Continuous Production of the Nanoscale Liposome in a Double Flow-Focusing Microfluidic Device

In the present study, a double flow-focusing platform is applied to evaluate the application of microfluidic devices for the synthesis of liposomes with a uniform size distribution. The size, polydispersity index (PDI), and size distribution of liposomes are measured by varying different factors such as flow rate ratio (FRR), total flow rate (TFR), total lipid concentration, lipid/cholesterol molar ratio, and various lipid formulations. A comparison is made between the performance of double flow-focusing and single flow-focusing devices. The liposomes in the size range of 50-200 nm are produced with low PDIs of 0.1-0.37. The results show that the smallest particles are synthesized at the highest FRR and TFR, the lowest total concentration, a lipid/cholesterol molar ratio of 60:40, and single-lipid formulation. Also, the double flow-focusing device has the ability to apply higher TFR values than the single flow-focusing device, which leads to a higher productivity rate and smaller liposomes.