Preparation, Characterization, and Use of Antioxidant-Liposomes

Antioxidant liposomes provide a unique means of delivering both water and/or lipid soluble antioxidants to tissues thereby affecting disease states or signal transduction pathways modulated by oxidative stress. Considerable evidence suggests that liposome-encapsulated antioxidants can be superior to the corresponding free antioxidants in this regard. This chapter will provide practical details on the preparation, characterization, and use of antioxidant liposomes. Methods will be described for the small-scale preparation (1 ml) and large-scale (100 ml/hour) preparation of antioxidant liposomes as well as the techniques for characterizing their size distribution and their physical and chemical stability. The use of antioxidant liposomes in an in vitro situation will also be detailed.