Liquid marble (LM) is a fluid droplet covered by solid particles. Its structure consists of a liquid core and solid shell where particles from the shell do not interact with the liquid core. A preparation is simple and fast. On the powder bed certain volume of liquid is poured and particles spontaneously cover the liquid surface. LM can also be observed in nature for example after a long drought when the first rain droplet falls and doesn’t soak into the soil immediately, but it is encapsulated by dust particles.
Figure 1: Preparation of liquid marbles.
Main properties of LM are:
- LM can be rolled on another solid surface as a glass sphere.
- LM can float on another fluid.
- Just the air can pass through the shell.
Figure 2: A floating water liquid marble on water surface.
LM can be divided into 2 main categories: water and oil LM according to the liquid core In our lab we are using both of them. In the water LMs we are cultivating carcinoma cells to create 3D cell structures called spheroids (due to their spherical shape). For more details find 3D cell structures in our webpage.
We are testing the oil LMs for their capabilities to become novel drug dosage form for poorly water soluble drugs. We have successfully created oil LMs with high percentage of various APIs, then we filled a hard gelatin capsule. Our group is also focusing on the process automation and scale up for bigger production.
Publications
- Janská P., Rychecký O., Zadražil A., Štěpánek F., Čejková J., “Liquid oil marbles: increasing the bio-availability of poorly water-soluble drugs”, J. Pharm. Sci. 108, 2136-2142 (2019)
- Rychecký O., Majerská M., Král V., Štěpánek F., Čejková J., “Spheroid cultivation of HT-29 carcinoma cell line in liquid marbles”, Chem. Pap. 71, 1055-1063 (2017)