The encapsulation and release of guanosine from PEGylated liposomes

The encapsulation and release kinetics of guanosine from liposomes and polyethylene glycol (PEG) modified liposomes are reported. Specifically, the influence of PEG chain length, PEGylation level, lipid type, drug-loading level, temperature, and solution conditions (i.e., salt and pH effects) on the rate and mechanism for release have been determined. Increasing PEGylation significantly reduced the guanosine release kinetics; this is more significant for greater molecular weight PEG and is correlated with the PEG layer thickness. Further, the mechanism for guanosine release changed from diffusion to interfacial control as the PEG level increased. The interfacial structure introduced by PEG also increased the activation energy required for guanosine transport across the lipid bilayer from 14 to 22 kJmol(-1). Findings from this study provide further insight into optimizing the formulation of Stealth liposomes.