Cubosomes as an emerging platform for drug delivery: a review of the state of the art

Mohammed A.S. Abourehab, Mohammad Javed Ansari, Anshul Singh, Ahmed Hassan, Mohamed A. Abdelgawad, Prachi Shrivastav, Bassam M. Abualsoud, Larissa Souza Amaral and Sheersha Pramanik

J. Mater. Chem. B, 2022, 10, 2781
DOI: 10.1039/D2TB00031H

Microfluidic technologies for the synthesis and manipulation of biomimetic membranous nano-assemblies

Colin P. Pilkington, John M. Seddon and Yuval Elani

Phys. Chem. Chem. Phys., 2021, 23, 3693
DOI: 10.1039/D0CP06226J

Lipid nanoparticle-based formulations for high-performance dentistry applications

Isha Mutreja, Dhiraj Kumar, Ajeet Kaushik and Yogendra Kumar Mishra

J. Mater. Chem. B, 2023, 11, 5990
DOI: 10.1039/D3TB00431G

Artificial cerium-based proenzymes confined in lyotropic liquid crystals: synthetic strategy and on-demand activation

Denise R. Bohn, Francielli O. Lobato, Alisson S. Thill, Luiza Steffens, Marco Raabe, Bruna Donida, Carmen R. Vargas, Dinara J. Moura, Fabiano Bernardi and Fernanda Poletto

J. Mater. Chem. B, 2018, 6, 4920
DOI: 10.1039/C8TB00479J

Probing cell–nanoparticle (cubosome) interactions at the endothelial interface: do tissue dimension and flow matter?

Angel Tan, Yuen Yi Lam, Olivier Pacot, Adrian Hawley and Ben J. Boyd

Biomater. Sci., 2019, 7, 3460
DOI: 10.1039/C9BM00243J

Paclitaxel-loaded cubosome lipid nanocarriers stabilised with pH and hydrogen peroxide-responsive steric stabilisers as drug delivery vehicles

Xudong Cai, Bo Fan, San H. Thang, Calum J. Drummond, Nhiem Tran and Jiali Zhai

J. Mater. Chem. B, 2023, 11, 403
DOI: 10.1039/D2TB01530G

Revolutionizing transdermal drug delivery: unveiling the potential of cubosomes and ethosomes

Preetha Balakrishnan and Sreerag Gopi

J. Mater. Chem. B, 2024, 12, 4335
DOI: 10.1039/D3TB02927A

Multifunctional cubic liquid crystalline nanoparticles for chemo- and photodynamic synergistic cancer therapy

Sébastien Jenni, Giacomo Picci, Marco Fornasier, Marianna Mamusa, Judith Schmidt, Yeshayahu Talmon, Angélique Sour, Valérie Heitz, Sergio Murgia and Claudia Caltagirone

Photochem Photobiol Sci, 2020, 19, 674
DOI: 10.1039/c9pp00449a

Tailoring the self-assembly of lipid-based lyotropic liquid crystalline mesophases with biocompatible ionic liquid aqueous solutions

Mohamad El Mohamad, Qi Han, Calum J. Drummond, Tamar L. Greaves and Jiali Zhai

Materials Today Chemistry, 2022, 26, 101221
DOI: 10.1016/j.mtchem.2022.101221

A structurally diverse library of glycerol monooleate/oleic acid non-lamellar liquid crystalline nanodispersions stabilized with nonionic methoxypoly(ethylene glycol) (mPEG)-lipids showing variable complement activation properties

Shen Yu Helvig, Laura Woythe, Simon Pham, Gizem Bor, Helene Andersen, Seyed Moein Moghimi and Anan Yaghmur

Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 2021, 582, 906
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2020.08.085

In Vitro and In Vivo Toxicity and Biodistribution of Paclitaxel-Loaded Cubosomes as a Drug Delivery Nanocarrier: A Case Study Using an A431 Skin Cancer Xenograft Model

Jiali Zhai, Fiona H. Tan, Rodney B. Luwor, T. Srinivasa Reddy, Nuzhat Ahmed, Calum J. Drummond and Nhiem Tran

ACS Appl. Bio Mater., 2020, 3, 4198
DOI: 10.1021/acsabm.0c00269

Monocytic Cell-Induced Phase Transformation of Circulating Lipid-Based Liquid Crystalline Nanosystems

Angel Tan, Yuen Yi Lam, Xiaohan Sun and Ben Boyd

Materials, 2020, 13, 1013
DOI: 10.3390/ma13041013

Cubosomes and Hexosomes as Novel Nanocarriers for Bioactive Compounds

Chen Tan, Seyed Fakhreddin Hosseini and Seid Mahdi Jafari

J. Agric. Food Chem., 2022, 70, 1423
DOI: 10.1021/acs.jafc.1c06747

Cubosomen: die nächste Generation intelligenter Lipid‐Nanopartikel?

Hanna M. G. Barriga, Margaret N. Holme and Molly M. Stevens

Angewandte Chemie, 2019, 131, 2984
DOI: 10.1002/ange.201804067

Cuboplex-Mediated Nonviral Delivery of Functional siRNA to Chinese Hamster Ovary (CHO) Cells

Sampa Sarkar, Nhiem Tran, Sarvesh Kumar Soni, Zeyad Nasa, Calum J. Drummond and Charlotte E. Conn

ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces, 2021, 13, 2336
DOI: 10.1021/acsami.0c20956

Self-assembled Lyotropic Liquid Crystalline Phase Behavior of Monoolein–Capric Acid–Phospholipid Nanoparticulate Systems

Jiali Zhai, Nhiem Tran, Sampa Sarkar, Celesta Fong, Xavier Mulet and Calum J. Drummond

Langmuir, 2017, 33, 2571
DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.6b04045

A Clinically-Achievable Injectable and Sprayable in Situ Lyotropic Liquid Crystalline Platform in Treating Hormone-Sensitive and Castration-Resistant Prostate Cancer

Xinyu Shan, Xiang Li, Zhenyu Luo, Qing Lin, Yichao Lu, Mengshi Jiang, Junlei Zhang, Jiaxin Huang, Lin Xie, Xuemeng Guo, Xu Liu, Yingying Shi, Yu Liu, Hang Yin, Fuchun Yang, Lihua Luo and Jian You

ACS Nano, 2023, 17, 6045
DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.3c00649

Non-Lamellar Lyotropic Liquid Crystalline Lipid Nanoparticles for the Next Generation of Nanomedicine

Jiali Zhai, Celesta Fong, Nhiem Tran and Calum J. Drummond

ACS Nano, 2019, 13, 6178
DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.8b07961

The Influence of Hydrophobic Blocks of PEO-Containing Copolymers on Glyceryl Monooleate Lyotropic Liquid Crystalline Nanoparticles for Drug Delivery

Aleksander Forys, Maria Chountoulesi, Barbara Mendrek, Tomasz Konieczny, Theodore Sentoukas, Marcin Godzierz, Aleksandra Kordyka, Costas Demetzos, Stergios Pispas and Barbara Trzebicka

Polymers, 2021, 13, 2607
DOI: 10.3390/polym13162607

Tuning structure and morphology of lipidic cubosomes by encapsulation of novel porphyrin-derivatives

Valeria D’Annibale, Leonardo Ariodante, Claudia Marconi, Luca Piccirillo, Peter Jönsson, Andrea D’Annibale, Donato Monti, Anita Scipioni, Karin Schillén, Luciano Galantini and Marco Fornasier

Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces, 2025, 252, 114646
DOI: 10.1016/j.colsurfb.2025.114646

Novel Amphiphilic Block Copolymers for the Formation of Stimuli-Responsive Non-Lamellar Lipid Nanoparticles

Jiali Zhai, Bo Fan, San H. Thang and Calum J. Drummond

Molecules, 2021, 26, 3648
DOI: 10.3390/molecules26123648

pH‐Dependent Lyotropic Liquid Crystalline Mesophase and Ionization Behavior of Phytantriol‐Based Ionizable Lipid Nanoparticles

Haitao Yu, Brendan Dyett, Nigel Kirby, Xudong Cai, Mohamad El Mohamad, Steven Bozinovski, Calum J. Drummond and Jiali Zhai

Small, 2024, 20
DOI: 10.1002/smll.202309200

Brush-like Polymer Prodrug with Aggregation-Induced Emission Features for Precise Intracellular Drug Tracking

Sanaz Naghibi, Soheila Sabouri, Yuning Hong, Zhongfan Jia and Youhong Tang

Biosensors, 2022, 12, 373
DOI: 10.3390/bios12060373

Cubosome nanoparticles for enhanced delivery of mitochondria anticancer drug elesclomol and therapeutic monitoring via sub-cellular NAD(P)H multi-photon fluorescence lifetime imaging

Ana R. Faria, Oscar F. Silvestre, Christian Maibohm, Ricardo M. R. Adão, Bruno F. B. Silva and Jana B. Nieder

Nano Res., 2019, 12, 991
DOI: 10.1007/s12274-018-2231-5

Stimuli-Responsive Lyotropic Liquid Crystalline Nanosystems with Incorporated Poly(2-Dimethylamino Ethyl Methacrylate)-b-Poly(Lauryl Methacrylate) Amphiphilic Block Copolymer

Maria Chountoulesi, Natassa Pippa, Varvara Chrysostomou, Stergios Pispas, Evangelia D. Chrysina, Aleksander Forys, Lukasz Otulakowski, Barbara Trzebicka and Costas Demetzos

Polymers, 2019, 11, 1400
DOI: 10.3390/polym11091400

Engineering Swollen Cubosomes Using Cholesterol and Anionic Lipids

Hanna M. G. Barriga, Oscar Ces, Robert V. Law, John M. Seddon and Nicholas J. Brooks

Langmuir, 2019, 35, 16521
DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.9b02336

Monoolein-based nanoparticles for drug delivery to the central nervous system: A platform for lysosomal storage disorder treatment

Bruna Donida, Bárbara Tauffner, Marco Raabe, Maira F. Immich, Marcelo A. de Farias, Diego de Sá Coutinho, Andryele Zaffari Machado, Rejane Gus Kessler, Rodrigo V. Portugal, Andressa Bernardi, Rudimar Frozza, Dinara J. Moura, Fernanda Poletto and Carmen Regla Vargas

European Journal of Pharmaceutics and Biopharmaceutics, 2018, 133, 96
DOI: 10.1016/j.ejpb.2018.10.005

CUBOSOME-A Novel Drug Delivery for Anticancer Drugs

Ayush Dubey, Akash Chauhan, Awaneet Kaur, Md. Aftab Alam, Shikha Yadav and G.S.N. Koteshewr Rao

CNANO, 2024, 20, 206
DOI: 10.2174/1573413719666230303102952

Synthetic ionizable aminolipids induce a pH dependent inverse hexagonal to bicontinuous cubic lyotropic liquid crystalline phase transition in monoolein nanoparticles

Sarigama Rajesh, Jiali Zhai, Calum J. Drummond and Nhiem Tran

Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 2021, 589, 85
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2020.12.060

Self‐Assembled Nanostructured Lipid Systems: Is There a Link between Structure and Cytotoxicity?

Angel Tan, Linda Hong, Joanne D. Du and Ben J. Boyd

Advanced Science, 2019, 6
DOI: 10.1002/advs.201801223

Clickable Cubosomes for Antibody-Free Drug Targeting and Imaging Applications

Nicolas Alcaraz, Qingtao Liu, Eric Hanssen, Angus Johnston and Ben J. Boyd

Bioconjugate Chem., 2018, 29, 149
DOI: 10.1021/acs.bioconjchem.7b00659

Manipulating the Ordered Nanostructure of Self-Assembled Monoolein and Phytantriol Nanoparticles with Unsaturated Fatty Acids

Nhiem Tran, Xavier Mulet, Adrian M. Hawley, Celesta Fong, Jiali Zhai, Tu C. Le, Julian Ratcliffe and Calum J. Drummond

Langmuir, 2018, 34, 2764
DOI: 10.1021/acs.langmuir.7b03541

Nature‐Inspired Design and Application of Lipidic Lyotropic Liquid Crystals

Raffaele Mezzenga, John M. Seddon, Calum J. Drummond, Ben J. Boyd, Gerd E. Schröder‐Turk and Laurent Sagalowicz

Advanced Materials, 2019, 31
DOI: 10.1002/adma.201900818

Understanding Plasmonic Heat-triggered drug release from gold based nanostructure

John Nebu and George Sony

Journal of Drug Delivery Science and Technology, 2018, 46, 294
DOI: 10.1016/j.jddst.2018.05.036

Preparation of Nanostructured Lipid Drug Delivery Particles Using Microfluidic Mixing

Linda Hong, Yao-Da Dong and Ben J. Boyd

PNT, 2019, 7, 484
DOI: 10.2174/2211738507666191004123545

Brush-shaped RAFT polymer micelles as nanocarriers for a ruthenium (II) complex photodynamic anticancer drug

Dan Wang, Jinquan Wang, Haien Huang, Zizhuo Zhao, Pathiraja A. Gunatillake and Xiaojuan Hao

European Polymer Journal, 2019, 113, 267
DOI: 10.1016/j.eurpolymj.2019.01.074

Non-lamellar lyotropic liquid crystalline nanoparticles enhance the antibacterial effects of rifampicin against Staphylococcus aureus

Nhiem Tran, Marion Hocquet, Blandine Eon, Parveen Sangwan, Julian Ratcliffe, Tracey M. Hinton, Jacinta White, Berkay Ozcelik, Nicholas P. Reynolds and Benjamin W. Muir

Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 2018, 519, 107
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2018.02.048

Advances in lyotropic liquid crystal systems for skin drug delivery

Ana Vitoria Pupo Silvestrini, Angelo Luis Caron, Juliana Viegas, Fabíola Garcia Praça and Maria Vitoria Lopes Badra Bentley

Expert Opinion on Drug Delivery, 2020, 17, 1781
DOI: 10.1080/17425247.2020.1819979

Lipidic lyotropic liquid crystals: Insights on biomedical applications

Guillermo Blanco-Fernández, Bárbara Blanco-Fernandez, Anxo Fernández-Ferreiro and Francisco J. Otero-Espinar

Advances in Colloid and Interface Science, 2023, 313, 102867
DOI: 10.1016/j.cis.2023.102867

Paclitaxel-Loaded Self-Assembled Lipid Nanoparticles as Targeted Drug Delivery Systems for the Treatment of Aggressive Ovarian Cancer

Jiali Zhai, Rodney B. Luwor, Nuzhat Ahmed, Ruth Escalona, Fiona H. Tan, Celesta Fong, Julian Ratcliffe, Judith A. Scoble, Calum J. Drummond and Nhiem Tran

ACS Appl. Mater. Interfaces, 2018, 10, 25174
DOI: 10.1021/acsami.8b08125

Progress and challenges of lyotropic liquid crystalline nanoparticles for innovative therapies

Ana Vitoria Pupo Silvestrini, Bryan Wender Debiasi, Fabíola Garcia Praça and Maria Vitoria Lopes Badra Bentley

International Journal of Pharmaceutics, 2022, 628, 122299
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2022.122299

Dual-modality NIRF-MRI cubosomes and hexosomes: High throughput formulation and in vivo biodistribution

Nhiem Tran, Nicole Bye, Bradford A. Moffat, David K. Wright, Andrew Cuddihy, Tracey M. Hinton, Adrian M. Hawley, Nicholas P. Reynolds, Lynne J. Waddington, Xavier Mulet, Ann M. Turnley, M. Cristina Morganti-Kossmann and Benjamin W. Muir

Materials Science and Engineering: C, 2017, 71, 584
DOI: 10.1016/j.msec.2016.10.028

Physicochemical, morphological and thermal evaluation of lyotropic lipidic liquid crystalline nanoparticles: The effect of stimuli-responsive polymeric stabilizer

Maria Chountoulesi, Diego Romano Perinelli, Natassa Pippa, Varvara Chrysostomou, Aleksander Forys, Lukasz Otulakowski, Giulia Bonacucina, Barbara Trzebicka, Stergios Pispas and Costas Demetzos

Colloids and Surfaces A: Physicochemical and Engineering Aspects, 2020, 595, 124678
DOI: 10.1016/j.colsurfa.2020.124678

A Versatile Nanocarrier—Cubosomes, Characterization, and Applications

Cristiana Oliveira, Celso J. O. Ferreira, Miguel Sousa, Juan L. Paris, Ricardo Gaspar, Bruno F. B. Silva, José A. Teixeira, Pedro Ferreira-Santos and Claudia M. Botelho

Nanomaterials, 2022, 12, 2224
DOI: 10.3390/nano12132224

Cubosomes: The Next Generation of Smart Lipid Nanoparticles?

Hanna M. G. Barriga, Margaret N. Holme and Molly M. Stevens

Angew Chem Int Ed, 2019, 58, 2958
DOI: 10.1002/anie.201804067

Regulating the structural polymorphism and protein corona composition of phytantriol-based lipid nanoparticles using choline ionic liquids

Mohamad El Mohamad, Qi Han, Andrew J. Clulow, Cheng Cao, Aneeqa Safdar, Martina Stenzel, Calum J. Drummond, Tamar L. Greaves and Jiali Zhai

Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 2024, 657, 841
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2023.12.005

Encapsulation of berberine into liquid crystalline nanoparticles to enhance its solubility and anticancer activity in MCF7 human breast cancer cells

Yan Shan Loo, Thiagarajan Madheswaran, Ramkumar Rajendran and Rajendran JC. Bose

Journal of Drug Delivery Science and Technology, 2020, 57, 101756
DOI: 10.1016/j.jddst.2020.101756

Cubosomes stabilized by a polyphosphoester-analog of Pluronic F127 with reduced cytotoxicity

Marco Fornasier, Stefania Biffi, Barbara Bortot, Paolo Macor, Angelika Manhart, Frederik R. Wurm and Sergio Murgia

Journal of Colloid and Interface Science, 2020, 580, 286
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcis.2020.07.038