Processes for the preparation of lipophilic drug delivery vehicles

1. A process for formulating a bio active agent delivery particle, said process comprising contacting bilayer-forming lipid vesicles with a bioactive agent to form a bilayer-forming lipid vesicle-bioactive agent mixture, and contacting the bilayer-forming lipid vesicle-bioactive agent mixture with a lipid binding polypeptide,

wherein said contacting of the bilayer-forming lipid vesicle-bioactive agent mixture with a lipid binding polypeptide comprises incubation of the vesicles and lipid binding polypeptide at or near the gel to liquid crystalline phase transition temperature of the bilayer forming lipids present in the lipid vesicles, to thereby form the bioactive agent delivery particle; and

wherein said bioactive agent delivery particle comprises a lipid binding polypeptide, a lipid bilayer, and a non-polypeptide bioactive agent comprising at least one hydrophobic region,

wherein the particle does not comprise an aqueous core;

wherein the interior of the lipid bilayer comprises a hydrophobic region;

wherein the bioactive agent is incorporated into the hydrophobic region of the lipid bilayer; and

wherein the particle is disc-shaped with a discoidal lipid bilayer circumscribed by amphipathic α-helices and/or β sheets of the lipid binding polypeptide, which are associated with hydrophobic surfaces of the bilayer around the periphery of the particle, and wherein said lipid binding polypeptide comprises a class A amphipathic α-helix structure and/or a β sheet motif.

2. A process according to claim 1 , wherein the bioactive agent is amphotericin B.

3. A process according to claim 1 , wherein the bioactive agent is camptothecin.

4. A process according to claim 1 , wherein the bioactive agent is solubilized in dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) prior to contacting the bilayer-forming lipid vesicles.

5. A process according to claim 4 , wherein the bioactive agent is amphotericin B.

6. A process according to claim 4 , wherein the bioactive agent is camptothecin.

7. A process for formulating a bioactive agent delivery particle, said process comprising the steps of:

(a) forming an aqueous dispersion of lipid vesicles, wherein said lipid vesicles comprise bilayer-forming lipids;

(b) adding a bioactive agent to the lipid vesicle dispersion to form a lipid vesicle-bioactive agent mixture;

(c) adding a lipid binding polypeptide to the lipid vesicle-bioactive agent mixture to form a lipid-bioactive agent-lipid binding polypeptide mixture; and

(d) incubating the mixture formed in step (c), wherein said incubating is

performed with the vesicles and lipid binding polypeptide at or near the gel to liquid crystalline phase transition temperature of the bilayer forming lipids present in the lipid vesicles, to thereby form the bioactive agent delivery particle;

wherein said bioactive agent delivery particle comprises a lipid binding polypeptide, a lipid bilayer, and a non-polypeptide bioactive agent comprising at least one hydrophobic region,

wherein the particle does not comprise an aqueous core;

wherein the interior of the lipid bilayer comprises a hydrophobic region;

wherein the bioactive agent is incorporated into the hydrophobic region of the lipid bilayer; and

wherein the particle is disc-shaped with a discoidal lipid bilayer circumscribed by amphipathic α-helices and/or β sheets of the lipid binding polypeptide, which are associated with hydrophobic surfaces of the bilayer around the periphery of the particle, and wherein said lipid binding polypeptide comprises a class A amphipathic α-helix structure and/or a β sheet motif.

8. A process for formulating a bioactive agent delivery particle according to claim 7 , wherein said process further comprises sonicating the mixture of step (d).

9. A process according to claim 7 , wherein the bioactive agent is amphotericin B.

10. A process according to claim 7 , wherein the bioactive agent is camptothecin.

11. A process according to claim 7 , wherein the bioactive agent is solubilized in DMSO prior to addition to the lipid vesicle dispersion.

12. A process according to claim 11 , wherein the bioactive agent is amphotericin B.

13. A process according to claim 11 , wherein the bioactive agent is camptothecin.

14. A bioactive agent delivery particle prepared according to the process of claim 1 .

15. A bioactive agent delivery particle according to claim 14 , wherein the bioactive agent is amphotericin B.

16. A bioactive agent delivery particle according to claim 14 , wherein the bioactive agent is camptothecin.

17. A bioactive agent delivery particle prepared according to the process of claim 7 .

18. A bioactive agent delivery particle according to claim 17 , wherein the bioactive agent is amphotericin B.

19. A bioactive agent delivery particle according to claim 17 , wherein the bioactive agent is camptothecin.

20. The process according to claim 7 , wherein the bioactive agent is a non-polypeptide selected from the group consisting of antimicrobials, neurotransmitters, radiolabels, fluorescent compounds, antimetabolic agents, anesthetics, anticancer agents, anti-inflammatory agents, pesticides, insecticides, herbicides, all-trans retinoic acid, lipopolysaccharide, Vitamin E, and photosensitizing agents used in photodynamic therapy.

21. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the bioactive agent is a non-polypeptide selected from the group consisting of antimicrobials, neurotransmitters, radiolabels, fluorescent compounds, antimetabolic agents, anesthetics, anticancer agents, anti-inflammatory agents, pesticides, insecticides, herbicides, all-trans retinoic acid, lipopolysaccharide, Vitamin E, and photosensitizing agents used in photodynamic therapy.

22. The process according to claim 21 , wherein the bioactive agent is an antimicrobial, a pesticide, or a herbicide.

23. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the bilayer forming lipids are phospholipids comprising dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine (DMPC) and dimyristoylphosphatidylglycerol (DMPG).

24. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the bilayer forming lipids are phospholipids comprising dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) or egg phosphatidylcholine.

25. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the lipid binding polypeptide is an apolipoprotein selected from the group consisting of apolipoprotein A-I (ApoA-I), apolipoprotein E (ApoE), apolipoprotein E3 (ApoE3), apolipophorin III (ApoIII), apolipoprotein A-IV (ApoA-IV), apolipoprotein A-V (ApoA-V), apolipoprotein C-I (ApoC-I), apolipoprotein C-II (ApoC-II), apolipoprotein C-III (ApoC-III), apolipoprotein D (ApoD), apolipoprotein A-II (ApoA-II), apolipoprotein B-100 (ApoB-100), apolipoprotein J (ApoJ), apolipoprotein H (ApoH), and natural variants, analogs, fragments, isoforms, or chimeric forms thereof.

26. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the lipid binding polypeptide is an apolipoprotein which is the C-terminal or N-terminal domain of apolipoprotein E3 or isoform thereof.

27. The process according to claim 7 , wherein the lipid binding polypeptide is an apolipoprotein selected from the group consisting of apolipoprotein A-I (ApoA-I), apolipoprotein E (ApoE), apolipoprotein E3 (ApoE3), apolipophorin III (ApoIII), apolipoprotein A-IV (ApoA-IV), apolipoprotein A-V (ApoA-V), apolipoprotein C-I (ApoC-I), apolipoprotein C-II (ApoC-II), apolipoprotein C-III (ApoC-III), apolipoprotein D (ApoD), apolipoprotein A-II (ApoA-II), apolipoprotein B-100 (ApoB-100), apolipoprotein J (ApoJ), apolipoprotein H (ApoH), and natural variants, analogs, fragments, isoforms, or chimeric forms thereof.

28. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the temperature is from about 21° C. to about 25° C.

29. The process according to claim 1 , wherein the temperature is about 24° C.

30. The process according to claim 7 , wherein the temperature is from about 21° C. to about 25° C.

31. The process according to claim 7 , wherein the temperature is about 24° C.