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Phospholipids with covalently attached poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG lipids) are commonly used for the preparation of long circulating liposomes. Although it is well known that lipid/PEG-lipid mixed micelles may form above a certain critical concentration of PEG-lipid, little is known about the effects of PEG-lipids on liposome structure and leakage at submicellar concentrations. In this study we have used cryogenic transmission electron microscopy to investigate the effect of PEG(2000)-PE on aggregate structure in preparations of liposomes with different membrane compositions. The results reveal a number of important aggregate structures not documented before. The micrographs show that enclosure of PEG-PE induces the formation of open bilayer discs at concentrations well below those where mixed micelles begin to form. The maximum concentration of PEG-lipid that may be incorporated without alteration of the liposome structure depends on the phospholipid chain length, whereas phospholipid saturation or the presence of cholesterol has little or no effect. The presence of cholesterol does, however, affect the shape of the mixed micelles formed at high concentrations of PEG-lipid. Threadlike micelles form in the absence of cholesterol but adapt a globular shape when cholesterol is present.

The interactions of five poly(oxyethylene)−poly(oxypropylene)−poly(oxyethylene) (PEO−PPO−PEO), Pluronic, copolymers and phosphatidylcholine liposomes of varying composition have been studied. Structural studies were performed by means of cryo-transmission electron microscopy (c-TEM) and reveal that inclusion of low amounts (∼2 mol %) of Pluronics gives rise to significant morphological changes of the liposome preparations. Pluronics with large poly(oxyethylene) (PEO) blocks, such as F127, F108, and F87, induce the formation of bilayer disks, whereas those with comparably short PEO blocks, P105 and P85, tend to to promote a reduction in the liposome size. Inclusion of cholesterol in the liposomal preparations reduces the incorporation of copolymers in the lipid bilayer and thus reduces, and in some cases even abolishes, the morphological changes observed in the absence of cholesterol. The effect of the copolymers on liposome permeability was also investigated. All investigated copolymers were found to increase the leakage of carboxyfluorescein from preformed liposomes. This was true also in the case of cholesterol-containing liposomes despite the fact that no change in the liposome structure could be observed by means of c-TEM. The magnitude of the induced leakage was found to correlate well with the hydrophobicity, as measured by the cmc, of the respective Pluronic. By raising the temperature or decreasing the solvency of the copolymer in the solution, the effect of the copolymer on liposome leakage was found to increase significantly.

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