LIPOSOMES - VEHICLES FOR THE TARGETED AND CONTROLLED DELIVERY OF PEPTIDES AND PROTEINS

Several approaches are presented that have been developed for the lipo somal delivery of peptides and proteins. For a rational design of targ eted liposomes, the anatomical and physiological constraints with resp ect to the distribution of liposomes in the body have to be taken into account. Target sites that offer exciting opportunities are located i n the blood compartments (e.g. thrombi, endothelium), in the liver (e. g. macrophages), in the peritoneal cavity (e.g. tumor cells), or in di seased tissues (e.g. inflammations or tumors). Examples of ongoing lip osome-related research in our institutes are discussed.