Nanocapsule of cationic liposomes obtained using “in situ” acrylic acid polymerization: Stability, surface charge and biocompatibility

In this work, didecyldimethylammonium bromide (DDAB) and 1,2-dioleoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphatidylethanolamine (DOPE) (2.5:1) were used to prepare liposomes coated with polyacrylic acid (PAA) using “in situ” polymerization with 2.5, 5 and 25 mM of acrylic acid (AA). The PAA concentrations were chosen to achieve partially to fully covered capsules, and the polymerization reaction was observed with real-time monitoring using dynamic light scattering (NanoDLS). The DDAB:DOPE liposomes showed stability in the tested temperature range (25–70 °C), whereas the results confirmed the success of the polymerization according to superficial charge (zeta potential of +66.7 ± 1.2 mV) results and AFM images. For the liposomes that were fully coated with PAA (zeta potential of +0.3 ± 3.9 mV), cytotoxicity was independent of the concentration of albumin. Cationic liposomes and nanocapsules of the stable liposomes coated with PAA were obtained by controlling the surface charge, which was the most important factor related to cytotoxicity. Thus, a potential, safe drug nanocarrier was successfully developed in this work.