Capillary electrochromatography: a versatile instrumental technique for nanodomain interaction studies

This doctoral thesis describes the development of a miniaturized capillary electrochromatography (CEC) technique suitable for the study of interactions between various nanodomains of biological importance. The particular focus of the study was low-density lipoprotein (LDL) particles and their interaction with components of the extracellular matrix (ECM). LDL transports cholesterol to the tissues through the blood circulation, but when the LDL level becomes too high the particles begin to permeate and accumulate in the arteries. Through binding sites on apolipoprotein B-100 (apoB-100), LDL interacts with components of the ECM, such as proteoglycans (PGs) and collagen, in what is considered the key mechanism in the retention of lipoproteins and onset of atherosclerosis. Hydrolytic enzymes and oxidizing agents in the ECM may later successively degrade the LDL surface. Metabolic diseases such as diabetes may provoke damage of the ECM structure through the non-enzymatic reaction of glucose with collagen. In this work, fused silica capillaries of 50 micrometer i.d. were successfully coated with LDL and collagen, and steroids and apoB-100 peptide fragments were introduced as model compounds for interaction studies. The LDL coating was modified with copper sulphate or hydrolytic enzymes, and the interactions of steroids with the native and oxidized lipoproteins were studied. Lipids were also removed from the LDL particle coating leaving behind an apoB-100 surface for further studies. The development of collagen and collagen decorin coatings was helpful in the elucidation of the interactions of apoB-100 peptide fragments with the primary ECM component, collagen. Furthermore, the collagen I coating provided a good platform for glycation studies and for clarification of LDL interactions with native and modified collagen. All methods developed are inexpensive, requiring just small amounts of biomaterial. Moreover, the experimental conditions in CEC are easily modified, and the analyses can be carried out in a reasonable time frame. Other techniques were employed to support and complement the CEC studies. Scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy provided crucial visual information about the native and modified coatings. Asymmetrical flow field-flow fractionation enabled size measurements of the modified lipoproteins. Finally, the CEC results were exploited to develop new sensor chips for a continuous flow quartz crystal microbalance technique, which provided complementary information about LDL ECM interactions. This thesis demonstrates the potential of CEC as a valuable and flexible technique for surface interaction studies. Further, CEC can serve as a novel microreactor for the in situ modification of LDL and collagen coatings. The coatings developed in this study provide useful platforms for a diversity of future investigations on biological nanodomains.

Stabilization of Phospholipid Coatings in Capillary Electrophoresis

The development of a simple method of coating a semi-permanent phospholipid layer onto a capillary for electrochromatography use was the focus of this study. The work involved finding good coating conditions, stabilizing the phospholipid coating, and examining the effect of adding divalent cations, cetyltrimethylammonium bromide, and polyethylene glycol (PEG)-lipids on the stability of the coating. Since a further purpose was to move toward more biological membrane coatings, the capillaries were also coated with cholesterol-containing liposomes and liposomes of red blood cell ghost lipids. Liposomes were prepared by extrusion, and large unilamellar vesicles with a diameter of about 100 nm were obtained. Zwitterionic phosphatidylcholine (PC) was used as a basic component, mainly 1-palmitoyl-2-oleyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (POPC) but also eggPC and 1,2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC). Different amounts of sphingomyelin, bovine brain phosphatidylserine, and cholesterol were added to the PC. The stability of the coating in 40 mM N-(2-hydroxyethyl)piperazine-N’-(2-ethanesulfonic acid) (HEPES) solution at pH 7.4 was studied by measuring the electroosmotic flow and by separating neutral steroids, basic proteins, and low-molar-mass drugs. The presence of PC in the coating solution was found to be essential to achieving a coating. The stability of the coating was improved by the addition of negative phosphatidylserine, cholesterol, divalent cations, or PEGylated lipids, and by working in the gel-state region of the phospholipid. Study of the effect on the PC coating of divalent metal ions calcium, magnesium, and zinc showed a molar ratio of 1:3 PC/Ca2+ or PC/Mg2+ to give increased rigidity to the membrane and the best coating stability. The PEGylated lipids used in the study were sterically stabilized commercial lipids with covalently attached PEG chains. The vesicle size generally decreased when PEGylated lipids of higher molar mass were present in the vesicle. The predominance of discoidal micelles over liposomes increased PEG chain length and the average size of the vesicles thus decreased. In the capillary electrophoresis (CE) measurements a highly stable electroosmotic flow was achieved with 20% PEGylated lipid in the POPC coating dispersion, the best results being obtained for disteroyl PEG (3000) conjugates. The results suggest that smaller particles (discoidal micelles) result in tighter packing and better shielding of silanol groups on the silica wall. The effect of temperature on the coating stability was investigated by using DPPC liposomes at temperatures above (45 C) and below (25 C) the main phase transition temperature. Better results were obtained with DPPC in the more rigid gel state than in the fluid state: the electroosmotic flow was heavily suppressed and the PC coating was stabilized. Also dispersions of DPPC with 0−30 mol% of cholesterol and sphingomyelin in different ratios, which more closely resemble natural membranes, resulted in stable coatings. Finally, the CE measurements revealed that a stable coating is formed when capillaries are coated with liposomes of red blood cell ghost lipids.

Si, CdTe and CdZnTe radiation detectors for imaging applications

The structure and operation of CdTe, CdZnTe and Si pixel detectors based on crystalline semiconductors, bump bonding and CMOS technology and developed mainly at Oy Simage Ltd. And Oy Ajat Ltd., Finland for X- and gamma ray imaging are presented. This detector technology evolved from the development of Si strip detectors at the Finnish Research Institute for High Energy Physics (SEFT) which later merged with other physics research units to form the Helsinki Institute of Physics (HIP). General issues of X-ray imaging such as the benefits of the method of direct conversion of X-rays to signal charge in comparison to the indirect method and the pros and cons of photon counting vs. charge integration are discussed. A novel design of Si and CdTe pixel detectors and the analysis of their imaging performance in terms of SNR, MTF, DQE and dynamic range are presented in detail. The analysis shows that directly converting crystalline semiconductor pixel detectors operated in the charge integration mode can be used in X-ray imaging very close to the theoretical performance limits in terms of efficiency and resolution. Examples of the application of the developed imaging technology to dental intra oral and panoramic and to real time X-ray imaging are given. A CdTe photon counting gamma imager is introduced. A physical model to calculate the photo peak efficiency of photon counting CdTe pixel detectors is developed and described in detail. Simulation results indicates that the charge sharing phenomenon due to diffusion of signal charge carriers limits the pixel size of photon counting detectors to about 250 μm. Radiation hardness issues related to gamma and X-ray imaging detectors are discussed.

Loading of itraconazole into porous silica and silicon microparticles: characterization and dissolution tests

Most new drug molecules discovered today suffer from poor bioavailability. Poor oral bioavailability results mainly from poor dissolution properties of hydrophobic drug molecules, because the drug dissolution is often the rate-limiting event of the drug’s absorption through the intestinal wall into the systemic circulation. During the last few years, the use of mesoporous silica and silicon particles as oral drug delivery vehicles has been widely studied, and there have been promising results of their suitability to enhance the physicochemical properties of poorly soluble drug molecules. Mesoporous silica and silicon particles can be used to enhance the solubility and dissolution rate of a drug by incorporating the drug inside the pores, which are only a few times larger than the drug molecules, and thus, breaking the crystalline structure into a disordered, amorphous form with better dissolution properties. Also, the high surface area of the mesoporous particles improves the dissolution rate of the incorporated drug. In addition, the mesoporous materials can also enhance the permeability of large, hydrophilic drug substances across biological barriers. T he loading process of drugs into silica and silicon mesopores is mainly based on the adsorption of drug molecules from a loading solution into the silica or silicon pore walls. There are several factors that affect the loading process: the surface area, the pore size, the total pore volume, the pore geometry and surface chemistry of the mesoporous material, as well as the chemical nature of the drugs and the solvents. Furthermore, both the pore and the surface structure of the particles also affect the drug release kinetics. In this study, the loading of itraconazole into mesoporous silica (Syloid AL-1 and Syloid 244) and silicon (TOPSi and TCPSi) microparticles was studied, as well as the release of itraconazole from the microparticles and its stability after loading. Itraconazole was selected for this study because of its highly hydrophobic and poorly soluble nature. Different mesoporous materials with different surface structures, pore volumes and surface areas were selected in order to evaluate the structural effect of the particles on the loading degree and dissolution behaviour of the drug using different loading parameters. The loaded particles were characterized with various analytical methods, and the drug release from the particles was assessed by in vitro dissolution tests. The results showed that the loaded drug was apparently in amorphous form after loading, and that the loading process did not alter the chemical structure of the silica or silicon surface. Both the mesoporous silica and silicon microparticles enhanced the solubility and dissolution rate of itraconazole. Moreover, the physicochemical properties of the particles and the loading procedure were shown to have an effect on the drug loading efficiency and drug release kinetics. Finally, the mesoporous silicon particles loaded with itraconazole were found to be unstable under stressed conditions (at 38 qC and 70 % relative humidity).

Mesoporous silica- and silicon-based materials as carriers for poorly water soluble drugs

New chemical entities with unfavorable water solubility properties are continuously emerging in drug discovery. Without pharmaceutical manipulations inefficient concentrations of these drugs in the systemic circulation are probable. Typically, in order to be absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract, the drug has to be dissolved. Several methods have been developed to improve the dissolution of poorly soluble drugs. In this study, the applicability of different types of mesoporous (pore diameters between 2 and 50 nm) silicon- and silica-based materials as pharmaceutical carriers for poorly water soluble drugs was evaluated. Thermally oxidized and carbonized mesoporous silicon materials, ordered mesoporous silicas MCM-41 and SBA-15, and non-treated mesoporous silicon and silica gel were assessed in the experiments. The characteristic properties of these materials are the narrow pore diameters and the large surface areas up to over 900 m²/g. Loading of poorly water soluble drugs into these pores restricts their crystallization, and thus, improves drug dissolution from the materials as compared to the bulk drug molecules. In addition, the wide surface area provides possibilities for interactions between the loaded substance and the carrier particle, allowing the stabilization of the system. Ibuprofen, indomethacin and furosemide were selected as poorly soluble model drugs in this study. Their solubilities are strongly pH-dependent and the poorest (< 100 µg/ml) at low pH values. The pharmaceutical performance of the studied materials was evaluated by several methods. In this work, drug loading was performed successfully using rotavapor and fluid bed equipment in a larger scale and in a more efficient manner than with the commonly used immersion methods. It was shown that several carrier particle properties, in particular the pore diameter, affect the loading efficiency (typically ~25-40 w-%) and the release rate of the drug from the mesoporous carriers. A wide pore diameter provided easier loading and faster release of the drug. The ordering and length of the pores also affected the efficiency of the drug diffusion. However, these properties can also compensate the effects of each other. The surface treatment of porous silicon was important in stabilizing the system, as the non-treated mesoporous silicon was easily oxidized at room temperature. Different surface chemical treatments changed the hydrophilicity of the porous silicon materials and also the potential interactions between the loaded drug and the particle, which further affected the drug release properties. In all of the studies, it was demonstrated that loading into mesoporous silicon and silica materials improved the dissolution of the poorly soluble drugs as compared to the corresponding bulk compounds (e.g. after 30 min ~2-7 times more drug was dissolved depending on the materials). The release profile of the loaded substances remained similar also after 3 months of storage at 30°C/56% RH. The thermally carbonized mesoporous silicon did not compromise the Caco-2 monolayer integrity in the permeation studies and improved drug permeability was observed. The loaded mesoporous silica materials were also successfully compressed into tablets without compromising their characteristic structural and drug releasing properties. The results of this research indicated that mesoporous silicon/silica-based materials are promising materials to improve the dissolution of poorly water soluble drugs. Their feasibility in pharmaceutical laboratory scale processes was also confirmed in this thesis.