Posters
Presenting Author Academic/Professional Position
Undergraduate
Academic Level (Author 1)
Undergraduate
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Immunology and Microbiology
Academic Level (Author 2)
Post-doc
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Immunology and Microbiology
Academic Level (Author 3)
Undergraduate
Discipline/Specialty (Author 3)
Immunology and Microbiology
Academic Level (Author 4)
Faculty
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Immunology and Microbiology
Academic Level (Author 5)
Faculty
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Immunology and Microbiology
Presentation Type
Poster
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Community/Public Health
Abstract Type
Research/Clinical
Abstract
Background: Endometriosis is defined as the presence of endometrial-type mucosa outside the uterine cavity. It affects about 6.5 million women of reproductive age in the United States. It is a leading cause of infertility, impacting up to 50% of women with difficulty conceiving, and is prevalent in as many as 90% of individuals experiencing severe, chronic pelvic pain. Women with endometriosis had 4.2-fold higher ovarian cancer risk than those without endometriosis. Within this work, a range of liposomal formulations was investigated for endometriosis. Recent studies confirmed the role of miR-205-5p as a potential suppressor of ectopic endometriotic progression. Clinical translation of miRNA-based therapies into clinical applications poses several challenges. To overcome these obstacles requires the development of innovative, stable, and scalable delivery platforms to harness the therapeutic potential of miR-205 for endometriosis.
Methods: In this study, a microfluidic chip-based platform, leveraging commercially available microfluidic device technology, was employed to synthesize miR-205-loaded liposomes and modified with tannic acid. The microfluidics technique utilizes vigorous mixing of fluids at a nanoliter scale to produce liposomes in batches from milliliters to a couple of liters. The fine control of process parameters results in improved reproducibility between batches. Using microRNA-loaded liposomes as a case study, we manufacture liposomes with tightly defined physicochemical attributes (size, PDI, microRNA loading, and release) from small-scale (3 mL) at a total flow rate (TFR) of 10 ml/min and a flow rate ratio (FRR) of 1:3. The effect of key formulation parameters, including TFR, FRR, and total lipid concentration (lipid and cholesterol), on particle size and size distribution, was systematically investigated. The cell viability of endometrial cell lines treated with different concentrations of liposome was assessed by MTT assay and cell counting.
Results: All liposomal formulations displayed an average particle size below 200 nm with acceptable physicochemical stability and a low polydispersity index (PDI). Tannic acid was successfully incorporated into microfluidic-synthesized liposomes over the full range of liposome sizes studied. The efficiency of tannic acid-lipid incorporation affected the liposome diameter. Tannic acid-lipid was effectively integrated into liposomes at various concentrations. Furthermore, miR-205-loaded liposomes produced via microfluidics exhibited robust encapsulation efficiency and effective intracellular delivery of miR-205 in appropriate cell line models.
Conclusions: This study highlights the potential of microfluidics as a robust and high-throughput method for the manufacturing of RNA-based therapeutics and its translation toward endometriosis treatment.
Recommended Citation
Herrera, Victoria; Tiwari, Rahul; Lozano, Bridgette Lozano; Chauhan, Subhash; and Yallapu, Murali, "Tannic acid-stabilized liposomal platform for microRNA delivery in endometriosis" (2025). Research Symposium. 173.
https://scholarworks.utrgv.edu/somrs/2025/posters/173
Tannic acid-stabilized liposomal platform for microRNA delivery in endometriosis
Background: Endometriosis is defined as the presence of endometrial-type mucosa outside the uterine cavity. It affects about 6.5 million women of reproductive age in the United States. It is a leading cause of infertility, impacting up to 50% of women with difficulty conceiving, and is prevalent in as many as 90% of individuals experiencing severe, chronic pelvic pain. Women with endometriosis had 4.2-fold higher ovarian cancer risk than those without endometriosis. Within this work, a range of liposomal formulations was investigated for endometriosis. Recent studies confirmed the role of miR-205-5p as a potential suppressor of ectopic endometriotic progression. Clinical translation of miRNA-based therapies into clinical applications poses several challenges. To overcome these obstacles requires the development of innovative, stable, and scalable delivery platforms to harness the therapeutic potential of miR-205 for endometriosis.
Methods: In this study, a microfluidic chip-based platform, leveraging commercially available microfluidic device technology, was employed to synthesize miR-205-loaded liposomes and modified with tannic acid. The microfluidics technique utilizes vigorous mixing of fluids at a nanoliter scale to produce liposomes in batches from milliliters to a couple of liters. The fine control of process parameters results in improved reproducibility between batches. Using microRNA-loaded liposomes as a case study, we manufacture liposomes with tightly defined physicochemical attributes (size, PDI, microRNA loading, and release) from small-scale (3 mL) at a total flow rate (TFR) of 10 ml/min and a flow rate ratio (FRR) of 1:3. The effect of key formulation parameters, including TFR, FRR, and total lipid concentration (lipid and cholesterol), on particle size and size distribution, was systematically investigated. The cell viability of endometrial cell lines treated with different concentrations of liposome was assessed by MTT assay and cell counting.
Results: All liposomal formulations displayed an average particle size below 200 nm with acceptable physicochemical stability and a low polydispersity index (PDI). Tannic acid was successfully incorporated into microfluidic-synthesized liposomes over the full range of liposome sizes studied. The efficiency of tannic acid-lipid incorporation affected the liposome diameter. Tannic acid-lipid was effectively integrated into liposomes at various concentrations. Furthermore, miR-205-loaded liposomes produced via microfluidics exhibited robust encapsulation efficiency and effective intracellular delivery of miR-205 in appropriate cell line models.
Conclusions: This study highlights the potential of microfluidics as a robust and high-throughput method for the manufacturing of RNA-based therapeutics and its translation toward endometriosis treatment.
