Studies of serum protein adsorption at phospholipid surfaces in relation to intravenous drug delivery

The adsorption of serum proteins at phospholipid surfaces was investigated in relation to the uptake of intravenously administered colloidal drug carr iers. In particular, an approach based on the use of surface-modified flat substrates for investigations of the adsorption pattern by in situ ellipsom etry and surface plasmon resonance (SPR) is discussed. Similar results rega rding protein adsorption were obtained for phospholipid layers prepared thr ough spin-coating, Langmuir-Blodgett deposition, and liposome adsorption. F urthermore, a good agreement was found between the adsorption at the model surfaces, on one hand, and at oil-in-water emulsion droplets, on the other, suggesting that curvature effects on the adsorption are minor. By using th is approach, the adsorption of a number of proteins at a range of surfaces was investigated. Also, mixed (phospho)lipid layers were studied, as was th e adsorption from diluted serum and plasma. The results obtained are discus sed in relation to the effects of the surface properties on the performance of colloidal drug carriers. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights rese rved.