Researchers have demonstrated that microscopic drug-delivery containers can be magnetically steered to their targets, advancing the development of precision medicine for treating diseases such as cancer.
A multi-university team has shown that the magnetic particles encapsulated in lipid vesicles can be used to steer the vesicles through fluids. This work builds on earlier results showing that lipid vesicles can be engineered to release drugs when illuminated with laser light. The resulting system combining both results is a comprehensive prototype for precision and targeted drug delivery.
The first step in creating magnetically steerable lipid vesicles was developing a reliable method to encapsulate magnetic particles in the vesicles. They used inverted emulsion in which magnetic particles are added to a solution of dissolved lipids, leading to lipid droplets forming around the particles.
Next, the researchers demonstrated that magnetic fields could direct the lipid vesicles. Malik developed a 3D printable platform to mount the magnets securely on a microscope and to place the vesicles in a solution between the magnets. By observing the resulting motion, the researchers observed how speed varied with the ratio of magnetic particle size to vesicle size. They also confirmed that the vesicles only release their cargo when illuminated with laser light after moving to the end of the microfluidic channel.
