuable scientific insights into the bioaccessibility of nutrients and our understanding of the fate of liposomes under digestive conditions. However, the interaction of liposomes with other food ingredients during digestion is extremely complex, involving the structure and the characteristics of liposomes, the physicochemical properties and structure of the food intake, the time and

Declarations of interest

None.

Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Zhejiang Province (LY18C200005), the project of the Zhejiang Provincial Collaborative Innovation Center of Food Safety and Nutrition (2017SICR103), and the Talent Project of the Zhejiang Association for Science and Technology (2018YCGC235).

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Historical perspectiveAdvances and challenges in liposome digestion: Surface interaction, biological fate, and GIT modeling

Highlights

Abstract

Graphical abstract

Section snippets

General introduction to liposomes

Interaction of liposomes with encapsulated biomolecules

Human digestion process

GIT digestion models for liposome research

Conclusions and future prospects

Declarations of interest

Acknowledgments

Prog Lipid Res

J Dairy Sci

Nutrition

Food Control

J Dairy Sci

Food Chem

LWT- Food Sci Technol

Meat Sci

Food Pack Shelf Life

Food Chem

Food Control

Trends Food Sci Technol

Food Res Int

J Photochem Photobiol B Biol

Int J Pharm

Biochim Biophys Acta

Biochim Biophys Acta

Adv Colloid Interface Sci

Food Res Int

Biomacromolecules

Trends Food Sci Technol

Prog Lipid Res

Food Hydrocoll

J Control Release

Food Res Int

Carbohydr Polym

Food Res Int

Food Res Int

Biochimie

Biochim Biophys Acta

Food Chem

Food Chem

Int J Pharm

LWT- Food Sci Technol

Food Chem

Food Res Int

Adv Colloid Interface Sci

J Control Release

Eur J Pharm Biopharm

Colloids Surf B Biointerfaces

Int J Pharm

Biochim Biophys Acta

J Biol Chem

Anal Biochem

Methods Enzymol

Biochim Biophys Acta

Biochim Biophys Acta

J Lipid Res

Adv Colloid Interface Sci

Food Chem

Historical perspective
Advances and challenges in liposome digestion: Surface interaction, biological fate, and GIT modeling