Hybrid Polymer/Lipid Membranes and Thin Films

Dear Colleagues,

In recent years, the association of lipids and in particular phospholipids with (co)polymers to design hybrid polymer–lipid membranes in the form of vesicles or thin films has been the subject of an increasing number of studies. The driving force behind this surging interest is often the design of entities that synergistically combine the benefits of each component (biofunctionality, the permeability of lipid bilayers, the mechanical stability and chemical versatility of polymer membranes), which can be exploited in applications such as controlled and targeted drug delivery, biomolecular recognition within biosensors for diagnosis, functional membranes for artificial cells, and the development of bioinspired micro/nanoreactors.
To date, relatively few studies have focused on understanding structure–property relationships between molecular parameters (nature of the lipids and copolymers used, lipid fraction, physical state and fluidity of the lipid phases) and membrane or film nanostructure. Processes for obtaining these hybrid nanostructures are another aspect that warrants further investigation. However, promising results have been reported, such as membrane protein insertion in hybrid membranes, or enhanced biodistribution through advantageous in vivo targeting mechanisms that confirm the high potential of these hybrid polymer/lipid self-assemblies.
The aim of this Special Issue of Polymers is to highlight the progress made in understanding fundamental aspects of hybrid lipid–polymer vesicles, including composition/structure/property relationships, formation protocols and mechanisms and the incorporation of additional functional components, and the potential uses of hybrid vesicles within biotechnology, biomedical, nanotechnology, and chemical applications. Experimental or theoretical original research papers that can expand our understanding of these systems and illustrate their future applications and technologies are sought.

Dr. Jean-François Le Meins
Dr. Paul Beales
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Polymers is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.